University of Iowa’s Tippie school honors Van Meter Inc.

Van Meter Inc. has long maintained close ties to the University of Iowa.

“I consider Tippie to be a business partner,” Lura McBride, president and CEO of Van Meter, said of the university’s Tippie College of Business. “Students come to our organization and learn about what the real-life world is outside the classroom. We use it as a recruiting pipeline and channel for interns and new hires.”

Tippie is recognizing the Cedar Rapids-based distributor of electrical and automation products, and McBride, with its Oscar C. Schmidt Iowa Business Leadership Award. McBride will receive the award Tuesday on behalf of Van Meter’s employee owners.

“We’ve worked really hard to select people who are first and foremost tremendous business leaders in the state, and those who are connected with the college in some way,” said Amy Kristof-Brown, Tippie’s dean. “Her commitment to leadership development, customer and community impact, and employee empowerment sets a powerful example for our students and alumni.”

McBride traces her involvement to her own experiences as a Tippie student — she graduated in 1993 — and Van Meter’s appreciation of the school’s role.

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“There’s a passion to really help students understand our industry and the business structure of employee ownership,” she said. “It’s not easy to grasp these concepts when you’re sitting in a classroom.”

McBride, a member of Tippie’s advisory board since 2018, is a frequent speaker at its leadership events.

“She speaks with student organizations,” Kristof-Brown said. “She has had Van Meter work with our career office and student orgs to host student visits, which actually provides them with some great connections.”

“All of our employee owners understand that what fuels our growth is people,” McBride said. “As you look at the talent pipeline, there’s no better place to find good people than those who are in high school and college.”

In addition to working with Tippie, McBride chairs Cedar Rapids Community School District's career pathways committee and has served on the advisory board for Iowa BIG, which partners with businesses to provide experiential learning to high school students. Van Meter also works with Kirkwood Community College to provide scholarships to students going into the building trades.

That involvement extends to Van Meter’s 27 nationwide locations and its local educational institutions.

“When we’re recruiting talent the relationship with colleges and universities is important,” McBride said. “We offer partnerships in (college) programs, so students have an opportunity to work on real-world projects with our businesses.

Endowed by his son in 1980, the award is named for the founder of Cincinnati Butchers' Supply Company.

“His intention was to honor an outstanding Iowa business leader and establish a vehicle by which the college and its students could interact with them,” Kristof-Brown said. Schmidt didn’t attend the university, but “Iowa was an important state for his business.”

McBride said students from two Tippie classes are working at Van Meter this semester.

“The cool thing about that is these students are doing real work and they’re coming up with real solutions for us,” she said. “It is inspiring to see their engagement and the work they deliver. The future is bright. There’s a lot of talent out there and building relationships with them is important.”