Jesse Bricker is a Principal Economist at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, DC. Jesse is on a team of economists that help manage and develop the Survey of Consumer Finances, a large nationally-representative survey of household wealth. As a Fed economist, Jesse also helps inform the Board of Governors on economic events and conducts independent research. Some of Jesse’s research has been published in Brookings Papers on Economic Activity and the Journal of Urban Economics, and has been featured in popular press in the New York Times and the Financial Times, among others. Jesse has worked at the Fed since 2009 when he graduated from Syracuse University with a PhD in economics.

Reflection

I can't thank the Miami economics department enough for introducing me to the field of economics. In Prof. Curme's intermediate micro course, I saw how interesting economics can be. Prof. Even's econometrics course was where applied micro methods finally clicked for me. As a math and stats major, I came to economics late in my undergrad life. The one-year MA program helped me crystalize the idea that I wanted to purse a doctorate in economics.

As I reflect on my time at Miami, I am grateful that the Miami economics department also allowed me the chance to learn economics from the experts: professors, rather than graduate students.

Jeff Brown is the Josef and Margot Lakonishok Professor of Business and the Dean of the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois. His work has appears in leading economics and finance journals. Jeff began his career as a brand manager for Procter and Gamble. He earned his master's degree in public policy from Harvard in 1995 and his PhD in economics from MIT in 1999. Jeff served at the White House Council of Economic Advisers from 2001-2002 and has taught at the Kennedy School of Government. Among his many other activities, Jeff is also a member of the Board of Trustees for TIAA and Co-Director of the Disability and Retirement Research Center for the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Jeff graduated from Miami in 1990 with a B.A. in Economics. He now lives in Champaign, Illinois.

Reflection

An intro micro-economics course at Miami quite literally changed my life. Under the skillful (and entertaining!) tutelage of Prof. Dennis Sullivan, I discovered that economics is a powerful lens through which to understand the world. After graduating from Miami and spending several years in the business world, I earned a Ph.D. in economics from MIT. I now spend my career doing what I love: creating and disseminating economic knowledge. It is my training as an economist that enables me to simultaneously teach, conduct research, consult with financial services companies, serve on corporate and non-profit boards, and advise state and national elected officials on economic policy. I cannot imagine doing anything else, and it all started at Miami.

Michael Bryan is a vice president and senior economist in the Research Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. He is responsible for organizing the Atlanta Fed's monetary policy process. Mike previously served as vice president in the research department at the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, where he specialized in business analysis with an emphasis on measuring and tracking inflation trends. He has served as an economist in the Research Division of the Federal Reserve System's Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., was a visiting scholar at the Bank of Japan's Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies in Tokyo, and at the Swedish Riksbank in Stockholm. Mike teaches at the Graduate School of Business of the University of Chicago and has previously served on the faculties of Cleveland State University, Baldwin-Wallace College, and Case Western Reserve University, all in Cleveland. He joined the Atlanta Fed in 2008.

A native of Cleveland, Mr. Bryan graduated from Miami in 1978 with a B.S. in Business and earned a master's degree in economics from Case Western Reserve University.

Reflection

When I began my undergraduate studies, I didn't look at the world critically. I was critical of the world, I'm sure, but I didn't have a tool set for working through worldly problems. My thoughts were largely informed by intuition and the opinion of others.

My intermediate microeconomics class began to change all that. Microeconomics gave me a concrete framework for problem solving. Who are the essential players and what is their motivation? Regardless of the issue, if your thinking hasn't been framed by these questions, you've left yourself open to serious errors in judgment.

Here's an example from my professional experience. When I graduated from Miami in 1978 and joined the Federal Reserve, macroeconomics and microeconomics had almost nothing in common other than the word "economics." We knew at that time that monetary policy was contributing to the poor economic climate and we had a good idea what the problem was: our models lacked microeconomic foundations. Specifically, our models didn't have agents whose behavior was influenced by their expectations. That omission in our models gave us a false sense of stability regarding our economic policies.

As we began to incorporate expectations into our models, other shortcomings were revealed and micro-principles seeped in from all directions. In the past twenty years or so we've seen a gradual re-synthesis of macroeconomics and microeconomics and it's pretty clear that economic policy is the better for it. Today, monetary policy is as much about the management of expectations as it is anything else.

