When Russell Walters began pursuing his MBA degree in 2015, he wanted a seat in the C-suite. He just needed the business knowledge and credentials to get there. 
This month, J.M. Burguieres Co., Ltd., (JMB) announced its Board of Directors has chosen Walters as the company’s new president and CEO.
“In my new role, I lead the 145-year-old family-owned land-holding company in growth and financial success. Specifically, in the business lines of ecological offsets, agriculture, and minerals,” Walters says.
“This will involve building on a foundation created by my predecessors. The goal is to grow JMB companies by seeking business ventures, corporate dealings, and tracking the progress to achieve that goal."
Walters is leveraging over a decade of management and ecological experience with knowledge gained through the MBA degree program online.
Ecology to Business
In 1993, Walters graduated with a bachelor’s degree in wetland ecology from Nicholls State University. There he played guard for the Colonels football team for four seasons.
“I worked for the United States Geological Survey (USGS) right out of college and got into the natural resource business line,” he says. “It led to land management and other ventures throughout the course of my career. That’s the basis for what I do.”
After seven years at USGS, Walters became a project manager. Five years later, he was a manager for regulatory and ecological services, and vice president during a six-year stint at John Chance Land Surveys. Walters joined JMB Companies in August 2011.
Walters enrolled in UL Lafayette's online MBA program in August 2015. He was taking night classes for prerequisites he needed as a non-business undergraduate. But attending in person proved to be a logistical challenge.
“It was great but difficult because of the demands of my job and family life,” he says. “The director of the MBA program, Mr. Viguerie, reached out to me in my second semester to tell me about the new Online Program. It almost sounded too good to be true but seemed to be a good fit, so I switched.”
The flexibility Walters gained by pursuing his degree online served him well in other areas, too.
“My favorite part of the MBA online was the room it gave me to handle the other commitments in my life,” Walters says. “I was concerned I would miss the chance to interact with other students. That was not the case. The courses are designed to have lots of teamwork.”
Connecting, Growing Online
The online format also allowed Walters more time to spend with his wife, Amy, and their two children, Claire, now 21, and Reid, 17.
“My friends and family were very supportive,” he says. “Graduation was a good experience, and I'm glad I was able to attend. One of the reasons I felt it was important to go back to school for an MBA was to lead our kids by example. We sometimes do our homework together.”
Despite not having been in school for many years, Walters had no trouble switching from a brick-and-mortar setting to an online environment.
“The transition to online was smooth,” he says. “UL Lafayette does a good job of integrating all the technology. You can communicate and interact with fellow students, as well as professors and instructors.”
IBUS 540: International Business and MGMT 590: Policy Formulation, Strategy, and Administration were Walters’ favorite courses.
“The first course gave you a real diversified look at business,” he says. “I especially liked the capstone course because it was a culmination of everything we did. The program, as a whole, helped me better understand why senior management does certain things a certain way. That was the biggest takeaway. It was a fantastic program.”
Walters was also impressed with the connection to UL Lafayette faculty and the interaction with his classmates in the online format.
“The professors in the online program were better than any other professors I ever had,” he says. “It was amazing to me that I was able to do group projects with a small group of people with basically no direct contact. It was all online with all of the integrated technology. It was pretty cool.”
An unexpected application of Walters’ online student experience was adapting in the face of COVID-19.
“Keys to success in the online program are being organized and open to using technology for learning, writing, and collaboration,” Walters says. “These skills were very important for adapting to remote business during the pandemic. Also, the MBA program taught me business basics and how to communicate them verbally and in writing.”
Trust and Teamwork
As a leader, Walters believes in the power of teamwork.
“Having an inclusive management style that encourages and facilitates progressive thinking by all levels in an organization is key to management success,” he says. “This requires a manager to have the insight to set clear goals and expectations without dictating every move. Good listening skills and the ability to ‘loosen the grip’ are also important factors in this success.”
Walters has seen that approach regularly pay dividends, which keeps his job fresh and exciting.
“The most fulfilling thing about my work is having the privilege to work with my team,” he says. “As the leader of a growing operation in a highly competitive business, we often find ourselves in some very challenging situations. Having team members who believe in what we do and will leave their comfort zone to achieve success is priceless to me.”
After earning his MBA degree, Walters’ goal was to become CEO. Having achieved his goal, he hopes to build on JMB’s strong history while fostering a culture of growth and trust among his team.
“The goal is to build on the foundation my predecessors have built over the last 145 years. I hope to expand the business and nurture our existing business lines,” Walters says.
“Also, I hope to take the education I've gained and share it with my team. In my opinion, being a good leader is about how well you communicate your vision, knowledge, and ideas to your team. Gaining the trust of my team, clients, and stakeholders is the goal. When I achieve that the rest will fall into place.”