The Anderson University College of Business has been doing inclusion employment research for the retail chain Bed, Bath and Beyond.
Business Professor Dr. Jeffrey Moore and a group of students met April 25 with representatives from Bed, Bath and Beyond at Anderson University. According to Moore, the chain is beginning to hire people with disabilities in their Dallas distribution center. Moore traveled to Dallas and began collecting data for the research project. The College of Business had been doing research with Walgreens for about 10 years. Walgreens has a longstanding commitment of hiring persons with disabilities at their distribution center in Anderson County.
A team composed of faculty, as well as graduate and Ph.D. students, has been conducting research measuring the impact of hiring people with disabilities. They looked at productivity, absenteeism and engagement among these employees. Also discussed were ways to increase and improve employment opportunities for the disabled population.
The graduate student researchers are Sarah Hankins (MBA), Karine Brunet (Ph.D), McKenzie Allison (Ph.D), and Ashley Oberlander Townsend (Ph.D). The faculty research team consisted of Drs. William Hanson, Evie Maxey, Robert Franklin and Susie Doughty; they have worked with Walgreens and Sephora to study their inclusive organization and its impact on the non-disabled team members and the organization’s culture, according to Dr. Moore.