Alumnus advises students to learn by taking on challenges
Michael Bass, executive vice president and chief operating officer of La Dove Inc., shows samples of some of his company's products. "This is a real-world opportunity to see a rare thing in the U.S. these days -- something that is actually made in the U.S."
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9:14 a.m., April 21, 2009----No amount of academic education beats being prepared for the unexpected, Michael Bass, a University of Delaware alumnus and executive vice president and chief operating officer of La Dove Inc., said at UD on Friday, April 17.

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Bass was speaking to students during the second Entrepreneur in Residence program, which brings successful entrepreneurs to the UD campus to spend one or two days working with individuals and small groups of faculty and students.

“Be prepared,” Bass said. “You can write the best business plan, but if you are not ready to make decisions when it counts, you will have issues.”

Bass recounted his experiences early in his career when he worked with difficult accounts and bad clients. He encouraged the students to take on challenges and learn from them.

“The way you learn is to go to the clients that don't work, go into the bowels of companies that don't work. That's how you learn,” Bass said.

La Dove is a leading full-service research facility, formulator and manufacturer of personal care products for both the professional and retail markets.

Before joining La Dove, Bass was director of manufacturing operations for Pfizer Animal Health from 1995-1999, director of manufacturing operations for SmithKline Beecham Animal Health from 1989-1995 and director of operations with the unit from 1986-89. Pfizer purchased the SmithKline Beecham unit in 1994.

Prior to that, Bass worked as controller for Adams Veterinary Research Laboratories and as senior accountant with Coopers & Lybrand.

Bass said his visit and presentation was a bridge between the real world and academic knowledge.

“A lot of things that I've learned in the business are not taught in business school,” Bass said as he lined up samples of his company's products on a table for the presentation. “This is a real-world opportunity to see a rare thing in the U.S. these days -- something that is actually made in the U.S.”

Nikhil Paul, a senior electrical engineering major, said it was inspiring to listen to a presentation and learn from reality as experienced by a successful UD alumnus.

After the presentation, Bass also held office hours, during which he met students for one-on-one discussions.

Bass joined La Dove, a Miami-based company, in 1999 and partnered in the transition of the firm from an exclusive brand manufacturer to a multi-channeled hair care supplier. He also led the move to a larger production facility and refocused customer support on a growth objective.

The Entrepreneur in Residence program, which is offered by the University of Delaware Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships, is designed to create entrepreneurial excitement among faculty, graduate and undergraduate students who would like to learn the ins and outs of establishing a commercial enterprise.

Article by Martin A Mbugua
Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson

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