As Global Markets Shift, Honors Seminar Focuses on History's Role in Business Decisions

At first glance, global business can feel remarkably uniform. Western corporations increasingly speak the same language, and boardrooms around the world can look strikingly similar. But beneath that surface consistency lies a powerful force shaping how leaders think and act: history. 

"It can all start to look the same, but when you're sitting across the table from someone in their late 60s in China, you have to remember they lived through the Cultural Revolution," said Leigh Hopkins, consultant and investor with more than 35 years of experience in international business. "They grew up in it. That experience shapes them, even if it's not immediately visible." 

Jon Johnson, University Professor of strategy, entrepreneurship and venture innovation at Walton College, along with Hopkins will guide students through a historical framework examining 10 countries from World War I to the modern era in their Fall 2026 Honors College Signature Seminar: How History Shapes Business. The course will also venture into some crystal-ball gazing, exploring how AI may continue to shape the future of business. 

"History operates at a deeper level," Johnson said. "It shapes instincts — how people perceive risk, authority, trust and opportunity."  

Rather than relying on a traditional textbook, the course will be built around a curated mix of readings drawn from historical accounts, academic research, journalism and contemporary analysis.  

While many international business textbooks focus on present-day market conditions, this class will take a deliberately different approach. Students will dig deeper into how countries and companies became what they are, examining the historical events, political shifts and cultural forces that shaped them and then explore how those forces continue to influence business decisions today. The goal is to understand not just how markets function now, but why they function the way they do. 

The United States will be the final case study in the course—by design. After spending the semester building a toolkit for analyzing how history shapes business culture, students will return to the U.S. with fresh eyes. They'll apply the same historical lens to examine how America's own political, economic and cultural development has influenced the way business is practiced today.  

The class will also explore whether regional histories within the U.S. have created distinct approaches to leadership, risk and entrepreneurship, inviting students to reconsider familiar ground with a deeper more critical perspective. 

"One of our goals is to help students recognize how their own assumptions are shaped by that history," Johnson said. "It's not just about taking an American framework and applying it somewhere else. It's about understanding how you think and how others think differently. These cognitive frames, these worldviews, vary across cultures, and they're deeply grounded in history." 

Students from all disciplines are invited to apply for the course, and Hopkins hopes that beyond gaining a deeper understanding of history's role in shaping business, they will also develop the confidence to travel and even work abroad. 

"There's nothing like encountering a different country to spark curiosity and start asking better questions," Hopkins said. "I hope we can light that fire, so students think, 'I want to experience this firsthand.' Because once you begin to see the world through a different lens, it doesn't just change how you understand other countries, it changes how you understand everything around you, even at home." 

Signature Seminars Explore Diverse Topics  

How History Shapes Business is one of two Honors College Signature Seminars scheduled for fall 2026 The other course offered is:   

Stress & Its Consequences — taught by Grant Shields, assistant professor of psychological science.

The dean of the Honors Colleges nominates top research faculty to participate in this program, and those selected to teach will become Dean's Fellows in the Honors College.

Honors students must apply to participate, and those selected will be designated Dean's Signature Scholars. The course application is posted online on the Signature Seminars web page. The deadline to apply is Thursday, March 12, 2026.  

About Jon Johnson: Jonathan "Jon" Johnson is a University Professor and the Walton College Professor of Sustainability in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, where he has served on the faculty since 1996. He earned a bachelor's degree in zoology and an MBA from the University of Arkansas and a doctorate from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. Johnson teaches courses in strategy, organization theory, research methods, innovation, sustainability and the outdoor industries. 

In addition to his teaching and research, Johnson has led several major sustainability initiatives at the university, including founding The Sustainability Consortium in 2009. He served as the inaugural chair of the Department of Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Venture Innovation until 2021 and later became faculty lead for a grant-funded project to develop the Outdoor Products and Services program. He also is a co-founder of the Master of Science in Product Innovation program in the department. 

About Leigh Hopkins: Leigh Hopkins is a consultant, board member and investor with more than three decades of experience in retail, banking and strategic leadership. 

He retired from Walmart in 2024 after overseeing Walmart International's overall strategy, corporate development and partnership activities. He also served as regional CEO, leading businesses in some of the company's largest and fastest-growing markets, including Walmex in Mexico and Central America, Walmart China, and the company's subsidiaries in India — Flipkart, an e-commerce platform, and PhonePe, a digital payments and financial services business. 

Hopkins serves on the boards of PhonePe and Ninjacart, an India-based agritech company, as well as TheatreSquared, a professional theater company in Arkansas. He also provides retail and sports consultancy in Asia.

He holds a master's degree in Oriental studies (Japanese) from Wadham College at the University of Oxford. 

About the Honors College: The University of Arkansas Honors College was established in 2002 and brings together high-achieving undergraduate students and the university's top professors to share transformative learning experiences. Each year the Honors College awards up to 90 freshman fellowships that provide $80,000 over four years, and more than $1 million in undergraduate research and study abroad grants. The Honors College is nationally recognized for the high caliber of students it admits and graduates. Honors students enjoy small, in-depth classes, and programs are offered in all disciplines, tailored to students' academic interests, with interdisciplinary collaborations encouraged. All Honors College graduates have engaged in mentored research.  

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $3 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.