After encountering one too many horrible bosses, Daniel Goering knew there had to be a better way to help bad bosses improve and the great ones be even better.
Making an impact
After encountering one too many horrible bosses throughout his career, Daniel Goering knew there had to be a better way to help the bad bosses improve and the great ones be even better. With a missionary trip to Japan and a Fulbright award under his belt, he was prepared to put his research to the test and find a real solution. The next step was clear: pursue his PhD in management and entrepreneurship with a concentration in organizational behavior and human resources at his top-choice school.
“Tippie has every reason to brag about being an elite academic institution, but its down-to-earth, practice-driven approach and altruistic culture—its integrity and innovation—help us apply otherwise abstract principles to pressing and relevant challenges we face today."
Tippie has continued to wow Daniel for a few reasons:
#1: Unparalleled training
“PhD programs can be the worst. But that's the beauty of being at a top-tier program like Tippie. The resources are here and available to help get through the tough times inherent in a rigorous PhD program. Iowa's able to attract some of the best talent in the field. We all help each other in many different ways. No doubt receiving the best training in the world is demanding, but the resources and support are here to help us thrive.”
#2: Program flexibility
“A father of four with a liberal arts degree coming from years in industry and admittedly a bit rusty with his academic skills, like me, will have a different perspective and different goals than someone coming from a more traditional academic path. The program's supportive of everyone's professional goals and equips us with the necessary methodological and content-related expertise to reach them.”
#3: Iowa nice
“As Urban Dictionary points out, Iowa's home to the ‘nicest people in the United States, probably in the world.’ All joking aside, Iowa, and specifically the PhD programs at Tippie, really are home to the kindest, smartest, and most fun people—faculty and students—anywhere. It was clear in how faculty and other students helped me get up to speed quickly and grasp very technical and complicated research issues. In fact, the collegiality is so amazing here that I've made lasting relationships with faculty and students not only in my department but in every department at Tippie."
"It really is an amazing place, with an extremely supportive environment, which is absolutely necessary while pursuing a highly demanding, challenging program.”
#4: Community impact
“I think most people in academia are concerned that research is disconnected or irrelevant. It isn't if we have follow-through of our research to the classroom and the community. I love seeing students get involved with the community with this knowledge gained from research shared in the classroom. If our research doesn’t get translated to help improve society and uplift individuals, then really what’s the point? Really, I'm talking from the vantage point of having seen these things done so well here at Tippie.
"The Introduction to Management class has students working in teams in the Iowa City community; leadership courses urge the students to lead within the community; negotiation courses have students make their rounds to actually practice their negotiation skills. The work the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center does to encourage student entrepreneurs to take a chance with their ideas is also phenomenal. It is such a great environment to actually see these things happening to help prepare me to find ways to integrate research into organizations, the community, and with other stakeholders.”
“That's what I'm doing with my Fulbright award in Tokyo right now: collaborating with executives, entrepreneurs, HR managers, professors, and government leaders to find evidence-based solutions to the ‘well-being at work crisis’ in Japan. The skills I have gained through Tippie’s M&E program—especially the world-famous methods training—are invaluable in this pursuit to impact the global community.”