It's fair to ask whether the recent financial crisis is an indictment of our macroeconomic models. We clearly missed something big: our models didn't have a thoughtful role for banking and finance. In our models, "banks" were merely passive conduits. They didn't really do anything, at least nothing important for the behavior of the business cycle or the conduct of economic policy. We had no way to think about issues like how leverage might be destabilizing, how information asymmetries could systemically disrupt credit allocation, or how risk might be transmitted across borders. Of course, these are the very forces that seem to have turned an economic slowdown into a financial crisis.

So while our models now have microeconomic foundations, they don't yet include the micro-foundations of banking and finance. That shortcoming is being redressed, and again, I'm sure economic policy will be the better for it. Don't buy into the cynicism that the recent financial crisis tolls the end of our reliance on economic models. After all, what's the alternative? Intuition? The opinion of others? I think the recent financial crisis creates even more opportunity for a new generation of economists to deepen our understanding of the world and improve economic policy. But don't take my word for it. Think it through for yourself.

Leslie A. Creedon is the Associate Director and Chief Advancement Officer at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. As head of advancement, Leslie oversees all fundraising initiatives for the Zoo and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. From 2003 to 2007, she served as the executive director of Partnership Development at the United Nations Foundation in Washington, D.C. There, Leslie designed, implemented, and led its first fundraising strategy with a focus on international partnering and donations. She worked with UN agencies around the globe and represented the foundation at international conferences and events, cultivating relationships with major corporate, foundation, individual and government donors and partners. Leslie has also served as the vice president of External Affairs at Resources for the Future, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization dedicated to energy, environmental and natural resource issues in Washington. She has also held fundraising and communications positions at the Brookings Institution, the Aspen Institute, and the Economic Policy Institute.

Leslie graduated from Miami in 1989 with a B.A. in Economics. She now lives in Washington, D.C.

Reflection

I credit Dennis Sullivan for my career--he was the person who exposed me to the non-profit world and to careers in development by encouraging me to volunteer in the Oxford community alongside him and introducing me to professional fundraisers who helped me network and identify appropriate training programs and job opportunities. Throughout my career in non-profit fundraising, communications, and management, I've utilized my economics degree in a variety of ways. First, my econ background and interest in economics and policy have drawn me, intellectually, and given me a leg up in the job market to work for highly respected thinks tanks, most notably Brookings and Resource for the Future. Second, I have been well prepared to understand, appreciate and translate for donors and constituents the work of these organizations (economics and environmental economics) because of my degree. I don't think I would have been as successful in selling and closing gifts to support academic research as I have been without this technical background. Third, my econ background has provided me with a solid understanding of finance and financial markets, the fields of many of my donors, as well as of business operations, equipping me to be in senior-level management positions.

When I was a senior at Miami, the overwhelming majority of the careers highlighted as employment options were in the for-profit world. Also, the on-campus interview "bidding" process favored B.S. degree students (and I have a B.A. in economics). I hope that the school is now doing a better job of exposing students to the wide variety of career options available to them, especially in the non-profit arena.

Michelle Girard serves as Co-Head of Global Economics and Head of Strategic Coordination & Business Operations in the US. As Co-Head of Global Economics and a Managing Director for NatWest Markets, she oversees economists in the US, China, and India, forecasting growth, inflation, monetary and fiscal policy, and interest rates for the global and regional economies. Michelle analyzes developments in international trade and geopolitics, and has studied the implications of longer-term trends in demographics and technology. Collaborating with market strategists across the globe, Michelle provides synergistic analysis for NatWest Markets customer base on market-moving developments. Michelle is also a regular speaker and commentator on the economic outlook on various print, radio, and television news media including CNBC, Fox Business Network, Bloomberg TV & Radio, and Yahoo! Finance.

In her role as Head of Strategic Coordination and Business Operations, US, Michelle looks after the US operational and business control functions to ensure a well-controlled environment that is within the bank’s risk appetite. She works closely with both the NatWest Markets and NatWest Group leadership teams to coordinate the bank’s global strategic objectives.

