Paul Bradley wanted a sophisticated, technical education in a team-oriented setting. He found both in the UCA College of Business and the Department of Management Information Systems.
A Conway native, Bradley grew up around computers and in the middle of the internet and dot-com boom.
“I remember I was about 8 years old when my parents bought our first computer,” said Bradley. “It was interesting. It was so big and bulky, and old school. You look at it now and think of what an antique it is.”
The internet’s influence grew and so did Bradley’s computer skills. He learned how to build applications and develop websites. He took several high school courses to further his knowledge. He also worked for a local internet provider, selling its dial-up network.
When he came to the UCA College of Business in 2002, the MIS program allowed him to grow even more.
“It was a people-minded program,” said Bradley. “It had the technical, computer and IT aspects, of course, but it wasn’t a sit-behind-your-desk, never-talk-to-anyone type of program.”
Real-world situations presented in the classroom allowed Bradley to gain a deeper knowledge of the concepts and applications discussed.
“The professors had real-world experience to go along with an academic foundation,” said Bradley. “The classes I found most valuable were when the professor could present a concept in the form of a case study and show a wide scope of applications. You could think through the logical steps, expound on the complexities and go beyond what is in the book.”
When he returned in 2007 to pursue an MBA in the college, Bradley found the same benefits. Only this time, he could directly apply what he learned in his career.
“There were concepts I could take from strategic management and organizational behavior and could apply to the team I was leading, which made it much more valuable to me” he said. “My employer at the time was going through a production transition process, so a lot of the classes about operations and logistics applied well because we were searching for ways to reproduce processes and make things easier.”
Now, Bradley works for Edafio Technology Partners as its Conway Market Leader. The company has offices in Conway, North Little Rock and Rogers and serves as an IT managed services outfit, supporting its clients’ networking, server and infrastructure needs.
Bradley continues to see the benefits of his undergraduate and master’s education at UCA and the College of Business play out in his professional life.
“I do feel I was prepared in a much more professional, mature sense at the College of Business,” he said. “I feel like UCA set me up very well compared to peers I’m competing against for positions.”