Stopper Guest Lectures at SMU
Partner Mike Stopper from The Agency Hack recently spent the day on the Hilltop as a guest lecturer for Gordon Law’s Strategic Brand Management II course. The upperclassman course is part of the Temerlin Advertising Institute in the SMU Meadows School of the Arts.
The premise of the lecture was based on Stopper’s own strategic approach based heavily on Christian Philosopher and former USC professor Dallas Willard. In his 2002 book, Renovation of the Heart in Daily Practice, Willard introduces the “V.I.M. Framework” for spiritual formation and personal transformation. VIM stands for Vision, Intention and Means, which Stopper equated to the three relevant pillars for brand strategy development.
Additionally, Stopper discussed starting an independent agency in today’s competitive environment, as well as his brand experiences launching new products, dayparts and promotions for SONIC Drive-In.
“What a fun morning spending time with our future advertising colleagues,” said Mike Stopper. “We had fantastic dialogue, and the students asked thought-provoking questions about our industry. I’m just glad they didn’t smell the Longhorn on me.”
The Temerlin Advertising Institute for Education and Research (TAI) at Southern Methodist University trains students to search for unique solutions in advertising, preparing them for work in advertising agencies, media firms, corporate marketing departments, design studios and more. TAI is located in a top five media market that affords many opportunities for industry experience through internships and guest lectures, industry field visits, directed study and an annual lecture series.
Gordon Law has been an Executive in Residence at SMU since 2011 following a 30-year career as a prominent Dallas agency owner and luminary in media and strategy.
Stopper returned to SMU again the next week as a guest to observe the National Student Advertising Competition. AAF District 10’s competition was held at SMU and featured 20 competing universities from Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas.
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