Learning Business the Family Way at UToledo

Learning Business the Family Way at UToledo

Students at The University of Toledo have no shortage of opportunities to connect with the major corporations that call northwest Ohio home.

But one class in the John B. and Lillian E. Neff College of Business and Innovation offers a different kind of real-world education - one seen through the eyes of the area entrepreneurs behind the small businesses and family-owned shops that form the backbone of the local economy.

With the rise of affordable online tools and e-commerce platforms, today's students have grown up steeped in the side-hustle mindset. The Neff College of Business is channeling that energy, finding new ways to equip students with the skills they need to be their own bosses.

Learning Through the Family Business Lens

Angie Jones, director of the UToledo Family Business Center, teaches a family business course that pairs students directly with living, breathing local companies like The Countertop Shop, Supplemental Staffing, Uckele Health and Nutrition, Wurtec, Hale Performance Coatings and Laibe Electric.

Working in small groups, students build a case study of each business - exploring what's working, where the challenges lie and what it really takes to keep a family enterprise running across generations. It's a hands-on deep dive that brings the classroom to life.

"Students learn the core business fundamentals like staffing, supply chain logistics and financials," Jones said. "They also explore what makes family businesses unique, including governance, succession planning and working with spouses and next-generation family members."

Lessons From the Front Lines of Entrepreneurship

Another one of the established family businesses students are working with this semester is Marsha's Homemade Buckeyes, a candy company born in 1984 out of a holiday baking tradition.

For business administration-entrepreneurship & innovation student Will Bradley, being paired with Marsha's brought course lessons into sharp focus.

"Learning directly from practitioners serves to make the class concepts real for me. This not only makes them more interesting and engaging in the moment, but more memorable into the future."

For Bradley, who was seeking useful insights to apply if he decides to run his own company one day, Marsha's has defied the odds.

"From an academic lens, Marsha's has successfully made it to the second generation in the Smith family. We were taught in our family business class that only 30% make it to the second generation. I was also impressed with their recent growth. Since partnering with Walmart, the product is in all 50 US states. This struck me, as their operation is a mid-size office/warehouse production facility right here in Perrysburg. The reach is inspiring."

Real-life Struggles and Rewards

Jones also brings in guest speakers who can share hard-won lessons about family business management. Among the most memorable: Tony Packo III, whose family founded - and ultimately lost control of - the iconic Toledo-based Hungarian hot dog brand. His story drives home why a 50-50 family ownership split can lead to decision-making gridlock and, ultimately, disaster.

Mike Hart of Hart, an integrated marketing and communications agency that has been in business since 1965, speaks firsthand to why his company made the decision to install a non-family member as CEO - the kind of candid, real-world insight no textbook can replicate.

Barbara Ritter, dean of the Neff College of Business, says this kind of learning about business and innovation is essential for today's students.

"Entrepreneurship isn't an elective interest for our students - it's central to how they see their futures. Experience-based learning is how we meet them where they are. When students sit across the table from a real business owner and work through real challenges, that's when the transformation happens."

Bradley agrees. "College should be more than just a book and a PowerPoint meant to help us memorize concepts. This was an actual glimpse into the real-life struggles and rewards of a family business."