Entrepreneurial Management News 

Jose and Adela Montoya Brañez—a sibling duo studying entrepreneurial management at the BYU Marriott School of Business—are passionate about entrepreneurship and the chance it gives them to serve others.

For the Rollins Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, celebrating a new office space meant music, free food, and an abundance of information for students interested in starting their own businesses. In September students at Brigham Young University were invited to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony to learn more about the center’s new south campus space and its services for BYU entrepreneurs.

A group of enterprising BYU students aim to significantly — if not entirely — reduce parking violations in paid parking lots, college and otherwise. And their idea, an AI detection and tracking system called Spot Parking, just got a major endorsement and $12,000 in cash by winning the 2024 BYU Student Innovator of the Year competition.

Sterling Petersen has such a passion for mountain biking, he decided to make it his day job. Since graduating from BYU Marriott’s entrepreneurship program, he’s created multiple startups focused on mountain biking products and has built a collaborative work environment in the process.

Eight professors joined the faculty at the BYU Marriott School of Business in 2023. “We are excited to welcome these new faculty members,” says Brigitte Madrian, dean of BYU Marriott. “In line with our mission to develop leaders of faith, intellect, and character, these new faculty bring insight and experience that will contribute to the educational experience BYU Marriott offers its students.”

From managing different facets of a family business at a young age to pursuing a finance career after college, Mallory Stack fiercely works to become more versatile in her life perspective and career. A 2018 entrepreneurial management alumna from the BYU Marriott School of Business, Stack continues to gather as many insights from the corporate world as possible.

BYU Marriott School of Business dean Brigitte C. Madrian has announced Mike Hendron as the next director of the Rollins Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology effective June 17, 2023. He replaces Chris Crittenden who had served as the center’s director since 2021.

One of BYU’s student startups just walked away with the most prize money at the biggest and most prestigious collegiate business plan competition in the country. “Zaymo,” with its e-commerce tool that embeds the online shopping experience within a customer’s email, took home $875,000 in total cash investments after taking third place at the 2023 Rice Business Plan Competition last month. This comes after winning the $30,000 grand prize at the Utah Entrepreneur Challenge earlier this year.

Jeffrey Burningham, BYU alumni, donor, and partner to the Rollins Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, believes that the creative process is a pivotal piece to a fulfilling life. From creating startups in college to venture capital, to owning Peak Capital Partners, Burningham teaches and mentors with the message that everyone is capable of creating new ideas that can better lives and society.

Ashley Wallace's passion for service and learning has led her from the cliffs of Ireland to the people of Madagascar. Now, as a senior studying entrepreneurship at the BYU Marriott School of Business, she knows the programs at the business school have prepared her to serve better and more responsibly.

Aileen Hernandez has grown up navigating multiple minority identities. Phrases such as “first-generation American” and “woman in business” are not just buzzwords; they describe Hernandez’s life. A senior in the entrepreneurial management program at the BYU Marriott School of Business, Hernandez works to help other students celebrate their own identities while coming together in unity.

Everywhere you look, something or someone is being rated, and we can all agree that a positive rating is good, and a negative rating is bad. Or can we?

This summer, four BYU Marriott School of Business students were paired with financial literacy startup FinLit for an internship. The partnership came about through a social impact project (SIP) at BYU Marriott’s Ballard Center for Social Impact, which provides students with opportunities to develop business and personal skills while applying social impact principles in real-world settings.

With three children and one on the way, Bruce Hymas and his wife Brittany found themselves quite literally losing sleep over issues like their kids not sleeping through the night. After attending a parenting conference in an effort to find answers, the 2009 BYU Marriott entrepreneurship alum recognized a need for parents to have their questions answered quickly and reliably. Relying on his education and connections at the BYU Marriott School of Business, Hymas created the app ParentPlaybook. 

For Dane Bendixen, startup enthusiast and father of three, the values he found while studying entrepreneurship at the BYU Marriott School of Business have carried him throughout his career. One such value is prioritizing his family and personal life. After moving seven times in as many years for work, the 2010 graduate has become a firm believer in working for companies that fit the schedule and lifestyle he wants for himself and his family.

As someone who has often felt like the odd woman out, Mikayla Cluxton knows what it is like to be lonely. As a second-year student in the entrepreneurial management program at the BYU Marriott School of Business, Cluxton recently created a startup, BeeFriend, to help alleviate loneliness in the geriatric population. Inspired by the iconography of a bee, Cluxton and her two cofounders are creating a hive for the senior citizens in their community to find friends.  

BYU Marriott School of Business dean Brigitte C. Madrian has announced Paul Godfrey as the next chair of the Department of Management. Godfrey took over for the previous department chair, Curtis LeBaron, on July 1, 2022.

Wearing Nike shoes, surrounded by BYU sports paraphernalia in his office without a textbook in sight, Bill Keenan works to put the job-seeking students he advises at ease. As a career advisor at the BYU Marriott Business Career Center, Keenan tailors his teaching and advising to help undergraduates find jobs after graduation.

As a mom of two children and a small business owner, Brenda Tidwell uses the entrepreneurship knowledge she learned from the BYU Marriott School of Business in every aspect of her life. In between changing diapers and vacuuming up Goldfish cracker crumbs, Tidwell says she thinks about business constantly. “It's funny how you apply the principles you learn in business school no matter where you end up,” she says. 

Nine students at the BYU Marriott School of Business were recently honored as 2022 Bateman Award recipients for their excellence both inside and outside the classroom. The annual award, named for Merrill J. Bateman, allows each undergraduate program at BYU Marriott to select a 2021–22 academic year senior for recognition.