As a member of the US Management Committee, Michelle works with other senior leaders to set and implement business strategy in the region. Alongside the US Chief Information Officer, Michelle focuses on innovation efforts in the region, examining Fintech partnerships and other growth opportunities at the intersection of business and technology. As an Executive Co-Sponsor of the US Energized Employee network, Michelle leads initiatives in diversity and inclusion, employee engagement, recognition, and well-being. She is a founding member of the NatWest Markets Women’s Network SteerCo and has taken an active role in helping to create and strengthen the talent development offerings for women across the organization.

Prior to joining the bank, Michelle held roles as Co-Head of the Fixed Income Strategy & Research Group at Prudential Securities, Chief Economist at Sanwa Securities (USA) and Economist with Bear Stearns. Michelle began her professional career as a Research Assistant for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, DC.

She received her MA and BS (magna cum laude) from Miami University

Reflection

My Economics degree from Miami University launched my career. The research that I did with Professor Nick Noble as an undergraduate/graduate student in Economics enabled me to land a job at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington. After two years at the Fed, I accepted a position on Wall Street and moved to New York. I have worked as an economist in the financial industry ever since. Thanks to my studies and the incredible faculty in the Economics Department at Miami, I have been able to spend my career in an industry and a profession that I find dynamic, energizing, and rewarding. Not everyone can say they enjoy the work they do, but I truly can. I will be forever grateful for the opportunities that earning an Economics degree from Miami University have afforded me.

LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-girard-917941137/

Jim Gilligan joined Invesco in this position in 2010. Previously, he served as Managing Director at Morgan Stanley Asset Management and Van Kampen Investments. Jim was the lead portfolio manager of the Van Kampen Growth and Income and the Kampen Equity and Income strategy for 19 years. He managed a number of other investment products over the years including the Van Kampen American Value Fund. He entered the investment industry when he joined American Capital Asset Management as a securities analyst in 1985. Prior to that, he was an auditor for Gulf Oil. Jim holds an MBA with a concentration in accounting from the University of Pittsburgh. He is a CFA charterholder and a Certified Public Accountant. He is a member of the CFA Institute and the Houston Society of Financial Analysts.

Jim graduated from Miami in 1978 with degrees in Economics and Finance and now lives in Houston.

Reflection

I was an Economics/Finance major at Miami. I can't remember why I chose economics, except I had a very good Econ teacher in high school that introduced the basics and also had us participate in a stock picking contest which, eventually, steered me to career in investments. I was not much of a student in college but I thought, as I still do, that studying Economics would provide a more liberal education and lead to better long term "thinking".

As I have progressed in life and my career, economics, and particularly behavioral economics/finance, have interested me more and more. Although many would like economics to be a predictable science, it has proven to policy makers and prognosticators time and time again that, because of the multitude of known and unknown variables, it is impossible, or at least nearly impossible, to accurately predict or formulate effective policy. But because of this unpredictability, a tremendous amount of thought is brought to fore and, while there may not be totally correct answers, the whole process is a lot more interesting than the more concrete business disciplines.

The period that we are now experiencing, from Greenspan to the current Yellen regime at the Fed, could prove to be one of the most outstanding learning experiences in the field in quite a while. Couple that with the experiences in Japan over the last 30 years and their experiment now to gain "breakout velocity" and China's incredible attempt to bring itself into the developed world without the common volatility that this entails, and you see incredibly fertile ground for study for at least a generation.

Scott is Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Ascena Retail Group’s Plus Fashion Segment.  Based in Columbus, OH, Ascena’s Lane Bryant, Cacique, and Catherines brands combine to do over $1.3B in revenue across 1,000 stores and e-commerce. Scott first joined Lane Bryant in 1994 after starting his career at Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati and is currently responsible for the finance, accounting, and e-commerce functions. A native of Cleveland, Scott lived and studied in France in both high school and college. He currently serves on the board of the American Red Cross of Greater Columbus, the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland’s Business Advisory Council, and is the President of Miami University’s Alumni Advisory Board.

