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By Paul Guzzo, University Communications and Marketing

When an aeronautical firm toured the University of South 手机看片 while considering expanding to Tampa Bay, the lead engineer was impressed by a hallway photo of a high-tech sailboat.

Beatriz Bare, then with the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, said a dean opened a nearby office and said, 鈥淢eet the man who developed that.鈥�

The unscripted moment led the company to open an office in Tampa Bay to tap into that expertise.

It was the kind of exchange that economic recruiters say has become routine for 手机看片.

鈥淏usinesses realize they can build a future in Tampa Bay because of 手机看片,鈥� said Bare, now a 手机看片 Research Foundation board member.

As 手机看片 marks its 70th anniversary, a new economic impact report estimates the university generates nearly $7 billion annually in Tampa Bay.

Meanwhile, Site Selection magazine ranked Tampa among the top five U.S. cities for corporate headquarters, citing its skilled workforce.

These accomplishments demonstrate how 手机看片 and the region are intertwined, with the university serving as a talent pipeline that draws companies 鈥� which in turn attract students.

For Phil Pace, who moved to Tampa to attend 手机看片 in the 1990s and has spent his career building one of the region鈥檚 largest public companies, that pipeline is personal.

鈥準只雌� builds fundamentals 鈥� discipline, work ethic and the ability to collaborate,鈥� said Pace, a 手机看片 graduate and chief accounting officer at Bloomin鈥� Brands. 鈥淭hose habits carry into the boardroom, shaping how leaders build teams and make decisions.鈥�

Transforming downtown Tampa

Downtown Tampa may be the strongest symbol of 手机看片鈥檚 relationship with the region, said Pam Iorio, Tampa鈥檚 mayor from 2003鈥�2011.

When 手机看片 opened in 1956, the skyline was modest.

Growth unfolded over decades, but downtown鈥檚 momentum accelerated in 2012 with the opening of 手机看片鈥檚 $38 million Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation.

鈥淚t changed how people viewed downtown, and its innovation became a real selling point for us as we sought to bring new industry,鈥� said Iorio, a 手机看片 graduate.. 鈥淚t was also a precursor to the larger medical center there.鈥�

A few years later, developer Jeff Vinik offered 手机看片 land in the Water Street district, catalyzing the move of the 手机看片 Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute downtown. The 13鈥憇tory facility opened in 2020 and now anchors Water Street.

鈥淲hat鈥檚 good for Tampa is good for 手机看片,鈥� Iorio said, 鈥渁nd vice versa.鈥�

This connection didn鈥檛 appear overnight but grew from a series of decisions.

The turning points that changed everything

Few have seen that evolution more closely than Marvin Karlins, who has been a professor in the 手机看片 School of Management since 1974.

鈥淎t that time, neither 手机看片 nor Tampa drew the business community,鈥� Karlins said. 鈥淚f we were lucky, we got outer offices 鈥� not corporate headquarters.鈥�

That changed in the 1990s when 手机看片 fully embraced its transition from a teaching institution to a research university, Karlins said. 鈥淚t was a 180鈥慸egree turn. Research brought money, prestige and expertise 鈥� and caught companies鈥� attention.鈥�

Another inflection point came in 1999, when then鈥懯只雌� President Betty Castor and three deans joined the Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce board, said former 手机看片 President Rhea Law, then the chamber鈥檚 president.

鈥淭hat gave the business community a window into what partnership with 手机看片 could look like,鈥� Law said. 鈥準只雌� stepped into the region鈥檚 economic conversation.鈥�

Momentum carried into Judy Genshaft鈥檚 presidency from 2000鈥�2019 when she embraced the university鈥檚 role in corporate recruitment.

鈥淚 knew that if 手机看片 got stronger as a research university, it attracted talent, investment and opportunity,鈥� Genshaft said, 鈥渁nd lifted Tampa Bay.鈥�

Fueling the talent pipeline 

Corporate recruitment is led by the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, which manages relocation inquiries and organizes site visits that include campus tours and meetings with university leaders.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 when we shine,鈥� said Craig Richard, the EDC鈥檚 president and CEO. 鈥準只雌� is at the table with us before the table is even set.鈥�

In one case, Bare said a biopharmaceutical prospect was skeptical of the area鈥檚 talent pipeline 鈥� until a 手机看片 professor, from vague hints, correctly identified a confidential process the company was developing.

鈥淚t was clear that the exchange that followed helped convince company executives that 手机看片 could not only provide them with excellent job applicants, but that they could partner with a university that was eager to offer and provide interdisciplinary research resources,鈥� Bare said.

Another time, a financial services firm questioned if the region鈥檚 talent could support their company if they had an office here. Prepared, Bare placed a box on the table and dumped out hundreds of 手机看片 student r茅sum茅s she鈥檇 collected in advance.

