Doctor of Business Administration
Class of 2023
Brian D. Adams
Southern University and A&M College
As chief audit executive for the Southern University System, Brian D. Adams is responsible
for financial, operational and compliance audits for five campuses which comprise
the system, headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Throughout his career, he has
worked in internal audit, finance and accounting, regulatory affairs and business
development for companies in the electric utilities, computer and newspaper industries.
He describes himself as a life-long learner who is always looking to bridge gaps between theory and practical application. Through the DBA, Adams hopes to transition to teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He is eager to apply his learnings and research in the doctoral experience at USF to his current place of employment.
Adams earned an MBA with a concentration in management from the University of St.
Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, and a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Southern
University and A&M College.
Paige Bridges
University of Virginia
Paige Bridges is the director of communications and marketing for the University of
Virginia’s School of Education and Human Development. She is responsible for leading
strategic planning to promote over 80 online and on-grounds degree programs, research
centers and the work of over 140 faculty through owned, earned and paid media strategies.
Before joining UVA, she was the director of brand marketing for the education technology company 2U and was responsible for developing data-driven marketing strategies for online master and doctoral programs with USC and Pepperdine University. Prior to working in higher education, she spent more than 20 years of leadership experience working in the corporate and nonprofit sectors for brands including L’Oreal, American Express, World Wildlife Fund and the National Geographic Society. Bridges and her husband recently moved to a 55-acre farm in southwest Virginia.
She earned a master’s degree in digital communication from Johns Hopkins University,
an MBA in marketing from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree in biology
from Columbia University.
James Cole
Leon County Schools
As director of transportation for the Leon County School District, James Cole does
more than make sure the buses are on time. He is a versatile professional with proven
success to drive results and implement cost-efficient programs. He is an innovative
leader with the ability to analyze and manage operational problems and apply sound
recommendations for long-term solutions.
As director, Cole administers, manages, and coordinates the districtwide operation of the transportation department. He monitors expenditures and conducts tasks related to the preparation of the annual budget as well as develops multi-year strategic and operational plans. He is involved in labor relations and is responsible for the daily operations of the entire department. Prior to his current position, Cole served as project manager and business process re-engineering analyst with Urban Partnership Bank in Chicago.
Cole earned an MBA and a Master of Public Health degree from Florida A&M University
and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from DeVry University.
Kimberly Cubre
California State University, Fresno
As the executive assistant to the vice president of university advancement at Fresno
State University, Kimberly Cubre provide seamless, strategic support across six departments
with more than 80 team members. She serves as the department’s chief liaison and manages
the scheduling, meeting logistics and facilitation, strategic planning, budget support
and some HR functions. Additionally, she facilitates campus-wide projects such as
honorary doctorates, president’s medals and building naming processes.
She has been an executive assistant for more than a decade in banking, health care and higher education. Her favorite position prior to Fresno State was working at McKesson Corporation as an account manager overseeing accounts receivables for physician-owned medical practices. In that role, she worked heavily in data analytics and client dashboards. She is passionate about her career as an executive assistant because it offers her a chance to serve others.
Cubre earned a master’s degree in education, administration and leadership and a bachelor’s
degree in business administration, both from California State University, Fresno.
Dick “Richard” Davis
Gartner, Inc.
Richard Davis, a former business solutions architect with Cisco Systems, is a dynamic
leader with more than 15 years of proven excellence driving business growth through
technology. He designs business vision and strategy by collaborating with executive
leadership and multifunctional teams, formulating long-term strategic priorities and
plans related to organic and inorganic growth.
He has established a reputation as a transformational leader, who is driven by challenge, undeterred by obstacles and committed to furthering standards of excellence. His expertise encompasses all aspects of network security products, revenue-building initiatives and business development strategies. Among his strengths: an ability to build consensus among executive teams and stakeholders to promote transparency and influence positive change.
Davis earned an Executive MBA from the University of Nebraska and a bachelor’s degree
in mass communication from Southern University A&M. He was named Innovator of the
Year (2010) through AIM Institute and was on the 40 Under 40 list of the Midland’s
Business Journal in 2010.
Hayley Dunford
Omnis Bookkeeping & Business Solutions
Hayley Dunford got a broker’s license at 22 and started her first business at 23.
