2022 Best & Brightest Business Major: Brianna Robertson, University of Houston (Bauer)

Brianna Robertson

University of Houston, C.T. Bauer College of Business

“Passionate about learning, growing, people, and (re)binging Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”

Fun fact about yourself: I swam competitively for 12 years because I was too uncoordinated for any other sport as a child.

Hometown: Houston, TX

High School: Clear Lake High School

Major: Business Management (HR Focus)

Minor: Leadership Studies, Global Engagement & Research

Favorite Business Course: Global Engagement & Research with Dr. Olivia Miljanic

Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College:

Involvement:

  • Bonner Leaders Program – Food Insecurity Team Executive, Pantry Coordinator, Recruitment Coordinator
  • UH Honors Advocates – Co-Coordinator
  • Bauer Honors Leadership Development Program
  • Bauer Honors Student Advisory Board
  • KEI Study Abroad in Dublin

Honors & Awards:

  • Bauer Excellence Scholar
  • Academic Excellence Scholar
  • Provost’s Service-Learning Scholarship
  • Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo Scholar
  • West University Rotary Service Scholarship
  • William Randolph Hearst Leadership Scholarship
  • Dean’s List (All Semesters)

Where have you interned during your college career?

  • Logitech – Talent Management Intern – Newark, CA (Remote)
  • Logitech – People & Culture Intern – Newark, CA (Remote)
  • Briggs & Veselka – Human Resources Intern – Houston, TX
  • Kuraray America – Human Resources Intern – Houston, TX

Where will you be working after graduation? Undecided.

What advice would you give to a student looking to major in a business-related field? Put just as much work into building relationships as you do into coursework. You can learn so much from the people around you and gain new perspectives that can change your outlook. Additionally, you will create great connections that could open doors in the future.

What has surprised you most about majoring in business? Your degree does not determine your career. Business develops the skills and traits of individuals who are desirable in a variety of different roles. Career transfers and pivots happen all the time, as long as you are open to continuing to grow and learn.

Looking back over your experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently in business school and why? If I could do it over again, I would take more classes of interest. I set a strict degree plan for myself early on. While I was able to establish a diverse academic background, I wish I would have taken the time to let my curiosity guide me.

What business executive do you admire most? Katie Burke, the Chief People Officer at HubSpot. I have always admired the culture that Katie supports at HubSpot, one that emphasizes that people are its best resource. She pushes boundaries on how companies define what work should look like and how to measure productivity and is not afraid to make a big statement. As I look to help create environments that will allow people to perform at their highest potential, I will continue to look to Katie as inspiration.

Which academic, extracurricular or personal achievement are you most proud of? My proudest accomplishment is participating in the Bonner Leaders Program to establish a food pantry for our local community. With the knowledge that we wanted to address food insecurity in our community, a team and I started from the ground up on creating a food pantry. We created partnerships, proposals, plans, and ultimately opened and continue to run the pantry.

This experience was meaningful on many levels. As I ran operations at the pantry, I developed relationships with our clients and learned how to accommodate their needs to help them feel respected and more comfortable. Over time, I witnessed a shift in clients’ attitude as they found a safe space in the pantry and trusted us enough to open up about their lives. From here, I made adjustments in the pantry to better serve them. For example, after learning one client did not have a working stove/oven, I found ways to cook ingredients from the pantry using only a microwave and created recipe cards for clients.

Additionally, this experience helped me find clarity in my career motivations. I find fulfillment in creating great experiences and environments that allow others to show up as their whole self. This, combined with the project management skills I gained, I recognized my interest in pursuing a career in HR Programming.

Which classmate do you most admire? I met Ariel Durham on one of the first days of college and was immediately inspired by her motivation and strong-willed personality. She is passionate about everything she does and works tirelessly to make an impact with her work. Whether it be through her service-learning endeavors in education, to advocating for affordable housing and education reform, Ariel demonstrates a level of compassion and drive others look up to. She is attending law school next year and I cannot wait to see how her passion and hard work translates to major change.

Who would you most want to thank for your success? My parents. They gave me nothing but undying support through any and all endeavors I took on through the years (no matter how crazy). I am forever grateful for the impact and presence. Without them, I would certainly not be the person I am today.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list?

  • Work internationally to build diverse, global teams
  • Start a scholarship at UH for students in local high schools

What are your hobbies? Rock climbing, swimming, refurbishing vintage furniture, and color coding my Google Calendar.

What made Brianna such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2022?

“I first met Brianna Robertson at our Bauer Excellence Scholars Open House in February of 2018. At that time, Brianna was a high school senior that had been selected to receive our most competitive freshman scholarship and was attending the event to learn about the opportunities she would be afforded should she decide to attend the University of Houston and the C.T. Bauer College of Business. What struck me about Brianna was that she attended the event alone. All the other high school seniors were flanked by their parents or friends, but Brianna chose to mix, mingle and talk to faculty, staff and student representatives without a trusty confidant. This is how she has approached many situations during her undergraduate career, with confidence and determination. Brianna is a Management HR major with Honors College minors in Leadership Studies and Global Engagement and Research. Brianna has been active at UH, serving in the Bonner Leaders Program, a civic engagement organization, throughout her 4 years. She took herself out of her comfort zone with a learning abroad to Dublin, Ireland in the spring of 2020 only to have the experience cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon returning to Houston, she decided to seek as many professional opportunities as possible and has completed HR internships with Kurary America, Briggs & Vaselka Co., and Logitech. Brianna embodies a “can-do” attitude that will no doubt serve her well as she moves into the next chapter of her life.”

Colleen Davies
Academic Advisor, Bauer Honors Program

Director, Bauer in DC Fellowship Program
C.T. Bauer College of Business