Let me say from the outset that we normally don’t host events of this kind for individual students. But Sumit’s story of how he secured the Amazon offer, as well as how he managed his job search, is worth sharing with all of you – especially those of you who are seeking employment opportunities in our current, less-than-friendly job market.

Sumit began his job search in earnest in January by re-connecting with former professors, stepping up his presence on LinkedIn, reaching out to friends and their LinkedIn contacts, and seeking advice regularly from MCS staff.

Along the way, Sumit developed his job search plan:

• Conduct at least 10 informational interviews per month with alumni, employer reps, and friends of friends.
• Target three employers per week for outreach.
• Thoroughly research each employer before reaching out.
• Practice informational interviewing with Executive Partners (EPs).
• Work with MCS staff and EPs on how to conduct phone interviews.
• As many mock interviews as possible with MCS staff and EPs prior to actual interviews.

Following graduation in May, Sumit literally “moved in” to a MCS interview room and spent each weekday executing his plan. He applied his mantra, “Make every word count,” to each cover letter, resume and conversation with employers and alumni.

Before long, Sumit’s long hours began to pay off in the form of interviews and, ultimately, offers. His link to Amazon came from a family member who had a highly-placed contact there. As he had done for months, Sumit thoroughly researched the company, underwent several mock interviews with EPs at MCS, and was ready to “make every word count” at his interview.

So through his diligent efforts, aided by his proactive collaboration with the Mason community, Sumit has earned far more than a send-off lunch – he’s successfully achieved the first step in his post-Mason career path, with a solid network at his side.

If you’re a recent graduate and are involved in a job search, follow Sumit’s mantra and keep in touch with MCS and the Mason community – we’re here to help.

Of all the places we’ve visited, Cambodia is the one I liked the best for travel, but Vietnam the best for business. This place is alive with energy, enthusiasm and growth potential.

The Executive MBA program draws an experienced person with diverse backgrounds. Tonight I had late-night dessert with one of the men in the program. We sat there talking about creating an import/export business. It was not hypothetical or academic,  but an earnest discussion of how to apply or experiences and contact to make it a reality. That’s the beauty of this program. We are able to combine a lifetime of experience with fresh perspectives gained through education.

Who know what magic might happen.

More later.

I pay attention to things like architecture and urban planning. This place has both. A major point of pride with the people here is how they have “reclaimed” land from the sea.

Large parts of the city now stand in areas that once were sea. Another phrase for “reclaiming” might be “massive environmental destruction.” There is not one part of this island that is original rain forest — every square inch of it has been made by man.

However, the beauty and functionality of the place is breathtaking. Without the development of physical infrastructure that has occurred, this economic powerhouse would not exist. The trick is to balance the development and environmental protection in a sustainable fashion.

Preparing to get away from the office — to go on the EMBA Program’s International Residency — has been the hardest part.

I’ve never worked so hard as I have these last few months. Being the owner of a small business means I wear many hats. The company has grown significantly recently and we have many new people. I am, frankly, worried about how they will cope without me.

But letting go is the part that comes hardest for an entrepreneur, so this will be a learning experience…for my team and for me.

I am excited to see an area of the world that I haven’t been before and to do it with a great group of classmates with whom I have shared so much over the last four semesters. I am nervous that I will miss something in the trip since there are so many opportunities to learn.

I am really looking forward to immersing myself in the culture, I want to soak up every last bit of it.

We had tirelessly spent last several weeks applying for jobs, just to escape the tag of “unemployed MBA.”  While some of us achieved breakthrough, majority of us (including me) “walked through Wren building” without any job offer and no promising leads.

The summer of 2009 was quite eventful, all of us were determined to move ahead and getting used to receiving rejection letters both in our emails and mailboxes. In those four painful post-graduation summer months I learned five things that helped me survive the tough job market and landing my current job.

I am putting them down here as I heard them:

1. “This is going to be a marathon and not a sprint, so prepare yourself accordingly and learn how to pace-out and slow down” - Prof. Ron Sims. This analogy kept me on track and put lot of things in perspective. Just realizing and accepting that this is going to be long drawn battle kept me motivated.
2. “For next few months, your full time JOB is to FIND A JOB. So dress up every morning and go to work” - Peggy Gesing, Senior Associate Director, Mason Career Services. On of one of those 105 degrees Williamsburg mornings I showed up at the Career Services offices in shorts and T-shirt — do I need to explain the above quote anymore? This brought lot of discipline to my schedule and made my job search more efficient and effective.
3. “Professional skills are like muscles, you need to work out to stay in shape” - Executive Partner Bob Taylor.  School would be over and so would LeAd I and II. Now the onus will be on you to create your own networking events and maintain momentum. I stayed in Williamsburg until July and continued to meet EPs and professors. Whenever I was traveling to DC or NYC I tried to attend as many networking events as possible, keeping my professional skills toned.
4. “We like candidates who are persistent” - Cheryl Hatfield, VP Human Interests, Saatchi & Saatchi X. My first phone interview with my current employer took place in first week of June and I started working in mid-October. In those 4 months I continued to call, email and write and displayed my genuine interest in working for Saatchi. While lot of times I felt that I was “bugging them”, when I heard the above from them I continued to be persistent and persuasive.
5. “Dude, this might be the last summer that you won’t be working” - Marcus R. Lange ( my roommate) Never forget to have some fun, keep your weekends free. Eat healthy and stay positive. Next few months might be the only time that you can actually relax between two busy years at B-school and several busy years at work.