Scott graduated from Miami in 1990 with degrees in economics, French, and international studies. He and his wife, Kristy, live in Upper Arlington, have 2 kids (Jacob, Miami class of 2019, and Kate) and enjoys golf, cycling, and travel.

Reflection

As I look back on what it's meant to have been an economics major, my first thought is of the line we used to use to justify ourselves on a daily basis within the business school: "In finance you learn what to think, in economics we learn how to think." Thirty years into my career, I still believe it's true.

The opportunity I had as an A&S econ major to mix business studies with history, political science, math/stats, etc. was truly the foundation for any success that followed. As the CFO of a $1B retailer, my career has been built not on being a great accountant, generating tremendous reporting, or on anything related to treasury management. My entire career has developed based on my ability to do a few things really well:

1. Analyze complex data to find true insights and then turn those insights into recommendations for decisions or new strategy - in other words, continuously make the organization smarter (20%)
2. Sell those recommendations to others so we can take action (40%)
3. Partner with diverse people across different functional areas - marketing, product development, merchandising, stores - to implement those ideas effectively (40%)

I can make a direct link between the kinds of experience I had as an undergraduate econ major and my ability to do these things well enough to then start refining the skills along the way.

I can also specifically link my math/stats studies and econometrics classes to a lot of early value I added in my career. In a retail business with over 1,000 stores, the ever-present question is "What makes a good store good?" With a massive data warehouse of seemingly unlimited store performance data, regression analysis is our lifeblood, and we have a team whose sole purpose is to "test & learn."  We test different products and inventory levels, different labor models, and different store merchandising strategies. We look at how the presence of a store in a given trade area affects our e-commerce sales from customers in that trade area. Our industry is changing so much these days, and the analytics that come from my team are critical to our making the right decisions as we keep pace with that change.

I also know that my economics studies have played a very practical role in my life outside of work - from helping me to navigate the finances of buying our first house to understanding the complexities of the worldwide economic challenges we currently face. Life's full of challenges, but I can't think of a better foundation I could have had than the economics and broader liberal arts education -- and experience -- I had at Miami.

Erick’s career has had two primary chapters, technology and finance. The majority of the first ten years were spent in New York at Cisco Systems from the mid-90’s through 2003, where he managed Cisco’s business relationship with several global investment banks. The balance of his career has been spent in finance. He spent several years in sales and trading at Lehman Brothers, where he was a member of the equity structure products group. After Lehman, he spent six years running the structured products group at Deutsche Bank. After leaving Deutsche Bank in the summer of 2012, he was one of four founding members of Stone Ridge Asset Management, a New York based fund manager focused on alternative risk premium strategies.

Lisa Tintera Guirl spent most of her career as an economist at Macroeconomic Advisers (MA), formerly Laurence H. Meyer and Associates, an economic consulting firm focused on macro modeling and forecasting of the US economy and policy analysis. Her most recent role there was developing a new product that provides banks with consistent alternative economic scenarios that they are required to use in stress testing their portfolios in order comply with Dodd Frank. Lisa also been responsible for writing daily, weekly, and monthly economic briefings, and aided in the continual development of the Washington University Macro Model. Most recently, Lisa has been with Conway Investment Research providing a macroeconomic overlay to their investment strategy, advising the team on macroeconomic issues and writing the monthly economic newsletter, Keeping Connected. Lisa currently serves as Treasurer of the Conway School Association as the chair of the school's capital campaign, and sits on the Board of Directors of Bellerive Country Club.

Lisa graduated from Miami with both a B.S. and a B.A. in Economics in 1991 and an M.A. from Miami in 1991. She now lives in St. Louis.

I initially became an econ major because I loved history and was good at math but struggled in finding a meaningful application of it. Economics provided a framework to use math to develop policy. I was lucky enough to spend a year in Luxembourg just as the European Union was coming of age study the economics of the EU, the ECB, and the ECU. One of the best things that I ever did was stay at Miami and earn my Master’s degree in economics. That year gave me an extra skill set that helped me land my first job at what was then Laurence H. Meyer and Associates—a macroeconomic forecasting firm. I was the third Miami grad they had hired---they knew that Miami had a strong program. I spent years analyzing, writing about, and advising clients on the macro effects of policy….the very reason I studied economics to begin with!

