Above and Beyond
Bob Stohler
As a young Naval lieutenant fresh out of Officers Candidate School, Robert Stohler (BS'64, MBA'69) found himself one of six Officers of the Deck on the aircraft carrier USS Saratoga, managing 4,000 men and a billion dollars' worth of equipment for four hours every day. That kind of challenge will make a leader out of you in a hurry.
As Bob recalls, "The Chief Warrant Officer who recruited me to the Navy said, 'You'll probably go your whole life and never have this much responsibility again.' That was considerable food for thought to me, all of 22 at the time. And he was right, except towards the end of my career." The pressure might have intimidated some people, but this particular young man turned out to be a natural leader.
Love at First Sight
Nothing in the regulations says that leadership has to be lonely. While stationed on the Saratoga, Bob was set up on a blind date with Sylvia Ann Wright, a North Carolinian working in Jacksonville, Florida. Mutual love at first sight blossomed into marriage and long-term goals.
Having served his country for three-and-a-half years, Bob decided to earn an MBA, and the couple returned to Bloomington. Sylvia earned her state teaching certificate at IU, and she taught business education at Arlington High School in Indianapolis while her husband attended classes in Bloomington.
Lifelong Giving
Former military officers with solid business training are prized by the corporate world. Bob's career with Fortune 100 companies carried him from IU to Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson, Rubbermaid, and ScottsMiracle-Gro. Following assignments in England, Luxembourg, and the Philippines as well as the USA, Bob retired, and the couple came back home to Bloomington.
Like his father before him, the first thing Bob did after settling into retirement was to go back to work. His father, IU Class of 1927, worked on special projects for the University treasurer's office in Indianapolis when IUPUI was being formed in the late '60s. This was how the elder Stohler gave back to the University following his own retirement from General Motors. Bob wanted to honor his father by likewise doing something for the University. Supporting the Kelley School of Business was the means.
Mentoring Students
Bob's last career stop was the ScottsMiracle-Gro Company, where he was executive vice president responsible for North America. He proposed a partnership between Scotts and IU. Both sides liked the idea. Bob persuaded Scotts to "let him have" the plant food Osmocote®, so he could educate graduate students using an actual product. He then established Bloomington Brands LLC in 2003 as a vehicle for managing "orphan brands" like Osmocote, and for giving MBA students a leg up in the business world.
Under his guidance, a half dozen MBA students market Osmocote to consumers. They gain essential experience with issues that span the breadth of a corporation: advertising, legal affairs, research and development, marketing, promotion, package design, media planning, distribution, sales. With a broad smile, Bob reflects on the difference a semester makes. "It's great to see the lights go on when they [students] get a handle on how all the pieces fit together. That usually happens in the second semester. The first is a bit tougher because it's all so new to them."
The Duty of Giving
If all that weren't commitment enough, the Stohlers have also funded a fellowship for graduate students at the Kelley School. The fellowship is for active military officers seeking a transition to civilian life through graduate business school, just as Bob did.
Bob Stohler believes he could not have had a better education, either in leadership during his Navy years or in business training during his Kelley School years. His loyalty and his sense of service have never wavered: When duty calls, he answers.