While I sincerely hope that none of you have to wait that long to get your post-MBA opportunity, but if it does come to that I hope this post helps you.

Best of luck!
Rishap

The reality is that if you’re seeking a full-time job or internship, you must have an active presence on as many online networking sites as possible. There are numerous employers, for example, that are now posting their openings via Twitter, Facebook, and/or LinkedIn. Likewise, one of the best means of accessing William & Mary and/or Mason School alumni is through social media conversations.

For those of you who are already actively connected on these sites, I encourage you to keep in touch with and frequently add connections to your respective networks. Fan pages, Follow feeds and Connect with groups where you can access contacts, career advice and job and employer updates. The MCS team provides daily updates that can help you in your career search. If you are not currently an active participant, what follows is a “refresher” on the “Big Four” networking sites that you can easily access through the MCS homepage.

• Twitter features job/internship leads and timely commentary from employers and a host of career services professionals, including feeds from MCS staffers Peggy Gesing , Jenn Crippen and MasonCareers. Employer relations updates, references to helpful job search articles, and job/internship leads are updated regularly for your benefit.
• Facebook has been considered “off limits” for employers up until now.  A professional networking component has grown to complement that of the well-established Facebook social network.  William & Mary/Mason faculty, staff, and alumni abound on these pages, as do employers posting job and internship opportunities.  Be sure to “clean up” your Facebook page so that it represents the professional “you” — employers expect this from their applicants.
• LinkedIn, one of the most powerful professional networking sites, is a must for you to join and actively participate. Alumni, faculty, staff and employers alike are actively connecting here. Connecting with MCS staff provides you with updates on which employers we’re cultivating for your benefit.
• my1693 is the primary alumni database that is maintained by the William & Mary Alumni Affairs office. It is a storehouse of information on thousands of alumni from across the College. These alums have voluntarily submitted their contact information because they want to connect with people like you. You must set up an account for yourself and wait for Alumni Association approval before you can start accessing alumni information, but once you’re in you can locate alums by location, company, profession, and graduation year.

Each of these sites has proven invaluable in bringing students, alumni and employers together for common professional purposes.  If you’re not already doing so, I suggest that you make these networking vehicles a part of your everyday job search– you’ll be glad you did.

Many students that meet with us (naturally) ask for two things: (a) advice on how to connect with Mason and College alumni for job information purposes; and (b) alumni names that we can recommend for contacting. The key to opening the door to these people is to become familiar and comfortable with the numerous online resources available via the MCS web pages. Here are four examples:

• my1693 is an online directory of alumni not only of the Mason School but as well the College.  Administered by the William & Mary Alumni Association, my1693 contains contact information of alums who are interested in getting connected and/or re-connected with fellow graduates and soon-to-be-graduated students. Alumni can be identified by location, employer, or profession. To set up a single sign-on account, go to www.wmalumni.com, then click on my1693 and follow the instruction for establishing an account.
• LinkedIn is equally helpful as an alumni connection source. There are innumerable opportunities for you to connect with alumni by joining LinkedIn Groups (e.g , the William & Mary and Mason Alumni groups) volunteer organizations, and professional associations that you may already belong to. Go to www.grads.linkedin.com to learn more about maximizing your professional network.
• The MASONlink system, used primarily by graduate students at the Mason School, features job postings from both employing organizations and W&M alumni as well as a database of MBA alumni who have agreed to serve as mentors to current MBA students. Go to mba-wm-symplicity.com/students/ to access this storehouse of information.
• Experience/Alumni Career Network offers alumni mentor connections representing all disciplines of the College. Accessed via my1693, you will need to register as an alumnus/a. Go to www.wmalumni.com and click on ”Alumni Career Network” to learn more about accessing this helpful database.

Of course, all of the databases available to us do not take the place of actually reaching out to people by phone and through your network. But the more comfortable you become with the these alumni connection tools, the more “in control” you will feel with respect to your job search prospects. Please feel free to contact us in MCS if you would like additional information on building your professional networks.

The plan was to present the “Yellowtail Marine” business case study to this group.  The day before I arrived Google launched its Nexus One phone and had a situation with China arise.  The phone release created a slew of customer service complaints.  People looking for support online (which is the method Google handles complaints) were unable to find answers and were required to email questions to Google that would take at least two days to respond to.

This situation presented an opportunity to insert a “real time ” problem into an academic case study and discussion.

The Yellowtail Marine case study seeks to enable individuals  to think about prioritizing and decision making when they’re in a place of upheaval and unintended consequences – almost exactly like the situation Google was faced with in the week following the phone launch.  The case study provided framework for the discussions, while Google’s customer service problems  were analyzed and suggestions discussed.

In the Yellowtail Marine case, students are encouraged to examine who their customers are, what they want and how to satisfy those wants.

During the session, I worked with Consumer Operations group to explore the reasons for the problems and different strategies for improvement. It was important for Google to understand that the Nexus One phone is hardware and different from the search engine and advertising vehicle that Google operated.