Fisher Global Community bridges generations of Business Buckeyes

By Margaret Farnham
Fisher College of Business

When Sydney Roth joined the millions of people navigating a career in New York City, she knew she needed more than stellar managerial skills and a fast-paced job. She also wanted a professional network.

In Chicago, Sean Hickey similarly understood the benefits of connecting with other business professionals.

“In a city of nine million, you have to find commonality with someone,” said Hickey, who leads go-to-market operations, planning systems at Salesforce.

Making meaningful connections in cities like New York and Chicago can be daunting. For Hickey (BSBA ’16) and Roth (BSBA ’18), their link to Ohio State and the Fisher Global Community offered a unique starting point.

Fisher Global Community (FGC) is a vast network of alumni, friends and partners who share a genuine love for Ohio State and a particular devotion to Business Buckeyes. Organized by Fisher’s Alumni Relations team, they meet for sponsored programs, casual conversation, guest speakers and panel discussions in a variety of venues, from restaurants to museums, across the country. 

“It does help to make a big city feel smaller,” said Roth, senior manager for HR process and operations at Fanatics. “The commonality helps you fit in, and people are apt to support and help those they meet and have a connection with. There’s a domino effect.” 

While Hickey and Roth could easily make professional connections outside their alma mater, there is something special about coming together with other Fisher grads at planned events.

“It goes without saying that the Ohio State network is amazing,” said Hickey, who moved to Chicago after graduation. “One thing Fisher does well is create a solid foundation for everyone to get out in the world and make their impact; they also do a good job of connecting you to your community.”

At a recent event, he was joined by two dozen other alumni and more than 60 current students representing the Finance Honors Program, Business Scholars Program and Business Honors Living Learning Community.

The benefit is two-fold

The opportunity to meet with students at FGC events offers alumni a chance to learn about what’s happening in the classroom and connect with the next generation of business leaders. Students, in turn, meet alumni who have found success in the corporate world or as entrepreneurs.

“Every single person we met on the West Coast loved their job,” said Will Rees, a third-year student who attended the FGC’s Buckeyes in the Bay event at the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, Calif., earlier this spring. “They wanted to go to work and change the world. As someone who wants to be an entrepreneur, I learned it was possible.”

Rees and his peers in the Honors Cohort program were part of a panel discussion during the event. He appreciated the opportunity to meet with alumni who work in Silicon Valley and to compare the work culture and perspectives of the West Coast to that of the Midwest.

“Failure doesn’t exist for them,” he said of those he met in California. “They said, ‘you’re either winning or learning; eventually you’re going to succeed.’”

Marlie Moner, a third-year finance student, also noticed a distinct energy and excitement during the alumni event and site visits out West.

“I went out there thinking I wouldn’t really enjoy the environment and how people do things because I’m from a very small town, but I loved it, and I loved how people were so passionate,” she said. 

Some of the alumni the students met on their site visits addressed the group during the evening gathering at the museum.

“It’s not just one speaker or one experience, but hearing a little from each of them really makes the experience and gets you thinking about what life and work are like there,” she said. “It made me a lot less scared to follow a different path.”

Many of the alumni who attend FGC events look forward to hearing from the students.

“One thing that is important to me as an alum is keeping brand awareness and name recognition at the top,” said Hickey. “One way to elevate the Fisher brand is for students to be more impressive than they were five, 10 or 20 years ago. And I think, so far, I can say that has been positively confirmed.”

Roth also cares about the brand. In a city teeming with Ivy League graduates, she willingly and frequently offers her support to up-and-coming Fisher alums eager to make it in New York.

“If I can make a connection for someone who needs my support, and I can vouch for them, I’d like to do that to show that an Ohio State grad is just as great a candidate,” said Roth, who moved to the city in 2021. 

She has attended several FGC events, including moderating a panel discussion with two other alumni.

“Whenever I go to one of these events, I usually bring a co-worker or someone who wants to network more,” said Roth. “I’m a connector, a glue girl. I bring friends and co-workers together. It matters to be making connections.”

Different goals, different careers, same sense of pride

Early in his career, Eric Wilson (BSBA ’05) occasionally connected with alumni while watching Ohio State football in sports bars in Arizona, Virginia and even Africa.

Now a partner with NextGen Growth Partners in Chicago, he admits that he fell out of contact with Fisher for a while ― until he received an invitation to a dinner with a dozen other alumni.

“We went around the table and talked about what it meant to go to Ohio State, and it was emotional for me,” he said. “I am from New Jersey and the first in my family to go to college. It’s hard to imagine the life I grew up in and where I am sitting right now. I came away from that dinner feeling reconnected to the school and wanting to do more.” 

Wilson joined Fisher’s Alumni Board in 2023 and has shared his professional experiences and advice with students in the Fisher FIRST program. He also attends FGC events in Chicago whenever his schedule allows.

“There are a lot of new things happening at the university and it’s fun to hear what’s going on,” he said. “Folks feel like they benefit from attending and they want to give back, especially members of the Alumni Board. We’re all cut from the same cloth, it seems.”

Recent graduate Angelina Laurino (BSBA ’25) understands that desire to give back.

“Ohio State had a massive impact on my professional growth and ability to find my voice in a room full of successful people,” she said. “The four years I spent there shaped me into who I am, and I owe so much to my professors and friends I met along the way. I feel compelled to give other students the same experience, and that means staying connected and giving back in any way possible.”

An assistant buyer for Ross Dress for Less, she started attending FGC events soon after moving to New York City. 

“I think the coolest part now is the range in age and experience of the alumni I get to network with,” she said. “At school, I mainly spoke to people within business or fashion and to alumni at companies where I wanted to work. Now in New York, I am speaking to alumni from every line of work and learning how Ohio State played a role in where they are today.”

Laurino, along with Roth and Hickey, subsequently joined Fisher’s Emerging Leaders Council, a  new group charged with strategizing ways to engage alumni. Some of that entails planning future FGC events.

Beyond the connections, Roth sees other benefits to networking with fellow alumni at these events.

“I also think it’s good practice to go to these events and introduce yourself and give your elevator pitch,” she said. “It keeps you sharp, it’s good practice and at the end you feel proud that you put yourself out there and met new people.”