Dr. Scott Manley
My business career started early, when my brother and I opened a family partnership just four days after my high school graduation. For the next three years, I successfully managed this hardware and farm supply business before relinquishing my share of the company to work for Gold Kist, Inc. During my tenure with Gold Kist, I completed my undergraduate management degree and was promoted to supervisor, moving to Columbia, South Carolina. I had the opportunity to move back home in 1992, and took another managerial position with Heilig-Meyers Furniture. I learned many lessons in business working for both of these very large Fortune 500 corporations; the most valuable was never to take anything for granted, as neither is in business any longer.
After leaving Heilig-Meyers, I decided to complete my Master of Business Administration at Valdosta State University. In 1998, I began working for Valdosta State University as a business consultant with the Georgia Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network. In this role, I was exposed to a broad range of complex entrepreneurial issues almost daily. During my 12-year tenure with the SBDC, I provided consulting services and taught continuing education programs to thousands of entrepreneurs throughout Georgia and the entire Southeastern United States. One of the most rewarding parts of that job was seeing entrepreneurs succeed, and feeling as if I had at least played a small role in that success.
In 2005, I was privileged to provide disaster assistance services to the citizens of the Mississippi Gulf coast following Hurricane Katrina. As a result of my disaster assistance work in Mississippi, the Georgia SBDC Network awarded me the “Extra Mile Award” and the National Association of Small Business Development Centers (ASBDC) recognized me with the “ASBDC Distinguished Service Award.” I was truly humbled to be recognized when I had such a small part in such a large recovery effort. In 2008, I was awarded the Georgia SBDC Network’s “Consultant of the Year” award, and in 2009 was further recognized by the ASBDC as “State Star.”
In both 2009 and 2010, I led a team of students on an international consulting trip to El Remate, Guatemala. These trips came about as a result of my service as an advisor on the board of VSU’s Enactus organization. As a result of my work at VSU, I was offered a position as the director of the Center for Business and Economic Research. This position is a dual appointment that includes duties as a lecturer in the Department of Management and International Business at the Langdale College of Business. Shortly after accepting my new role at VSU, I began my doctoral coursework at Kennesaw State University. I completed my doctoral dissertation during the summer of 2015, and graduated with my Doctorate of Business Administration on July 29, 2015.
Currently, I hold an appointment as the Lalani Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship and serve as the Director of the Munir Abdul Lalani Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise at Midwestern State University. In that role, I administer i.d.e.a.MSU, i.d.e.a.WF, and the Texoma Angel Investor Network.
The best way to reach me is via e-mail or phone at either 940-397-4366 or 229-560-4102.
Watch my short YouTube video and view my profile for a full list of contact information, course syllabi, and recent publications.