Business and Entrepreneurship

Some of our business leaders studied in business schools, but most of them started out studying something else. Find out how to combine your passion with a career in business.

Who's helping people make wise financial choices? >>
Who’s running businesses that sell plants? >>
Who’s producing and distributing today's building materials? >>
Who’s designing new food marketing campaigns? >>
Who’s making the big decisions at food companies? >>

Financial planners help their clients sort out the many choices for investing, planning for retirement, giving to non-profits and other charities, and passing on their wealth to the next generation. Some planners have their own consulting business, while others work for large financial institutions such as banks and brokerage houses.

Training Routes

• Consumer and Family Economics

Many greenhouse and nursery businesses focus on growing seedlings to farmers or more mature plants to the general public. As a sideline, some farmers also grow plants for sale to the public. Managers oversee the operational, marketing, and financial functions of these businesses to ensure they are sustainable environmentally and economically.

Training Routes

• Ornamental Horticulture
• Sustainable Agriculture

Building construction is responsible for roughly 7% of the Gross Domestic Product in the US each year. Production managers and purchasers are involved in corporate management, forest products marketing, and product distribution. The integration of technical understanding with general business acumen guides successful enterprise and the efficient use of resources.

Training Routes

• Building Materials and Wood Technology

Food marketers get the word out about new food products and improvements to existing products. They conduct market research to learn what’s important to each consumer group, and then create targeted messages and ad campaigns that reach out to a specific group. Ads for a new snack food for teens might focus on great taste or portability. While ads for a new snack food for dieters might focus on low-fat content or ability to satisfy cravings.

Training Routes

• Food Marketing Economics
• Food Science and Technology
• Managerial Economics in Food and Resource Industries

Ever wonder how a new food product line gets created? Managers at food companies look at consumer trends and work to create products that meet underlying needs and desires. For example, many consumers have begun switching to low-carb diets and many food companies have been quick to respond with low-carb products. Food managers decide what products will be created and which markets they will be sold in.

Training Routes

• Food Science and Technology
• Managerial Economics in Food and Resource Industries