The Adkerson School of Accountancy has a new vision and mission to focus its future direction. On February 24, 2016, a months-long initiative culminated in approval of a five-year strategic plan for the School. Implementation began immediately.

“We now have a strong tactical plan for building on what has already been achieved, to secure Mississippi State’s place as a nationally preeminent institution for accounting education and research,” states ASAC Director Dr. Shawn Mauldin.

“We started the process early last fall with the appointment of a strategic planning committee and through an online SWOT analysis sought the input of key stakeholders – faculty, alumni, employers, students, Advisory Council members and staff involved in recruitment, advancement and career services,” says Mauldin. “On December 3, 2015, we brought them together in a professionally facilitated retreat. Interacting in large and small groups, these stakeholders offered feedback about our core values, vision, mission and long-term goals. The committee then compiled the participants’ input and, with continued involvement of stakeholders, finalized a strategic plan.”

“This is not a document that will collect dust on a shelf like so many other strategic plans do,” continues Mauldin. “We have a faculty committee and an Advisory Council oversight committee that will ensure we stay focused and on task.”

Committee members with Mauldin included faculty members Dr. Nathan Berglund, Assistant Professor; Dr. Kevin Ennis, Associate Professor; Dr. John Rigsby, Associate Professor; Steve Sanders, Instructor and Dr. Brad Trinkle, Assistant Professor.

Following are some of the plan’s highlights.

VISION

The Adkerson School of Accountancy strives to be widely respected as a leader in accounting education, high-quality research and professional engagement.

MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of the Adkerson School of Accountancy at Mississippi State is to prepare students for successful careers in accounting and business by fostering an environment that promotes innovative teaching and curricula, high-quality research, collaborative relationships and service.

CORE VALUES

Integrity: We are committed to ethical and professional behavior.

Innovation: We strive to create, leverage and implement forward-looking ideas, methods and technologies.

Diversity: We embrace the opportunity to work and interact with individuals who have unique and different perspectives and backgrounds.

Excellence: We value excellence in teaching, research and service to our school, profession and community.

Leadership: We embrace our role as leaders in academia and the business world.

STRATEGIC ISSUES

Several broad key strategic issues were identified from the strategic planning process that shape the Adkerson School of Accountancy’s long-term strategic goals.

• Resources
• Promoting the School
• Outreach and Engagement
• Academic and Research Reputation
• Recruiting and Retaining High-Quality Faculty
• Enrollment and Recruiting High-Quality Students

GOALS

• Enhance Resources
• Enhance Visibility of the School
• Grow and Improve Academic Programs
• Recruit, Develop and Retain High Quality Faculty/Increase Academic Reputation

For each goal, the plan specifies a series of action items and outcome measures, along with the individuals and groups responsible for each. To enhance resources, for example, one action item is to increase the number of endowed chairs and professorships, securing commitments to reach a total of five. For the goal of growing and improving academic programs, one of the objectives is to reinstate the PhD program by 2019.

Enhancing the visibility of the School calls for promoting the reputation and image of the School and enhancing contact with employers, alumni and potential donors.

This will be accomplished through a range of steps such as creating a plan to improve rankings, enhancing web and social media presence and developing a process to better recognize the accomplishments of alumni, faculty and students.

Toward the goal of recruiting and retaining high quality faculty and increasing the School’s academic reputation, some of the aims include adding a faculty position for a PhD program and increasing faculty participation on editorial boards and at academic conferences.

Many more inspiring, ambitious aims are charted in the ASAC 2016-2020 Strategic Plan. Read more about it at www.business.msstate.edu/programs/adkerson, and consider how you might get involved.