Alicia Howrey is a graduate student at the University of Georgia in the Master’s of Arts in Teaching program which is a 15 month program to be qualified to teach economics at the high school level. Previously, she worked at Nielsen as an Analyst and Associate Client Manager on the Procter & Gamble account. Alicia began her career in 2011 as an Analyst working on P&G's Fabric Care portfolio which includes household brands like Tide and Gain detergent and then worked as an Associate Client Manager on P&G's ever-growing Personal Health Care business including OTC medications such as NyQuil and Prilosec. Her team was responsible for addressing a broad range of business issues such as determining the most effective pricing strategy by brand to targeting high-opportunity consumers and effectively tracking the health of the business. She developed and led the Client Service team’s ongoing training program to encourage continued development of all associates on the team and was also actively engaged in Nielsen’s Employee Resource Group for women “WIN”.

Alicia graduated from Miami with a B.A. in Economics in 2011.

Reflection

After reading Levitt's newly popular book Freakonomics Senior year of High School, I knew I was hooked and declared my major at Miami University shortly thereafter, without a single economics course under my belt. Fortunately, I found the same intrigue and passion in my economics courses at Miami as I had in Levitt's book, learning about the seemingly hidden side of everything. I had never felt so equally challenged and encouraged academically as I did in my economics courses. 4 years and countless macro and microeconomics lectures at FSB later, I accepted a job with Nielsen as an Analyst on the Procter & Gamble account in Cincinnati. I could not have found a company more engrained in what I loved about economics. Understanding what consumers purchase, how, and why, i.e. the fundamentals of economics, is at the heart of what Nielsen does. As we address business questions related to targeting consumers, pricing, and competition, economics is always top of mind, guiding the way I think through the issue and determine solutions. I’ve found economics to be an effective framework for problem-solving. The way economics teaches you to analyze a problem - assessing the costs and benefits, dissecting the decision-making process - is a highly valued skill. I now find the same intrigue, passion, and challenge in my work as I once did in class, using the guiding principles of economics as the foundation for endless curiosity and learning.

LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/aliciaplanincic

Daniel Hungerman is the Stepan Family Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Notre Dame; he is also a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Dan's work has been published in leading economics journals and, he has been funded by organizations such as the National Institute of Health and the John Templeton Foundation. His work has been cited in the The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Reader's Digest, CNN, Fox News, and National Public Radio. Dan also enjoys teaching at Notre Dame and in 2012 was recognized by the University for promoting excellence in undergraduate instruction. He received his PhD in Economics from Duke University in 2005.

Dan graduated from Miami with a B.A. in Economics in 2000. He now lives in Indiana.

Reflection

Needless to say, as someone who now teaches economics for a living, my undergraduate major in economics means an enormous amount to me. It all started when I was a sophomore at Miami and took Gerry Miller's terrific principles class. I really had no plans to major in economics at the time. I liked the class, did well, and thought I would take some more econ classes. The department at Miami did a terrific job mentoring me, pointing me not just to the major but to grad school as well.

The instruction I got at Miami also opened my eyes to the fact that economics is not just a major with great career prospects, but also a major that combines creativity, imagination, and rigorous thinking in a rich and exciting way. At the moment, the students I teach seem very interested in the value of an economics degree for their careers. But I think economics is more than that-it gives insights to so many disparate parts of life, from how we have kids to how bank runs work to how much money we will spend on the day we die (a lot, potentially). Economics is the best!

Marty Igel is Vice President, Generic Pharmaceuticals at Cardinal Health. Marty Igel is responsible for strategy, business development and product pricing for Generic Pharmaceuticals business unit. He has also been the Director of Structured Finance and Investments, Director of Transfer Pricing and Economic Analysis, and the Director of Finance for Global Sourcing. Prior to joining Cardinal Health, he worked for 12 years in investment banking, public finance, asset securitization, structured finance, and mezzanine equity investment.

Marty graduated from Miami in 1987 with a B.S. in Economics. He now lives in Columbus Ohio.