Over the course of her career, she has owned or co-owned five companies that focused
on finance, auto transport, realty and woodworking. She founded Omnis Bookkeeping
& Business Solutions in 2017. She manages a team of three employees, oversees the
work of contractors and assists more than 75 companies across the nation with their
accounting needs.
Dunford also is owner of Auto Transport on Demand, an auto-transport brokerage company founded in 2016 and is the broker/owner of Realty Center International, a real estate brokerage based in Sarasota. Prior to these roles, she was a real estate analyst for Bealls. At 28, she feels her breadth of experience in the corporate world has prepared her for the demands of a doctoral experience and its networking opportunities. The key to achieving long-term success, she says, lies in developing strong relationships.
She earned a master’s degree in accountancy from the University of Phoenix and a bachelor’s
degree in business administration from the University of Florida.
Kelly Fay
Northrop Grumman
Though a cost account manager with Northrop Grumman, Kelly Fay is also a technical
writer and editor, and an employee-resource-group chapter lead. During her time in
the U.S. Navy where she served as acquisition and production manager. In her current
role, she employs Lean Six Sigma and property management methodologies to monitor
and manage costs, schedule and scope of projects across all phases of development
and collaborates with senior management and off-site program managers in the delivery
of project strategy, goals, priorities and planning.
In her most recent role in the Navy, Fay led a fast-paced operation of six recruiters canvassing 10 different schools to meet or exceed recruitment standards, while coordinating training. She analyzed information from interviews, educational and medical records, consultation with other professionals, and diagnostic evaluations to assess applicants’ abilities, needs and eligibility for the service.
Fay earned a master’s degree in administrative leadership from the University of Oklahoma
and a bachelor’s degree in communication disorders from the University of Rhode Island.
Daniel Gilham
Farther Finance
As managing director of advisor strategy at Farther Finance, a digital family office,
Daniel Gilham conducts complex financial analysis, using his experience in mergers
and acquisitions, portfolio management, tax, estate and risk management theories for
the best possible outcomes. He is responsible for succession planning strategies for
business owners and entrepreneurs. He is heavily involved in the planning and analysis
of concentrated, illiquid positions to help individuals achieve their goals.
He spent nine years with AOL leading the company into new markets. He was responsible for managing teams and product rollout around the globe and throughout the United States. He was part of a group that summited Mt. Rainier while raising $57,000 for Tiny Hope Children’s Home in Jamaica.
Gilham received a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies concentrating on
business and computational science from Liberty University. He earned the certified
financial planner designation from the University of Miami. He serves on the GrowFL
and the University of North Florida Economics Advisory Board.
Matthew Grace
By Night Studios
Matthew Grace is a partner at By Night Studios, a developer and publisher of role-playing
games, including one of the most recognizable products in the industry, The World
of Darkness, Mind’s Eye Theatre, a live-action, role-playing game, now more than 27
years-old. He also serves as the director of marketing research and innovation, identifying
insights that shape future strategies. He also is an analyst at Gordon Food Service,
the 22nd largest privately held company in the United States.
He focuses on the creation of strategy through data analysis and his innovative approach has stimulated competitive advantages in the role-playing game industry. Among his accomplishments at By Night Studios: The creation of a multi-channel survey program that reaches tens of thousands of customers, to drive smarter publication and merchandising decisions. His design of an influencer support and promotion program collaborates with key social media influencers unique to the gaming industry to promote sales of By Night Studios’ merchandise and book publications.
Grace received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of South Florida.
Vince Hafeli
Ajax Paving Industries of Florida
Vince Hafeli is president of Ajax Paving Industries of Florida, located in southwest
Florida, where he oversees operations for the organization that employs more than
450 workers. He is responsible for the overall process and sets the company's direction.
His plan is not to use his doctorate to advance his career, but rather to enhance his knowledge and skills in research and interviewing. His research will analyze suicide within the construction industry. His post-doctoral plans involve suicide education and awareness training within this industry to promote a more stable workforce. One of the benefits of the program, he says, is to create opportunities aimed at reducing suicide in this industry. He looks forward to completing this program and making an impact in educating executive leaders within the industry as a first step toward open and honest discussions about mental health issues as they relate to suicide.
Hafeli earned an MBA from Webster University and a bachelor’s degree in management
from Phoenix University.
