Despite having a full-time finance job at Frito-Lay, Rudy Garza knew he needed an MBA to solidify his professional career.

Being based in Dallas-Fort Worth, he wanted a quality program that was available locally. He found what he was looking for with the Texas MBA at Dallas/Fort Worth program, which is offered on alternating Fridays and Saturdays. With a plethora of executive education opportunities nearby, McCombs rose to the top.

“There are many options in the DFW area to get an MBA,” Garza says. “For me, McCombs was the number one option.”

Garza praised the top-notch faculty for providing an intensive and rewarding learning experience. Respected professors like Bob May, Jim Nolen, Jim Fredrickson and John Doggett all greatly affected him.

“The access to leading professors and knowing our program wasn’t a watered down version of the full-time MBA program is what made my experience great,” he says.

Since completing the program in 2006, Garza has stayed connected to McCombs and was recently recognized for his efforts by winning the Alumni Service Award at the DFW MBA Alumni Chapter winter reception in 2008.

He has taken a hands-on approach with helping Frito-Lay recruit McCombs graduates, and has helped establish a bridge from his company not just to the main campus, but to the DFW program he knows so well.

“I think Frito-Lay sees the importance of maintaining a relationship with the full-time program in Austin, and also with the DFW program in the company’s own backyard,” Garza says. “Being an alumnus from that program, I have a vested interest in seeing that program succeed.”

Now he serves as a Group Finance Manager for PepsiCo’s (Frito-Lay’s parent company) foodservice division and manages the South region sales team, which in addition to Frito-Lay, also sells Gatorade, Quaker and Tropicana products.
A trip abroad to Singapore and Thailand while with McCombs helped open his eyes to the broad scope his company encompasses.

“My company sells products that are consumed by people every day throughout the world,” Garza says. “It was interesting to see how those products were being marketed and consumed in the various regions of the countries we were able to visit.”

He takes pride in being a part of a company that has a worldwide presence and enjoys his role in bringing consumers the products they know and love. Finance, he says, touches every part of the business.

“In finance, I’m always working with a functional partner (Sales, Marketing, R&D and/or Operations) to drive profitable sales growth and deliver our productivity targets,” he says. And as he and his high school sweetheart prepare to adopt a child from El Salvador, Garza takes comfort in having a stable and rewarding job and can thank McCombs for part of his success.

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