New faculty: Spotlight on two of the eleven new professors who joined the college this fall.

Sungu Armagan focuses on subjects of interest to many and to few.

Sungu Armagan

Sungu Armagan, a new assistant professor in the Department of Management and International Business, was sold on the College of Business Administration when she interviewed for the position. Hearing the enthusiasm of her potential new colleagues, who “talked about the school as if there is no other,” made her want to “hop on the bandwagon of a college that is on the rise and to be part of that.”

Her interests embrace subjects of “interest to many,” about which she teaches, and research, which “results in deeper knowledge of phenomena that few care about, but which makes it possible to teach scientific knowledge.”

A social person by nature, she loves to interact with others on subjects related to organizational behavior, including negotiation. While pursuing her PhD, she taught negotiation modules for students at the master’s degree level and provided negotiation training for a not-for profit organization.

At the same time, she loves to conduct research and has won a prize for a paper, has presented at national and international conferences, and has published her work mainly on the topics of groups, negotiations, and culture.
 
The difference between the two aspects of academia—teaching and research—brings welcome variety to her life, and she can’t imagine ever being bored as long as she can continue to do both.

William G. Hardin III asks tough questions.

William G. Hardin III

William G. Hardin III got a PhD because he wasn’t satisfied with anecdotal explanations about the fundamental drivers in business. In his ongoing quest to understand and validate the reasons behind why things happen, he asks himself—and his students—serious questions to separate fact from opinion.

As a new associate professor in the Department of Finance, Hardin will expand both undergraduate and graduate programs in real estate, including the Master of Science in International Real Estate (MSIRE), designed to attract professionals interested in real estate investment, finance, and all aspects of commercial real estate.

His distinguished research record—including publications in more than ten prestigious journals and four awards—reflects his curiosity. However, his greater enjoyment comes from establishing rapport with his students, helping them look for the long-term patterns that underlie shifting markets so they can make wiser business judgments. Over the course of his teaching career, going back to the mid-1990s, he has particularly relished seeing “many good, talented students gain confidence and achieve their goals,” and appreciates that they continue to test their ideas with him.

Considering the volatile real estate market in South Florida, his probing teaching style could not come at a better moment.