Hazael Andrew | April 24, 2019
From April 11-12, World View partnered with Pitt Community College, Grady-White Boats and Thermo Fisher Scientific to launch a Global Is Local Initiative for community college educators. With a focus on eastern North Carolina, educators from 12 community colleges across the state experienced the global footprint of both Grady-White Boats and Thermo Fisher Scientific. Grady-White Boats is one of the most respected boatbuilding companies in the world and Thermo Fisher Scientific is the world leader in serving science, with revenues of more than $20 billion and approximately 70,000 employees globally.
The program kicked off with a lecture from Dr. Mabel Miguel, Clinical Professor of Organizational Behavior and Director of the Global Business Center at the Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill. Dr. Miguel’s talk focused on understanding yourself and others and exploring values and culture in a global business world. She underscored the various cultural perspectives that are relevant when working with others from different cultures. After the talk, participants experienced a locally-owned Dominican restaurant where students from Pitt Community College shared a guide to Greenville highlighting the ways in which Greenville, North Carolina is global.
The morning of April 12th was filled with experiential tours. At Grady-White Boats, participants experienced the company’s manufacturing process, attended a staff meeting and learned more about the company’s global operations. Participants heard from Grady-White’s Executive Vice President, Mark Doggett, about how the company supports its employees. The visit to Thermo Fisher Scientific featured a presentation by Jess Boyd, Senior Director of Global Business Management, who shared about the company’s multilayered global operation. In the program evaluation, one participant shared that “the discussion regarding global views and skills and cultural sensitivity was very helpful.”
The program wrapped up with a panel discussion involving representatives from Grady-White Boats, Thermo Fisher Scientific and the NC East Alliance. Both participants and students from the North Carolina Global Distinction program learned about the biggest changes facing industry and the changes that needs to be made to meet the needs of a global workforce. President Lawrence Rouse of Pitt Community College delivered closing remarks and thanked all involved for a successful launch of this program. World View looks forward to working with global businesses and community colleges in North Carolina to host Global Is Local programs in the future.