Special Events : 2004 COB Honors Banquet

11th Annual College of Business Honors Banquet

Keynote Speaker: Doug Wood Chief Operating Officer Tommy Bahama "Assessing Your Professional Toolbox" Saturday, May 15, 2004

Doug Wood is Chief Operating Officer of Tommy Bahama, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oxford Industries. As COO, Doug is directly responsible for all operations, finance, human resource, and iInformation technology for the company. This Seattle-based company has created an image of the island lifestyle, and is a complete life brand that includes men's and women's apparel, accessories, and home furnishings. Independent specialty retail stores as well as upscale department stores sell the collection offered by Tommy Bahama. The company also operates 43 of its own retail stores and seven restaurants. While launching its Indigo Palms chain, Tommy Bahama continues to add as many as 10 stores a year.

Prior to his years at Tommy Bahama, Wood spent seven years at AT&T Wireless. His most recent position at AT&T wireless was the Vice President of Operations for Aviation Communication Division. Prior to that he worked at Boeing for seven years, holding positions in Materiel and Program Planning and Control.

Wood received his Masters of Business Administration degree from Pacific Lutheran University and Bachelor of Science degrees in Business Administration--Finance and Economics from Central Washington University. In his definition of success, Wood explains that success is mainly hard work and passion. He notes, "Success has nothing to do with titles and money. It is about how you feel about what you are doing." Furthermore, success means so much more when shared, and Wood shares his success with many family and friends. He attributes his success to hard work and the people around him--most notable are his wife, parents, brothers, son, and daughter. With much humility, Wood concludes, "What I am is because of them."