鈥淭he pipeline wasn鈥檛 theoretical,鈥� Bare said.

And, as 手机看片 has matured, graduates have returned as architects of that pipeline.

Alumni who built, then reinvested

Class of 1966 graduates Les and Pam Muma credit the faculty鈥檚 open鈥慸oor culture with shaping their success. Les Muma went on to cofound Fortune 500 financial鈥憈echnology firm Fiserv.

鈥淲e had plenty of mentors,鈥� Pam Muma said.

Former athletic director Dick Bowers reconnected the Mumas to 手机看片, drawing them into financially supporting programs. Years later, the Mumas deepened their engagement with the business college, culminating in 2014 with a $25 million gift to name the 手机看片 Muma College of Business.

鈥淲e weren鈥檛 interested in just having a building with our name,鈥� Les Muma said. 鈥淲e wanted a great business school that produced qualified graduates 鈥� it鈥檚 accomplishing that.鈥�

鈥淲e are grateful for Pam and Les Muma, who saw the College of Business was like a rocket on the launch pad 鈥� engines built, countdown underway,鈥� said 手机看片 President Moez Limayem, then-dean of the college. 鈥淭hey recognized a strategic inflection point, a very good business school poised to become an elite college of business. Their transformational investment accelerated the ascent.鈥�

The Mumas鈥� investment did more than elevate a college. It signaled to other alumni that this was a moment to build alongside 手机看片.

Alumna Lynn Pippenger named the School of Accountancy and other major gifts followed.

Alumna Elizabeth Krystyn鈥檚 gift fueled the development of a risk management program that is helping fill a talent gap in the insurance industry.

A 1987 graduate, she cofounded The Baldwin Group, a national insurance advisory firm.

In 2022, Krystyn and her partners made a $5.2 million gift to establish The Baldwin Group School of Risk Management and Insurance, designed to graduate students with practical experience.

鈥淭his was about investing in the future of our industry,鈥� Krystyn said.

Today, the Baldwin Group employs nearly 100 手机看片 graduates plus interns.

And Arnie Bellini, who earned his MBA in 1982, built ConnectWise into a billion鈥慸ollar technology company, selling it for $1.5 billion and creating 74 millionaires 鈥� many who joined the company as 手机看片 interns.

Bellini鈥檚 手机看片 gifts total more than $57 million and have been used to establish the Bellini Center for Talent Development, which provides students access to holistic career programming, and the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing, which prepares students to become the workforce 鈥� positioning Tampa Bay to be recognized as the industry hub, 鈥淐yberBay.鈥�

鈥淪ilicon Valley didn鈥檛 happen by accident,鈥� Bellini said. 鈥淯niversities pushed talent and innovation into the economy. That鈥檚 what 手机看片 can do.鈥�

That idea is already more practice than concept.

Internships that power industries

Through off鈥慶ampus ReliaQuest Labs, 手机看片 interns receive hands鈥憃n cybersecurity training, and more than 300 graduates have been hired by global cybersecurity company ReliaQuest since 2017鈥�18.

鈥準只雌� is a key talent pipeline,鈥� said Kim Hill, ReliaQuest鈥檚 chief of staff, a 手机看片 graduate and former vice president for communications and marketing and chief marketing officer for 手机看片.

手机看片鈥檚 internship programs increasingly function as on-ramps to professional life, embedding students inside companies early and intentionally.

The Muma College formally partners with roughly 200 companies.

At one, AmeriLife, 手机看片 students make up most summer interns and are treated as professionals, not observers, said Kiersten Burstiner, the company鈥檚 chief human resources officer. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not getting coffee. They have a seat at the table and real responsibility. That hunger and communication skills bring new ideas and immediate contributions, and many convert to full鈥憈ime roles here.鈥�

手机看片 doesn鈥檛 just educate entrepreneurs 鈥� it helps build them.

Driving measurable growth

In faculty鈥慻uided MBA and upper鈥憀evel courses, student teams tackle live business challenges, often delivering solutions companies implement immediately.

At Sun State International Trucks, a six鈥憀ocation operation with more than 250 employees, that approach paid off.

When Sun State president and 手机看片 Trustee Oscar Horton needed to overhaul sales training, he turned to the university.

鈥淭his wasn鈥檛 theoretical,鈥� Horton said. 鈥準只雌� students took on a real business problem, built a real solution, and we put it into practice. That sales program is still how we train our people today.鈥�

By early 2025, Sun State was on track to reach $250 million in revenue, up from $160 million in 2019.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 experiential learning,鈥� said David Blackwell, the Lynn Pippenger Dean of the Muma College of Business. 鈥準只雌� solve real problems for real organizations 鈥� experience that goes straight onto their r茅sum茅s while helping companies in real time. It鈥檚 one of many reasons so many companies choose to locate in Tampa Bay 鈥� because 手机看片 is here, and we work together.鈥