Industry leaders to serve business school

Executive- and Entrepreneur-in-Residence named

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A double alumnus of Cal Lutheran, Primo Custodio earned a bachelor’s degree in business management in 1999 and an MBA in management and organizational behavior in 2007. 

(THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Nov. 28, 2016) California Lutheran University’s School of Management has appointed two industry leaders to serve as its inaugural Executive-in-Residence and Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

Primo Custodio, who recently retired as vice president for human resources at NBC Universal, will volunteer as the Executive-in-Residence. Motivational speaker and author Jim Cathcart will be the Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

Members of the business community connect with Cal Lutheran students and faculty as advisory board members and occasional guest speakers and participants in events, but the School of Management launched the new program to foster more intensive relationships with individual industry leaders. Executive-in-Residence and Entrepreneur-in-Residence programs are common in business schools nationwide.

Custodio and Cathcart will mentor students and become frequent participants in and speakers at School of Management events and classes.

A double alumnus of Cal Lutheran, Custodio earned a bachelor’s degree in business management in 1999 and an MBA in management and organizational behavior in 2007. From 2001 until his retirement in June, the Chatsworth resident oversaw human resources for NBC Universal’s legal, environmental health and safety, sourcing, security and studio operations divisions. Custodio managed the human resources team through six significant mergers and acquisitions. He began his career with the company as human resources director for Universal Studios Hollywood in 1988. He is a member of the Cal Lutheran School of Management Advisory Council. 

Cathcart was inducted into the Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame in London in 2012, and Top Sales World named him among the Top 50 Sales and Marketing Influencers of 2014, 2015 and 2016. The Thousand Oaks resident has written 17 books including international bestsellers “Relationship Selling: The Key to Getting and Keeping Customers,” “The Self-Motivation Handbook” and “The Acorn Principle: Know Yourself, Grow Yourself.” He has given presentations to more than 2,000 clients worldwide and his many professional speaking awards include induction into the National Speakers Association Council of Peers Award for Excellence “Speaker Hall of Fame.” He is a member of the Cal Lutheran School of Management Advisory Council.

Cal Lutheran’s School of Management offers undergraduate programs in business administration as well as MBAs and master’s degrees in public policy and administration, information technology and quantitative economics. Programs are offered in Woodland Hills, Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks and Oxnard as well as online. The university has awarded nearly 9,000 business degrees and contributed to the region’s business community through research and outreach.

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