International Business

Seidman International Business Faculty & Staff

 

Dr. Carol M. Sánchez, D.B.A., Strategic Management, Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Dr. Carol Sánchez specializes in international management, international business education, the effects of social variables on managerial actions, and top management teams. From 1977-1990, Dr. Sánchez worked as senior manager for a U.S. development agency in five Latin American countries. She speaks Spanish, French, and native English. She is a consultant in strategic management, and teaches at business schools overseas. Dr. Sánchez has received four U.S. Department of Education Title VI B Business and International Education grants that have helped internationalize Grand Valley's business school. She has published in the Academy of Management Executive, Management International Review, Journal of Business Ethics, Research in Corporate Social Performance, and Journal of Business Strategies, among others.

 

Dr. Sridhar Sundaram, D.B.A., Finance, Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Dr. Sridhar Sundaram specializes in the area of currency risk management. His business experience involves several years of working with his family's retail business. He is originally from India and is fluent in several Indian languages and English. For the year 2004, he was awarded the VAGTC Trade Scholar Award. Dr. Sundaram’s project deals with foreign exchange risk management by small and medium size firms. He spoke at the “Access India” and “Access Mexico” program organized by VAGTC for the West Michigan business community. He is an active researcher with publications in the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Journal of Banking and Finance, the Financial Review, Managerial and Decision Economics, Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Journal of Accounting and Finance Research, among others. Dr. Sundaram

 

Dr. Jennifer A. Pope, PhD, Marketing and International Business, University of Texas-Pan American
Dr. Jennifer Pope is a specialist in international marketing, international business relationships and sales. She speaks German, Chinese and native English. From 1991-1993, she taught English as a Foreign Language in Taiwan. As a child, she lived in England and Germany for nine months, and has traveled extensively in Asia and Europe. Dr. Pope teaches in business schools overseas and has taken GVSU students to England. She has published in The International Journal of Business Disciplines, The Journal of Transportation Management, The Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, among others.

 

Dr. Gerry Simons, Ph.D., Economics, University of Kansas
Dr. Gerry Simons specializes in international economics and economic development. He has given seminars in various countries, including his native Britain, and has taught at Business Schools in Poland and Costa Rica. His research focuses on international trade policies, patents and international knowledge spillovers. Dr. Simons has published in Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Scandinavian Journal of Development Alternatives and Area Studies, and Contemporary Economic Policy, among others. Dr. Simons

 

Professor Rita H. Grant MBA, Accounting, Michigan State University, CPA
Dr. Grant Professor Rita Grant is a specialist in financial accounting with a special interest in International Accounting. She regularly teaches in Germany and was program director for GVSU's faculty led study abroad in London for three years. Her current research interests include foreign currency hedging strategies, harmonization of accounting standards and compensation issues of family-owned businesses in the United States and abroad. Professor Grant has published several articles and presented papers related to harmonization of accounting standards and foreign currency exchange risks.

 

Professor Bradley Koch, Ph.D., Strategic Management/International Management, University of Arizona, MBA, Virginia Commonwealth University
Dr. Koch is an assistant professor of management at the Seidman College of Business and a former Fulbright Scholar. He is a specialist in international management and strategic management with a focus on China. He speaks Chinese (Mandrian) and English. He has lived in China for 6 years at six different locations (Beijing, Nanjing, Hong Kong, Nanchang, Taiwan, and Chengdu), and Singapore for three years. During this time, he conducted research and taught at universities. His research focuses on joint ventures and wholly owned subsidiaries in China as well as societal logics that shape strategies of Chinese firms.

 

Ms. Alexandra Schmid, Special Programs Coordinator/Adjunct faculty, MSA, B.B.A. Grand Valley State University; Bank Business Management diploma (German Chamber of Commerce/Deutsche Bank AG)
Ms. Alexandra Schmid has over five years of corporate experience in multiple industries at top international companies (Deutsche Bank AG, Amazon.com, Siemens AG). Her language skills include fluency in German (native) and English, plus intermediate skills in French and basic skills in Japanese and Italian. Ms. Schmid advises international business majors and students interested in study abroad and administers the Seidman international internship program. Main travel destinations included Italy, Austria, China, France, The Netherlands, Belgium and Canada. Her research interests include strategy and innovation management, international business and corporate governance. She has published in the Grand Rapids Business Journal and the Journal of Corporate Accounting and Finance.