Jason Maniecki
All-Pro Realty of Tampa Bay
Jason Maniecki is the president and “head coach” for All Pro Realty, a subsidiary
of Keller Williams Realty. He is a highly driven, results-oriented business leader
and real estate consultant with more than 20 years’ experience in the real estate
industry. All Pro Realty provided residential sales and property management services
in the Tampa Bay area and in 2018, the company expanded to add full-service residential
property rental and management.
As founder of the company, Maniecki envisions and manages its direction, creates budget projections and oversees all media and web design. He provides guidance and assists sellers in marketing and selling properties for the right price and best terms as well as providing guidance for buyers in purchasing properties. He oversees the day-to-day operations and team leaders. He is a former defense tackle of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996-98.
Maniecki received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin. He has been
a licensed real estate agent since 1999 and a licensed real estate broker since 2002.
Shanker Menon
Menon International
Shanker Menon is the CEO of Menon International, a management consulting firm, but
he is also an academic. He has served as associate professor of management at the
Dhofar University in Oman and the American University of RAK near Dubai. He teaches
strategic management, leadership, and business analytics.
His life’s journey has been a constant push to improve himself and to achieve the goals that he believes will help in becoming the person he wants to be, both intellectually and ethically. He has been involved in numerous projects in which his skills of collaboration were needed to succeed, including his involvement with a University of Quebec project to establish a new MBA program in China. His research interests include the development of new businesses especially in the areas of talent management and consultancy. He is involved in the nonprofit Cathedral Arts Project.
Menon earned a PhD from USF with a concentration in organizational psychology management,
an MBA from Mysore University specializing in management, a master’s degree in specialized
managerial economics and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Delhi School of
Economics, Delhi University.
Tammie Nelson
Shyft Partners
Tammie Nelson is a strategic leader with an instinctive curiosity for making sense
of complex and ambiguous subject matters. From military systems to corporate America’s
various technologies, she has developed a deep understanding of the intersection of
business and IT. She has 20 years’ experience in designing and integrating systems
and for the past eight years has coached Agile, both as practices for teams and as
leadership behaviors for executives. She is the co-founder of Shyft Partners LLC,
a consultancy focused on transformations, innovation, turnaround efforts and post-acquisition
integrations. As an agilist, she enjoys working on the edge of chaos where opportunities
are limitless, and experimentation is a source of innovation.
Previously, she served as director of Cybersecurity and Enterprise Systems Programs with Sonic and director of the Enterprise Program Office for Inspire Brands. She is a U.S Navy veteran.
Nelson earned a master’s degree in management information systems and accountancy
and a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies from the University of Oklahoma.
Corry Retzloff
University of Texas, Arlington
After retiring from military service as a logistics officer, Corry Retzloff spent
his second career in the aerospace industry and teaching. For four years, he was an
assistant professor at Henderson State University and now is a visiting lecturer at
the University of Texas, Arlington, teaching in UT’s College of Business and the Goolsby
Leadership Academy, where he imparts organizational leadership and project management
skills to students.
He is a life-long learner who started his career in the U.S. Navy and received an undergraduate degree in the back of the C-130 aircraft. He went on to receive a commission from the U.S. Army as a logistics officer and later obtained an MBA. Upon retirement, Retzloff entered the aerospace industry as a certified project manager aiding in the creation of the IMO, which oversees the $3.2 billion merger of Wesco Air and Pattonair.
Retzloff earned an MBA with a concentration in management from Henderson State University
and a bachelor’s degree in management from Touro College.
Jill Schiefelbein
The Dynamic Communicator
As president of The Dynamic Communicator, Jill Schiefelbein delivers communications
strategies through keynote speaking, training, virtual events and consulting, all
designed to increase sales, improve leadership and navigate decision-making for clients.
She is a “recovering academic,” serving on the business communications faculty at
Arizona State University for more than a decade. She has co-written a textbook titled
“Business and Professional Communication in the Global Workplace.”
She is the former director of online programs, building up the first formal office of online education at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Arizona State. She is an Ironman competitor, an avid crochet artist and bourbon cocktail enthusiast. She has the endurance to see the long game, the ability to decipher patterns and turn them into tangible results and the appetite for finding ways to improve situations and savor the success.
Schiefelbein earned a master’s degree and a bachelor’s degree in communications and a baccalaureate certificate in multimedia writing and technical communication, all from Arizona State University.