A new student organization at The University of Texas at Dallas provides student members networking opportunities, educational and scholarship programs and access to news and research all related to the retail industry.

The National Retail Federation (NRF), the world’s largest retail trade association, has added the UT Dallas chapter to its roster of more than 100 university student associations which together number more than 6,500 students.

The organization is affiliated with the Center for Retail Innovation and Strategy Excellence (RISE), which is housed in the Naveen Jindal School of Management. Currently, enrolled students in all seven UT Dallas schools are eligible to join. Although still in its infancy, it already numbers more than 250 students.

Charles (Chuck) Haseman, a professor of practice in the Marketing Area at the Jindal School and director of RISE, said that retail the sale of goods to consumers is a wide-ranging discipline that encompasses every academic program, not only within the Jindal School but also UT Dallas.

“Our mission at RISE is the digital transformation of the retail industry,” said Haseman, who is the organization’s faculty sponsor. “When I think of retail, I think of the customer experience. At RISE, we want to be the back office of retail. All of UTD’s strengths — data, computer science, the latest technologies like cybersecurity and cryptocurrency — all of that is very real in retail. Amazon and Walmart, they’ve been out in front of it for years. What we’re focused on at RISE is the data manipulation behind the scenes that made retail what it is today. Our students are a critical component of that, which is why I’m so excited to launch this student organization.”

Jayashree (Jaya) Balakumar, BS’21, a student in the Jindal School’s No. 4 ranked graduate supply chain management program, is president of UTD’s NRF chapter. She believes there is value in joining the organization because its goal is to help people understand that job opportunities in retail extend far beyond being a sales associate at an outlet and helping people pick an item off a shelf. Those opportunities extend into technology and e-commerce and span the entire supply chain.

Our sponsoring partners will be recognized by the NRF. Not only that, but they will also enjoy the added benefits of UTD’s NRF relationship by receiving first-hand connections to our well-prepared students and potential future employees. This NRF partnership is a win-win formula for the retail industry to get in touch with the STEM centric academic excellence found at UTD. – Ray Hemmig

“Beyond that, the point of being at school is to expand your horizons,” she said. “To get a job is essentially on a more practical scale. Well, our organization helps you do both. Even if you don’t walk out of here with a job, which is why you might originally join NRF UTD, you’re going to walk out with plenty of networking opportunities and a broader understanding of all the different things you can do with just one skill that you can master, which is retail. If you understand retail, then you can move forward in so many different industries.”

Ray Hemmig, chairman of the RISE advisory board, said he is excited that the center has formed a student organization associated with the NRF because it is such a natural fit. “Retail is a huge sector — currently making up 69.7% of the U.S. GDP (gross domestic product),” he said. “The 500-plus UTD students who have already joined our chapter will benefit from all the national NRF activities, career fairs, and scholarships offered to students at all member universities.”

Hemmig said that RISE’s corporate sponsors will also benefit from this relationship with the NRF.