Reflection

I came to Miami intending to get an undergraduate degree and then go on to law school. It seemed to be a good idea to major in something business related, as I intended to be a corporate attorney. So, I decided to major in economics, because it sounded like a well-rounded business discipline.

Larry Chenault was my first econ professor in the fall of my sophomore year. From that class on, I knew that economics was right for me. It just all made sense. I was fascinated with understanding the inner workings of a firm and how all the parties involved made their decisions.

In short, economics taught me how to think. I didn't learn specific business skills in these classes (like how to put together a balance sheet). Instead, I learned something much more valuable - how to analyze and think critically. I often refer to this as the ability to �connect the dots'. It's the number one criterion I use when making hiring decisions for the groups that I manage.

This background has served me well in my career. Instead of going to law school, I started my career in investment banking. I specialized in a very technical field, and the ability to connect to dots enabled me to be successful.

After several years in investment banking, I moved to a corporate role at Cardinal Health. Once there, I've had the opportunity to take on several roles, all involving a heavy emphasis on analytics. Being able to understand complex situations and explain them to others has been invaluable in my career. I trace those abilities back to the days at Miami where I was trained to think critically and understand how everything fits together.

Troy Jackson began his career with Procter & Gamble learning the basics of marketing and market research on household brands like Crest and Cover Girl Cosmetics. He now works with Philips (PHG) leading a portfolio of Global Brand Licensing partners for the Americas. He has been with Philips for the last 5 years managing global product portfolios from consumer electronics to strategic brand alliances including the award winning Philips O'Neill headphones partnership. In these roles, Troy has made many appearances with the global press for product launches and marketing campaign announcements while working both in the US and working abroad from Hong Kong. Prior to joining Philips, Troy was VP of Marketing and Product for a venture backed technology startup that was acquired by a leading internet service provider company. Earlier in Troy's career, he managed a number of credit product portfolios for Bank of America.

Troy graduated from Miami with a B.S. in Economics in 1996 and earned his MBA from Harvard Business School. While at Miami University, he studied on our Luxembourg campus. He now lives in Hong Kong.

Reflection

"IT DEPENDS." This is the answer to most economics questions and is also the answer to most of life's questions. I didn't have the foresight at the time, but economics was exactly the major that I needed for my career. I knew I wanted to be in business and eventually manage a business one day. I didn't want to get typecast as an accountant or a financial analyst or an operations guy. I wanted to be exposed to all the levers of a business and to be able to figure out the impact of investing in one area vs. another. Economics teaches you how to think and how to evaluate the impact of one variable on all the rest. This is the same thought process that you need for business and for life.

Margaret Layding is a market researcher with expertise in business analytics and planning. Her experience includes forecasting, marketing ROI work, media planning, pricing and competitive analysis for companies and products around the world. Margaret started her career at Procter & Gamble, where she worked on global brands including Pampers and Crest (1994 - 2007). She was later the Director of business analytics at Mars Chocolate (2007 -2010). Since 2010 she has owned her own business, Rhapsody Insights LLC, where she consults to clients with a variety of business analysis needs.

Margaret graduated from Miami in 1993 with a B.S. in Economics. She now lives in Clinton, New Jersey.

Reflection

Economics is the perfect mix of math, logic, psychology, and future planning skills. Over the years, the Econ majors I’ve met and worked with have consistently been broad thinkers who can integrate ideas from multiple areas. One of my favorite professors at Miami, Dr. Mike Curme, took that “big picture” approach when teaching his Econ 315 class and that’s when I knew I had found the perfect major.

The principles you learn and the skills you develop in the study of Economics touch every area of life, business and personal. With today's global mindset, big data, and advances in information technology, it’s a very exciting time to put that knowledge to practice!

Marty Myers is a partner in the law firm of Covington & Burling in San Francisco. He was formally a partner with Jones Day. Marty is nationally recognized for his success in obtaining large insurance recoveries for complex losses in many industries, with a particular emphasis on the technology sector. While best known for representing technology companies, Marty has successfully recovered insurance money for clients in industries including real estate and construction, natural resource extraction, entertainment, and financial services. Marty frequently advises policyholders on complex insurance underwriting, loss prevention, and risk transfer situations. He is among the world's leading practitioners in mergers and acquisition-related insurance, including tax loss, representation, and warranty and environmental policies. Marty was counsel in the placement of the largest tax loss insurance program in history. Marty also has been lead defense counsel in several notable securities and corporate litigation matters. He has obtained dismissals of clients and established important principles of California law through several published decisions.

