Michael Budden

Dr. Mike Budden, the Benjamin Jones Professor of Retail Marketing at Southeastern received his Ph.D. in Marketing from the University of Arkansas, his MBA from Southeastern and a BS in Finance from LSU. In 2024, Dr. Budden received the President’s Award for Excellence in Research at Southeastern. For 2022-23, he was designated the J. Young Sanders Research Scholar by an historical association – a first for a business professor. He was a university administrator (including dean of business and dean of business and technology) for 20 years. He also served twelve years as Southeastern’s Faculty Ombudsperson.

Dr. Budden’s favorite courses are consumer behavior, retail management and principles of marketing. He also enjoyed teaching Study Abroad classes to Costa Rica. His enjoyment from conducting research and writing is evidenced by the fact he has authored two books – one on shoplifting laws and one on trade secrets laws - and has been an author or coauthor of more than 200 articles and publications.

Dr. Budden conducted marketing research and consulting activities for a number of retailers, retail developers, health care organizations and professional associations including Citizens National Bank, Seventh Ward General Hospital, the Louisiana Dental Association and the Medical Association of the State of Alabama. He and his wife established and managed mystery-shopping programs for Citizens National Bank and malls in Alabama and Georgia.

Dr. Budden’s wife (Connie) teaches management courses at Southeastern and teaches in the Business Study Abroad program to Costa Rica. Their daughters and a son-in-law received their undergraduate and MBA degrees at Southeastern. Their daughter Heather, who teaches at Southeastern, received her doctorate in Management at Louisiana Tech and is married to Bren, a forensic accountant with the Legislative Auditor’s Office. Their daughter Staci is the Purchasing Supervisor for Distribution and Transmission (Entergy), while her husband Trion is a sales representative for Stryker.

Mr. Cope’s expertise is in Marketing, Consumer Behavior, the Impacts of COVID-19 on Learning, and Trade Secrets Laws.