Whether Ben Beck is sitting in the bright green leather recliner in his office at the BYU Marriott School of Business, at the bishop’s desk of his church building, or in the cramped storefront of a small business in Cambodia, Beck says his goal is the same: to support and encourage the individuals he meets.
Beck, an assistant professor of marketing, teaches four sections of the marketing junior core course MKTG 403: Advertising and Promotion Management. He says he enjoys the chance to meet new students as they enter the program. “Students here at BYU Marriott are really special,” he says. “There’s a different work ethic; a different desire to do good in their lives and still make money at the same time. You can do both.”
Recently, Beck set a goal to foster BYU Marriott’s unique learning environment by encouraging students to grow their faith alongside their academic education. At the beginning of the semester, he challenges students to study the scriptures for fifteen minutes each day. “If they feel they are too busy and don’t have the time to do so, I encourage them to take that time away from studying for my class, because an enlarged testimony will have a greater impact on their lives,” Beck says. “I’ve had many students tell me at the end of the semester that they took my challenge and that it made an enormous difference in their lives.”
His efforts to support the university’s values extend beyond his time with students. “Even in my research, I try to do work that helps strengthen testimonies of Christ and strengthens families,” he says.
One of his research projects is a training program for small, women-owned businesses in Cambodia, where participating women learn skills to increase profits and support their families financially. Beck traveled to Cambodia in summer 2023 with a team of students and colleagues for a pilot test of the program.
“It’s been fun to take students there,” Beck says, “and I love that BYU supports this research. I get funding and support from my department, BYU Marriott, and the university. I’ve got colleagues at other universities working on this project, and none of them get the support that I do.”
This summer, Beck and his colleagues are returning to Cambodia for further research, comparing a control group, in which only business owners receive training, to a second group, in which spouses and children also receive the training. The researchers hypothesize that when families are taught together, the businesses will better achieve their goals. “Their spouses and kids will be working with them instead of against them,” Beck explains.
Back home in Utah, Beck serves as a bishop for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and he says he works to strengthen and support the members in his ward. “As I counsel people who are having problems with things, I realize that our sins don’t define us. Having problems doesn’t change who we are,” Beck says. “I remind them they are children of God, and they have loving heavenly parents.”
Beck says he tries to see his students in that same light in his role as a faculty member. When he notices students who are struggling to turn in assignments on time or pay attention in class, he invites them to meet and talk with him one-on-one. “In almost every case, there is a significant problem in their life that they’re working through,” Beck says. “Recognizing that helps me balance high expectations for them with special accommodations, where necessary.”
The students often do better in class after those conversations, Beck explains. And when he follows up, they say they feel heard, known, and loved. “Everyone has this inherent worth,” Beck says. “And when people know that, it’s amazing what they can do.”