Marty graduated from Miami with a B.A. in Economics in 1984 and holds a law degree from the University of Michigan. He lives in Berkeley, near the University of California campus.

Reflection

Being an economics major at Miami changed the way I see the world. The training I received in economics provided me with primary tools to better assess and critically evaluate nearly every aspect of my life. Most important, it taught me how to ask the right questions and how best to evaluate the information I receive. At Miami, I began using econometrics to model aspects of human behavior, intending to develop ways of using such information to influence government policy. I found decision and game theory incredibly interesting and useful, in part for the same purposes.

I attended law school, and discovered that the skills I had developed at Miami - especially the ability to see the world through the lens of economic decision-making - were fundamental to success in law school. Rather than pursue a career influencing government policy, however, I discovered that I also greatly enjoy courtroom advocacy. Over the years, quite unexpectedly, I also discovered an area of law practice particularly well suited to the critical analytic skills that developed during my years at Miami: insurance recovery. I represent corporate policyholders in major disputes with insurers over losses of many types - catastrophic property damage/business interruption, intellectual property and other liabilities. I routinely deploy my econometric modeling skills to analysis of losses and recovery valuation (to the amazement or consternation of forensic experts). The decision and game theory principles I learned allow me to advise clients on key strategic decisions, and to anticipate and defeat positions taken by litigation opponents. In short, the way the Miami Econ Department taught me to understand the world has provided the critical lens that allows me to succeed as a lawyer.

Professional success is a very important aspect of the "dismal science" training I received at Miami. But more important, the lens that training has provided allows me to be a much more engaged, inquisitive, happy and effective husband, father, friend and participant in economic and government affairs.

Dale currently works for AbbVie as Senior Tax Counsel. He was formerly the Associate General Tax Counsel, and Director of Tax Research and Planning at BP America. Prior to joining BP, Dale practiced at Squire, Sanders, & Dempsey in Cleveland. He advises his clients on a wide range of federal, state, and international tax issues, including acquisitions and dispositions, corporate restructuring, and financial products. Dale earned his JD at the Ohio State College of Law where he was the Associate Editor of The Ohio State Law Journal. He is also a certified public accountant. Dale has served as a mentor in the Menttium program for mentoring professional women in the corporate arena, and as mentor in BP's "Emerging Leaders" program for high potential tax professionals.

Dale graduated from Miami in 1975 with a B.A. in Economics. He now lives in Chicago.

Reflection

When I think about my time as an Economics major, one person comes immediately to mind-Jerry Miller. I took my first course with him during Winter quarter of my freshman year (a large lecture class of course), and I was totally blown away. Two things struck me about the class. First, how absolutely intriguing and interesting the material was, and second, Jerry's unwavering passion. I was fascinated about what Jerry had to say. At the same time, his "unconventional" style made his class all the more interesting.

I went on to take several more classes with Jerry, including a graduate class my senior year. Jerry imparted to me critical thinking skills that no doubt have helped me as a lawyer. He constantly challenged his students and manifested (rightly so!) his impatience with "lazy" thinking. For this I am very grateful.

Stephanie Schumacher began her career at Macy's (then Federated Department Stores) in Cincinnati working as an economic analyst.  She held a variety of positions in finance including Corporate FP&A and Capital Planning, a team responsible for managing the company’s $1B+ capital budget. After two stints in New York, she returned to Cincinnati in 2014 and is currently a Vice President heading the company’s Capital Planning, Area Research, and Technology Finance teams. 

A native of Columbus, Ohio, Stephanie graduated from Miami with a B.S.B. in Business-Economics in 2001 and an M.A. in Economics in 2002.

