Roger Smith

Student

“These days, if you’re going to do business in the international world, you have to know at least a few words of Japanese.”

You could consider Roger Smith to be a study of the international corporate businessperson of the 1990s. But if you study him, you’d better be prepared to do so on three hours of sleep a night. “I spent 17-1/2 years with AT&T,” says Roger, “and I simply got used to the pace.”

The pace hasn’t let down since. He was just preparing to leave for a flight to Houston in his capacity as business manager for Hubert Laws, the acclaimed flutist. While waiting for his flight, he was grading papers for his students at Cal State Fullerton where he teaches international marketing. And there was a proposal to write, as an engineering consultant, to the Air Quality Management District. “I only do things that I want to do,” says Roger.

“For me, work is it. So I just keep pushing.” And a current “push” for him is his effort to master the Japanese language at SMC. “I feel what I’ve gotten from these classes is better than anything I could have taken anywhere else,” says Roger. “And I’ve also learned a great deal about cultural differences.” After two semesters, Roger is able to make his way comfortably with the Japanese language. And with Roger, this new knowledge will have immediate practical use.

“I’m going back to Japan soon and I’ll be taking along some projects in film, music and consulting.” But a fluency in Japanese may soon not be enough for this driven academic/musical/engineering entrepreneur. Says Roger, “I’ve been talking with an associate about reaching the markets in Russia…”

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