Celebrating 40 years at WMU and still going strong

 

When Dr. Mushtaq Luqmani joined WMU as a marketing faculty member in 1977, he was ABD, which means that he had all but his dissertation completed in his Ph.D. program. His plan was to teach at WMU for a time and move elsewhere, largely to lessen his severe seasonal allergies that the Michigan climate worsened.

Little did he know that his allergies were no match for the love he would develop for WMU and its students. Now, 40 years later, Luqmani is still here and just as in love with the Department of Marketing, the Haworth College of Business and Kalamazoo as ever.

Throughout the years, he has taught every type of marketing class the department offers. His unwavering dedication to students, paired with a genuine concern for others, endears him to students.

“Dr. Luqmani has a way of connecting with past, present, and future students that is beyond words,” says Erin Sionkowski, B.B.A.’17. “He helped me decide to come to WMU and guided me on my major and classes. He was there to provide support for everything. If you multiply that support by thousands of students, you begin to understand the impact he has had on business students.” Student success is Luqmani’s passion. “Mentoring students makes a difference in their lives,” he says. “It is highly rewarding to see former students excel in their professional careers.”

In 2009, he became chair of the Department of Marketing, the largest academic department at the University with more than 1,100 marketing majors and three nationally recognized programs: food and consumer package goods marketing, sales and business marketing and the interdisciplinary integrated supply management program. The department also offers excellent programs in general marketing, advertising and promotion, and an interdisciplinary program in electronic business marketing.

“I try to lead in a quiet, resolute and open-minded way, which I find creates an environment of faculty empowerment and creativity,” says Luqmani. Associate Professor of Marketing Dr. Kelley O’Reilly values Luqmani’s ability to promote positive group dynamics. “I believe the supportive culture in our department is the direct result of having Dr. Luqmani at the helm,” she says. “He earns everyone’s respect through his leadership and is the essence of all good things in the Department of Marketing.”

Career Highlights

Here are just some of Luqmani’s accomplishments:

Publishing more than 60 articles in academic journals and co-authoring two marketing texts, adopted by numerous universities.
Receiving major U.S. Department of Education Business and International Education grants for the college’s internationalization efforts.
Serving as an editor for the Journal of Asia-Pacific Business and as an advisory board member for a number of other journals.
Being recognized as a marketing and international business scholar and serving as a keynote speaker at a variety of institutions and universities abroad.
Serving as a United Nations Transfer of Knowledge through Expatriate Nationals (TOKTEN) Expert on Pakistan.
Serving as Distinguished Professor of Business at Saudi Arabia’s prestigious King Fahd University.
Being highly engaged in diversity and inclusion activities, including WMU Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations and in numerous interfaith events that foster peace and understanding.

For Luqmani, being a department chair is about fostering collaboration and excellence. “What distinguishes Dr. Luqmani is his focus on others and what they think, feel and need,” says Dr. Zahir Quraeshi, professor of marketing.

“Thanks to our talented faculty and staff, we have much to be proud of, such as the opening of the Robert S. Kaiser Sales, Negotiation and Leadership Lab, greater national recognition for the annual WMU Food Marketing Conference, digital marketing curriculum initiatives, a newly established Food Industry Research and Education Center, new executive development programs, and excellent placement rates for marketing graduates.”

Luqmani and his spouse Zahida, a Bronco graduate and marketing faculty member, call the last 40 years here at WMU the most fulfilling and wonderful time of their lives.

Luqmani welcomes connecting with former students. He can be reached at mushtaq.luqmani@wmich.edu.