With more than 20 years of HR management experience, Dr. Rosemary Maellaro, decided to share her expertise through teaching. Dr. Maellaro moved to the Dallas-Fort Worth area in 1987 working for The Southland Corporation, now 7-Eleven, Inc. She joined the faculty of the Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business at the University of Dallas as an adjunct professor in 1993, while serving as the Vice President of Human Resources for Black-eyed Pea Restaurants. She found the classroom experience exhilarating and came to the realization that she wanted to pursue a career in higher education.

After discovering her desire to teach, she began a nine year journey in obtaining her Ph.D. and became a full-time faculty member of the University in 1998. Dr. Maellaro is currently an associate professor and teaches masters level courses in organization development and leadership, as well as Agile Organizations in the DBA program.

Dr. Maellaro developed The Effective Leader course, based on her dissertation study that determined the ideal interpersonal skills local hiring managers seek in MBA graduates. The course focuses on developing the people skills leaders need to succeed in today's organizations, as well as effective team dynamics. The online version of this class received QM Certification in 2015 for meeting quality course design standards.

Dr. Maellaro also facilitates leadership development classes for the College of Business' Executive Education Center. She has served the College of Business as the Academic Program Director for the Human Resource Management concentration from 1996 to 2001 and for the Organization Development concentration from 2002 to 2010.

Why did you become a professor?
I was fortunate to be hired as an adjunct professor in what used to be the UD Graduate School of Management in 1993.  I realized that after a long hard day at the office, I was energized when I got t to the classroom in the evening and knew then that I had found my true calling. I was hired as a full-time faculty member in 1998 and became a tenured Associate Professor in 2014.

What do you enjoy most about teaching?
The most rewarding aspect of teaching for me is to see the light bulbs go on for students when they have learned something new. Secondarily, I love to hear from students that they were successfully able to apply what they learned to a work situation.

What do you hope students gain from your courses?
I hope that students are able to develop skills to treat others with dignity and respect as they work toward achieving business goals. Toward that end, I also hope students gain a better understanding of themselves and how they can contribute to their organizations in a way that will result not only in the attainment of their personal career goals, but also in the overall success of the organization. I want them to leave with the ability to make a positive difference.

What did you do prior to entering academia?
I held corporate HR management positions in the hospitality and retail industries. While I was an HR generalist (compensation, employee relations, recruiting, etc.), not surprisingly I always was particularly drawn to the areas of training and leadership development. Over the years I saw many intelligent people with a good education and solid professional experience not succeed as managers / leaders because they lacked people skills. 

What are you passionate about outside of the University?
My family tops this list.  My Mom and siblings live in California and Arizona, so I spend most vacations traveling west – particularly to spend summers near the ocean (another passion of mine). Locally, I have a step-daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter who live in Trophy Club who are very dear to me. I love the NBA and have been a die-hard Dallas Mavericks fan since I arrived here 30 years ago. And I have a management consulting practice that focuses on team building and leadership interpersonal skill development.

What are your research interests?
Adult learning, specifically as it relates to management education is a primary research interest of mine, as well as emotional intelligence and leader effectiveness.  Additionally, I have an affinity to the field of organization development, which includes a focus on leadership development and helping organizations succeed by becoming more agile.

  • Leadership Development
  • Interpersonal Effectiveness
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Team Building
  • Adult Learning
  • Experiential Learning

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Human and Organizational Systems
Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, CA

Master of Arts (MA) in Human and Organizational Systems
Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, CA

Master of Science (MS) in Management and Administrative Sciences
University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX

Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Liberal Arts
Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA 

Leadership development, management education and organization development.

Maellaro, R. & Olson, J. G. (2017). The story behind the story: Discovering and addressing the real team problem. In Anderson, D. L. (Ed.). Cases and exercises in organization development & change. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

Sprinkle, T. A. & Maellaro, R. (2017). Lia’s Dilemma: Does Eileen Have What it Takes to Succeed? Sage Business Cases DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781526403735

Maellaro, R. (2017). Diana's dilemma: The promotion stumbling block.  In S.L. McShane & M. A. Von Glinow, Organizational behavior: Emerging realities for the workplace revolution; Eighth ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin

Miller, R.J. & Maellaro, R. (2016). Getting to the root of the problem in experiential learning: Using problem solving and collective reflection to improve learning outcomes. Journal of Management Education. 40(2). 170-193.

Wysong, S. & Maellaro, R. (2013). An empirical examination of mega-event volunteer satisfaction and the introduction of the volunteer selection improvement process (VSIP) model. The International Journal of Sport & Society, 3(2), 123-135.

Maellaro, R. (2013). The learning journal bridge: From classroom concepts to leadership practices. Journal of Leadership Education, 12(1), 234-244.

Maellaro, R. & Whittington, J.L. (2012). What business students really need to learn: An evidence-based prescription for curriculum reform. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice, 12(4), 66-80. Invited submission 

Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) DFW Chapter featured speaker – “Emotional Intelligence: At the Intersection of Heart and Head” (August 2015)

“Analyzing Student Experiential Learning Insights to Inform the Design of a Cyber-Security Course”. Presentation in the Management Education and General Management track at the Southwest Academy of Management 2014 Annual Meeting

COB Adjunct Orientation (April 2014) – “Pedagogy and Experiential Learning in the MBA Classroom”

International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Dallas Chapter featured speaker – “Emotional Intelligence: At the Intersection of Heart and Head” (April 2013)

Fritz Roethlisberger Memorial Award for the best article published in the Journal of Management Education in 2016. Miller, R.J. & Maellaro, R. (2016). Getting to the root of the problem in experiential learning: Using problem solving and collective reflection to improve learning outcomes. Journal of Management Education. 40(2). 170-193

Outstanding Reviewer Award – Management Education & Development Division for Academy of Management 2016 Annual Meeting

QM Certification of Effective Leader course for meeting quality course design standards (May 2015)

Inducted into Beta Sigma Gamma Honor Society (April 2014)

Best Reviewer Award – Management Education and General Management Track, Southwest Association of Management 2014 Annual Meeting

Best Paper Award - Management Education / Management Education Track for Southern Management Association 2011 Annual Meeting: What business students really need to learn: An evidence-based prescription for curriculum reform, co-authored with J. Lee Whittington

SHRM / HR Southwest Educator of the Year Award – October 2009

University of Dallas College of Business Dean’s Award for Excellence in Education – June 2009