AIB-SE
Academy of International Business
Southeast USA Chapter
Executive Board
From left to right:
Steven Williamson, Membership Director; Cheryl Van Deusen, Past Chair; John
Rushing, Secretary;
George Nakos, Vice-Chair; Mohammed Sepheri, Treasurer; Robert D. Goddard, III,
Historian;
Carolyn Mueller, Chair; Neil Slough, Director of Development; Arul
Thirunavukkarasu, Web Development.
Carolyn B. Mueller
Chair
Dept. of Management, Stetson University
cmueller@stetson.edu
Carolyn Mueller is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of
Management and International
Business, and Coordinator of the International Business major at Stetson
University in DeLand, FL. She received a BSBA in Marketing with a minor in
International Business, a MBA from the University of Akron, and a Ph.D. in
Strategic Management with a minor in International Business from the University
of South Carolina. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on Strategic
Management, International Management, and International Business at Stetson’s
main campus, as well as graduate courses in Strategic Management at Stetson’s
campus in Celebration, and its College of Law’s joint JD/MBA program in the
Tampa/St. Petersburg area of Florida.
Carolyn currently is the Chair of the Academy of International
Business-Southeast USA, and serves on
its Executive Board. She edited the AIB-SE Proceedings for two years and has
served as Conference Chair, Co-Chair, Program Chair, and Secretary for the
organization. She is President of Stetson's chapter of Beta Gamma Sigma,
the national business school honor society, and Past
Chair of Stetson’s International Programs Council. She has led study abroad
short-term programs to Turkey and England, conducted workshops for faculty from
several universities in Mexico, and is widely traveled. Carolyn’s major research
areas are cross-cultural team processes and management issues, national and
organizational culture, and teaching effectiveness.
George Nakos
Vice Chair
Department of Marketing
Clayton College & State University
nakos@cc.clayton.edu
George Nakos is a Professor of Marketing at Clayton State University in
Morrow, Georgia. His research interests center on international entry-mode
choice, small business, and entrepreneurship.
George is Vice-Chair and a board member/executive officer of the Academy of
International Business – Southeast (USA) and he has served as the Director of
Membership. George has published several journal articles and he has authored,
co-authored, and presented many papers in national and international
conferences. His most recent work has appeared in the Journal of Small Business
Management and Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice.
John A. Rushing, Sr.,
Secretary
School of Adult and Continuing Education, Barry University
jrushing@mail.barry.edu
John Rushing is Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs at Barry University in
Tallahassee, FL. His research interests are cross-cultural leadership and
academic administration. He has a DBA with International Business Specialization
from Nova Southeastern University. Prior to his graduate education he was a
partner in a research and development firm. He presently has an interest in a
nuclear development firm.
John is Secretary of the Academy of International business- Southeast (USA).
John as authored and co-authored several journal articles and presented many
papers in national and international conferences. He has served as Vice
President of the Broward Chapter of the American Society for Training &
Development and served as a board member for the Barry Chapter of PDK
international education fraternity.
Mohammed Sepehri
Treasurer
Management & International Business, Jacksonville University
msepehri@ju.edu
Mo Sepehri has a double Ph.D. from Indiana University, Bloomington, and has over
30 years of experience in market analysis and research. Prior to his graduate
education, Mo served at several international corporations as the Director of
Marketing, Director of the International Division, and the Assistant General
Manager (VP level). He is a consultant and research analyst to business
corporations, and has served as expert advisor and consultant to a number of
city, county, and state governments in the areas of consumer research,
transportation, market feasibility, economic impact and the “Blue Laws”.
Mo has written numerous scholarly works that have been published in professional
publications. The ranges of topics include information technology and global
business, leadership for the twenty first century, curriculum studies,
behavioral and consumer market studies, and securities and exchange market
analyses. He has been acknowledged in the Journal of Operations Management as an
“outstanding contributor” on several occasions. Mo is a member of China Business
Education Council in Jacksonville and is a board member/executive officer of the
Academy of International Business–Southeast (USA) and he currently serves as the
treasurer. He also serves on the Executive Board of the International Visitor
Corps in Jacksonville and he has the designation of Citizen Diplomat by the U.S.
Department of State.
Neil Slough
Director of Development
Professor of Business, Milwaukee Area Technical College
SloughN@matc.edu
Neil Slough is a Professor of Business at Milwaukee Area Technical College.