Reflection

I majored in economics because it taught me how to think, and I liked that I didn't have to rely on memorization to do well on tests. My first job at Macy's was a dream come true, working as a business economist in the exciting retail industry and studying consumer behavior. But as my interests expanded to finance, I realized that my economics training was still a huge asset. The common thread in all of my positions is that they are very analytical, and being able to analyze data is imperative in retail. Econometrics taught me how to set up a good test, but since real life is not a perfect laboratory, we spend a lot of time trying to interpret test results in the absence of ideal controls. So while I don't use the complex methods I learned in the master's program, I rely on the principles of those methods every day to interpret results. I also think that economics as a social science has helped me to understand what motivates behavior and to work more effectively with different types of people. This is extremely important in the business world. Great analysis is useless unless you can explain it, build partnerships, and convince others to endorse it. I truly love what I do and majoring in economics at Miami is what started it all.

LinkedIN

https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemschumacher/

Karen Simpson currently works with various non-profit agencies on programs to help people out of poverty, primarily focusing on efforts on financial literacy training and personal financial counseling. Previously, she worked at Arthur Anderson, GE, and Fabri-centers in various roles performing analysis and development of information systems for manufacturing, retailing and financial applications. In addition, while at Miami University, Karen was an intern at the Federal Reserve Board collecting and compiling data for industrial production.

Karen received her B.S. in Business Economics from Miami University in 1981 and lives in Cincinnati.

Reflection

Economics is a fascinating discipline combining the concrete, quantitative analysis of revenues and costs with the behavioral analysis of how people think and respond to economic forces. The intellectual rigor and breadth of thought required has provided an excellent foundation in every stage of my career, from the quantitative analysis I used at the Federal Reserve Board for informing macroeconomic policy to the business analysis at Arthur Andersen and GE used to maximize competitiveness. Currently, in my work in the nonprofit sector, it informs both the quantitative and behavioral issues involved in tackling the challenges of generational poverty.

Brian’s mix of curiosity and analytics has helped him gain over 20 years of experience driving growth and innovation for some of the world’s leading brands. Brian leads ThinkVine’s product and service teams, helping to ensure that the company's services and technology continue to evolve along with the needs of our customers. Prior to joining ThinkVine, he served as a Principal at The Connell Group, developing brand strategies and innovation plans for clients including Johnson & Johnson, and The Hershey Company. Before that, Smith held senior roles at Nielsen, The Cambridge Group, and BASES where he led transformative client initiatives for major consumer packaged goods companies globally, including Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Kellogg’s, Coca Cola, General Mills, Energizer, and ConAgra. Mr. Smith began his career at Procter & Gamble, guiding innovation and strategy for Crisco, Folgers, Millstone, Scope, Fixodent, and Crest; he also led the commercial team that developed Whitestrips. Brian holds a BA in Economics from Miami University.

Drew Spata has been the Economist for Macy’s Inc since 2016. He is a former member of the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce Economic Advisory Group, and is currently part of the Federal Reserve of Cleveland Business Advisory Council. Prior to being Chief Economist he was a part of the small economics department with the company for eight years. Responsibilities include understanding and forecasting long and short term economic trends as they relate to the company as well as the retail industry as a whole. Internally runs research programs to understand projects and changes the company has made to better serve our customers. All of this comes together to build financial models and guidance for the Macy’s managements teams. Prior to his time in Cincinnati, he lived in Seattle, WA. Working for an operating division of Macy’s was part of the Gross Margin and Expense team there for three years. He received his Bachelors of Science in Economics from Miami University in 2001, and Master of Arts in Economics from Miami University in 2002. After graduating he stayed on as a Visiting Professor in Economics at Miami for two years. He lives in Cincinnati with his wife (also a graduate of Miami) and two daughters Lily and EV.

Reflection

I came into Miami without much understanding what I wanted to pursue except that I knew I wanted to be in the business school. Between my first Finance class and first Economics class I was hooked. When one of my professors described Economics as Applied Finance that was all it took for me. When I then found out that Economics was also applied mathematics and statistics I was ready to go. I have always enjoyed the thought process and approach to problems that economics teachings dictate. They have served me well and always lead me to extra questions or to pursue unique solutions. Teaching Economics for two years really gave me an appreciation of the discovery of the subject all over again. As students began to understand new concepts or look at situations differently I found great joy in the subject in a new way.