Rick Davis joined the Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program in August of 2019 as a Continuing Lecturer. He is an alumnus of Butler University and has an MBA from Purdue. Currently, he is the President and Financial Coach at Q4 Advisors and a Financial Advisor with Cedar Wealth Partners, focusing on helping individuals make good financial decisions, save for the future, and plan for a long retirement. Rick has always had a strong passion for personal finance and shares his wisdom with others. He is a retired Board Chair for The Junior Achievement of Greater Lafayette and now serves on its finance committee. Rick shares, “JA teaches programs in personal finance, career success skills, and entrepreneurship. All of those topics are close to my heart and things that I carry into the classroom at Purdue.” 

Rick feels the value that comes from financial literacy can be applied in many areas of one’s life including running a business or a startup. Companies fail for many reasons but near the top of the list is poor financial decisions, so relating personal money management habits or examples that students understand in their real-life (i.e., managing the cash in their bank account to make it through the weekend!) directly relate to what startups are challenged with as well. Rick also tries to emphasize the value of entrepreneurship skills to his students knowing many of them may never start their own business or join a startup, recognizing that ALL businesses want employees who challenge the status quo, look for ways to innovate and bring a growth mindset to whatever their job is.  Most fun for Rick however is just the opportunity to engage with and bring his experiences (good and bad, successful and unsuccessful) to future Purdue grads! 

Rick teaches two courses for the entrepreneurship program, one is the introductory course ENTR 20000 in an in-person format during the academic year, and the other is ENTR 31000 which is offered online in the summer. We are fortunate to have his skill set at both levels of the program. Davis says, “the online platform is convenient for the students in the summer when they can also have an internship. Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, I became far more comfortable with the instructional technology that was available, such as Hotseat, Packback, and Zoom.” Although he appreciates the value of the online course, he really values his time with students face-to-face. He looks forward to the day when masks are no longer required, when he can see students’ faces, and safely resume group work. Prior to the pandemic, he took moving around a classroom for granted and he cannot wait to resume this practice. He adds that guest speakers are often a highlight of the ENTR courses, and the value they add to the classroom is remarkable.

With all of his passion for sharing his knowledge, Rick remains a valuable asset to the ENTR program and shares a skill set that can be used for life.

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