Prior to relocating to Milwaukee, Neil was an Associate Professor of Business at
the State University of New York at Delhi for 15 years. Neil has also taught for
the Zurich Graduate School of Business. Prior to teaching, Neil was employed by
Figgie International as Director of Special Projects and Research.
Neil has a long history of private, industry and academic research and
publishing. He is the 2005 Program Chair and 2005 Conference Co-Chair of the
Academy of International Business–Southeast (USA).
Steven Williamson
Director of Membership
Coggin College of Business, University of North Florida
swilliam@unf.edu
Steven Williamson is an Associate Professor of Management in the Coggin College
of Business at the University of North Florida. In addition to teaching, he
directs two university institutes; the first is the Institute for Management
Development and Organizational Quality and the second is the Paper and Plastics
Education and Research Institute.
He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Memphis State
University, a Master of Science degree from the University of Arkansas, and a
Doctorate in Business Administration from Memphis State University. Prior to
joining the faculty at the University of North Florida in 1984, he taught at
Memphis State University and Georgia Southern College.
Currently Steven’s primary teaching assignment is in the MBA program where he
teaches the required Strategic Management and Business Policy seminar and
graduate electives in research and consulting. His international teaching
experience includes a semester teaching International Business in London. The
majority of Steven’s recent efforts have been focused on strategy development
and implementation, quality systems implementation, and international
entrepreneurship.
Positions Not “UP” for Election… but of Interest!
Robert D. Goddard
Executive Board Member and Historian
Dept. of Management, Appalachian State University
goddardrd@appstate.edu
Robert Goddard is a Professor of Management and Program Director for the
International Business major at Appalachian State University. He is founder and
president of Organizational Development Associates, a firm providing a variety
of management consulting and training services. ODA specializes in employee
opinion survey design and administration as a basis of improving the quality of
work life for organizations. He has a BSBA in International Business from
Florida Atlantic University, an MBA from the University of North Florida, and a
Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina.
He served as Vice-Chair, Chair, and Past-Chair, Southeast Region, Academy of
International Business (AIB), and is on its Board of Directors. He edited the
Association for Global Business (AGB) Proceedings and is a member of the
editorial board for the Journal of Global Business. He was Vice
President-Membership and Vice President-Student Liaison for the Southeast
Decision Sciences Institute. He served two terms as Vice President for Educator
Programs for Pi Sigma Epsilon (the national professional fraternity for
marketing, sales management, and selling) and has also served as its national
Secretary for two terms. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of
Epsilon Chi Omicron, the international business honor society.
Bob has published articles on the design and use of surveys in organizations,
selection and hiring issues, and the assessment of quality circles in
organizations. His current research interests are in the areas of international
entrepreneurship education and the business aspects of wind power generation.
Cheryl A. Van Deusen
Past Chair
Dept. of Management, Marketing & Logistics, University of North Florida
cvandeus@unf.edu
Cheryl Van Deusen is an Associate Professor of Strategic and International
Business. Cheryl earned her Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina and a
MBA with a Human Resources emphasis from Appalachian State University. She
teaches primarily strategy and international management, but also teaches human
resource related classes such as employee benefits planning, compensation, and
international HR.
Cheryl’s primary research streams include cross-cultural management issues,
national and organizational culture and organizational learning. Cheryl joined
the COGGIN College of Business at the University of North Florida in 1998. She
was the current chair of the Academy of International Business–Southeast (USA)
Chapter and serves on the organization’s Board of Directors. Cheryl is the
co-faculty advisor for the Society for Human Resource Management Student Club,
and the President of UNF’s Chapter of Beta Gamma Sigma. She has led study abroad
short-term programs to Argentina and Uruguay and has traveled to over 30
countries (so far.)
Arul Thirunavukkarasu
Web Development
Department of Economics, Management & Accounting, Hiram College
arasuat@hiram.edu
Arul Thirunavukkarasu joined Hiram College in 2006 as
Assistant Professor of Business. He earned his doctorate from Southern New
Hampshire University and his MBA from University of Madras. He is an alumnus
from HPM Consultants and Akilam group, India and also a Certified Licensed
International Financial Analyst (LIFA®). Arul’s teaching interests and
consulting activities are in the areas of Multinational Corporations, Emerging
Global Business Opportunities, and Risk Management. He currently teaches
Strategy and International Management at Hiram College and is also the
co-faculty advisor for the Student Life Committee.
Arul’s research interests include Emerging Market Multinationals, Exchange Rate
Exposure, and Organizational Development. He is a research fellow in the Applied
Research Centre at Southern New Hampshire University.