From an early age, Ashley Henry was interested in beauty. Despite getting her bachelor’s degree in chemistry and working for the CDC in epidemiology, her childhood dreams never faded. After her stint in public health, Ashley went on to work as a hairstylist before getting her MBA and fully committing to beauty and luxury goods.  Ashley is now the global product development manager at Fresh (an LVMH brand) in New York City. She accomplished her goal post-graduation from Rice in 2022, becoming one of the first alums to enter the luxury goods space. Ashley joins host Maya Pomroy ’22 to sha ..read more

Brian Jackson is an expert when it comes to challenging himself in unchartered waters. Brian is the manager of renewables origination at TransAlta Corporation, where he oversees the company's renewable energy power purchase agreement origination activities in the United States. Brian has a well-rounded roster of degrees from Texas institutions, beginning with a  BS in political science from Texas A&M University, a JD from South Texas College of Law Houston, and an MBA from Rice University. But before transitioning to the renewable energy industry, Brian worked in the oil and gas sect ..read more

Looking at T. Canady Barton’s resume, she has some of the biggest company names on the list. After a few years doing chemical engineering, oil and gas, T. pivoted to consulting, tech and entrepreneurship for the bulk of her career.  In 2014, she moved to the U.K., where she was the vice president of portfolio management, digital strategy and transformation for Garner. From 2006-2018, she was a founding member and CEO of ThinkPower, Inc., a boutique consultancy focused on driving positive disruption and game-changing results via strategic execution and operational excellence.  She j ..read more

Rice Business is known for producing top industry leaders and 2016 full-time MBA graduate, Erika Kwee is no exception. Erika Kwee is the creator, photographer and writer behind The Pancake Princess, where her colorful, mouthwatering “bake-off” blog compares popular baking recipes side-by-side to help readers and aspiring bakers find recipes that are just right for their tastes and skill levels.  Erika spent years building her blog at night while working a tech job by day. As a self-taught baker, Erika has staged under Michelin Pastry Chef of the Year winner, Kelly Nam, at the Michelin-st ..read more

Diana Khandilyan is an energy industry expert who dedicated more than 20 years to the international oil and gas exploration industry, focusing on emerging technologies, process optimization and corporate sustainability.  The energy transition motivated her to pursue an MBA degree from Rice Business to explore the business viability of emerging trends, followed by immersion in clean-energy technologies. The geophysicist and energy transition advocate joins host Maya Pomroy ’22 to discuss her 20+ years in the international oil and gas industry and her transition to the renewable energy spa ..read more

Conventional wisdom says that conflict and dissent among an organization’s top leaders can improve strategy and performance. But new research indicates the opposite is true. In fact, dissent at the top often damages working relationships, communication and decision quality.  In this episode of Owl Have You Know, Daan van Knippenberg joins host Scott Gale ’19 to talk about his research on conflict in leadership. It turns out there is little evidence to support the idea that outcomes improve when leaders disagree on strategy. He explains what CEOs and leaders can do to foster open and cons ..read more

Rice grads end up all over the world, and Dymphna van der Lans is no exception. Dymphna has worked and lived in China, India, and Kenya and engaged with island nations in the Caribbean and the Indian and Pacific Oceans to support their transition away from polluting diesel fuels to renewable sources of energy.  Dymphna brings more than 25 years of experience managing and leading global development, energy, and climate initiatives in the nonprofit and private sectors. She is currently the Chief Executive Officer of the Clean Cooking Alliance, and recently led international corporate engag ..read more

Keri Sprung ’22 is the vice president for education and director of the Women’s Center at the Texas Heart Institute. She provides strategic direction to the physicians and scientists leading innovative research, education, and clinical programs at the Institute in partnership with regional, national, and international collaborators. During her studies at Rice, she served as the class representative, co-chair of the Rice Business Association for Executives, and a Rice Business Board Fellow for Children At Risk, a non-profit that serves as a catalyst for change to improve the quality of life fo ..read more

Many of us have probably had that moment – where you quit one job because you found your “dream” job. But that second place wasn’t everything you thought it would be. So what comes after that? Wendy Fong decided to start her own company to fulfill her search, and to help others with theirs. Wendy is a business coach and talent optimizer, with a passion for building dream teams and developing their leaders. She is the founder and principal of Chief Gigs, which offers leadership and team development, organizational consulting, and search. Chief Gigs helps businesses and the people within them a ..read more

From the president to the provost, a lot of people are working behind the scenes to make sure our university runs smoothly. As the Howard R. Hughes Provost of Rice University, Amy Dittmar oversees Rice’s academic enterprise, including direct reporting relationships for the deans of eight schools, the dean of undergraduates, the dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies and other key leaders.  With a focus on expanding opportunities for a growing student body and increasing faculty, Amy runs several capital projects to support the university’s research and educational mission. She is also ..read more