Tag: Weston Career Center

Intel literally puts the silicon in “Silicon Valley” and is the world’s largest and highest valued semiconductor chip maker based on revenue. In 1978, Intel engineers invented the x86 architecture, which has been adopted as the industry standard for manufacturing microprocessors. Intel architecture provides stability for hardware and software solutions throughout the value chain. Intel sells processors to computer system manufacturers like Dell, HP, Lenova, Apple, and Samsung. As a result, Intel processors are found in most personal computers and other computing form factors. The engineers at Intel are the premier experts in their field and often have as many as 20 patents to their names.

Innovation is not a buzz word at Intel to be thrown around lightly.

Intel business leaders and engineer architectures developed processors for the Saturn V rocket that put man on the moon, and they continue to develop solutions that will eventually power smart cities and machine learning in the near future. If you stream Netflix, you are witnessing the power of an Intel Xeon processor in an Amazon server farm.

For my internship, I was assigned to the Client Computing Group (CCG). CCG is Intel’s largest group by revenue and sells Pentium, Celeron, and Core processors to large enterprises and consumers. My project was to find specific new use cases or markets for a technology called Intel Active Management Technology (Intel AMT). Intel AMT provides out-of-band manageability, or manageability even when the system is turned off or when the Operating System is failing, for enterprises to manage their IT systems more effectively. Intel AMT has been around for 10 years, and commands the highest product margin in the enterprise desktop and notebook space.  For business clients, Intel’s strategy has always been to drive sell-up to AMT Core i5/i7. This sell-up provides millions in incremental revenue each year for Intel’s Client Computing Group.

To discover new use cases, I first developed a business framework to filter and test new ideas. The first part of the framework addresses if there is a need for remote out-of-band manageability. Often times, most problems can be resolved in-band, or when the power is turned on. AMT is only value-added if the customer needs manageability out-of-band or when the system is in an off-state. Then I looked at the specific capabilities of Intel AMT (power control, remediation, virtual boot) and decided which use cases would require these specific capabilities. The most important criteria in this part of the framework was the probability of system failure. If a system has a very low probability of failure, there is not really a compelling reason to have out-of-band manageability because in the very rare event of failure, there is no financially compelling reason to invest in Intel AMT. Finally, I conducted market sizing to determine the total addressable markets and market segment shares for use cases that were selected from the framework. After I developed a market model, I was able to provide net present value ranges for my project recommendations by analyzing the amount of upsell and market segment share gain my recommendation would receive.

The finance intern coordinators in Oregon did a great job of planning and executing extracurricular activities for the interns. In addition to a host of happy hours and social events, the coordinators took the interns zip lining, hiking, and white water rafting. There were plenty of opportunities provided to interact and network with operations partners and finance leaders from each of the business units, including iCap, Intel’s venture capital firm.

Intel finance roles require developing business acumen and becoming a strategic thinker.

Finance supports the various business units in a way that is similar to how combat arms branches support maneuver units in the Army. As a field artillery officer I was always supporting an infantry commander two or three levels above my own grade. It was my job to understand their intent and provide recommendations based on my indirect fires capabilities.

This relationship and organization is nearly identical to how Intel finance supports their business partners. A finance manager or controller often supports a general manager or vice president that is much senior. The operations partners depend on finance leaders to provide unbiased financial analysis that represents the shareholder’s best interests.

Guest blogger: Army veteran and 2^nd year Olin MBA student Joe Langella

Photo courtesy of Flickr/summerfairy

Think of your online profiles, posts, and tweets as a dynamic résumé—an online presentation of your personal brand. They reveal your interests, personality, and expertise. A space like Facebook or Twitter may seem more personal, while LinkedIn is clearly a venue for professional networking and job searching.

However, there are still useful ways to leverage these ‘more personal’ channels to grow your professional network.

“Like” or follow companies

Search for pages of your target companies, and “Like” them. Interact on the page’s wall to highlight your interest in the products and services. Similarly, be sure to follow official company accounts on Twitter—it is a good way to stay up to date on industry and company trends.

Share relevant links, info, and stories

Post links to your profile that will position you as an expert in a field and may attract the attention of recruiters and hiring managers. Remember to stay away from controversial topics and inappropriate content or photographs.

“Like” articles on the web

Don’t be afraid to hit the “Like” on blogs, online news articles, websites, etc. When you “Like” interesting stuff, others may want to connect back with you as a resource, and it begins another connection.

Many people use Twitter to keep up on the latest buzz, including job opportunities. It’s also an efficient networking tool, and 140-character tweets force you to keep your message or question concise. When you make new contacts in your field of interest, ask whether they have a Twitter handle to follow. At conferences and social events, include your Twitter handle on your name badge.

Use Twitter as you would a business card—a point of entry for follow-up conversation.

As you build your network of colleagues and professionals, reach out to ask questions. And reciprocate by quickly answering questions directed to you.

How to tend to your network—using social media

Networking online doesn’t need to be time consuming. You can develop your professional reputation and help others in the process through simple etiquette practices that require only a few minutes each day:

1. Be the first to have a point of view. Share relevant news articles, and add value by including any observations.
2. Let them know they’ve been heard. Listen to what your network has to say, and make an informed suggestion or relevant introduction.
3. Establish yourself as the go-to-person. Consider connecting your LinkedIn and Twitter accounts to establish more visibility.
4. Try to add at least one new person to your network a week. Growing networks are far more effective than stagnant ones.

Protect your reputation online

Even with the strictest privacy settings, no social space is truly private, so heed our suggestions to protect your online reputation. On the other hand, don’t be afraid to be yourself; you’ll make your best impression if there’s a real human behind your online identity.

Don’t let social networking jeopardize your career opportunities. Protect your image by following these simple tips:

Keep it professional
Don’t post anything that you wouldn’t want a prospective employer to see. Derogatory comments, revealing or risqué photos, foul language, and lewd jokes all will be viewed as a reflection of your character. Carefully select your privacy settings. And since you can’t control what others post, you may want to block or hide comments from friends who don’t practice the same level of discretion.

Be prepared
Check your profile regularly to see what comments have been posted. Remember that other people can tag you, so check regularly, and if a post is not appropriate, untag yourself. Use a search engine to look for online records of yourself to see what is out there about you. If you find information you feel could be detrimental to your candidacy or career, remove it—and make sure you have an answer ready to counter or explain “digital dirt.”

Respect the wall
If you wouldn’t want to read it on a billboard, don’t post it to your Facebook wall—or anyone else’s. This holds true even if you use Facebook only to socialize. Remember, anyone you “friend” can see your comments, photos, and YouTube video links. Email or use Facebook’s messaging feature instead.

When you are searching for a job, demonstrating strong communication skills is essential, yet most people understand this concept superficially. The Weston Career Center put together this checklist for students looking to improve their business communication skills:

Know your audience

Whether you are writing a letter, interviewing, or presenting, the number one rule of business communication is to know the audience—the people who will be receiving your communication. Let’s put this into the context of looking for a job: Research the company. In addition to reading the company’s website, find out about the culture, and learn about its specific business problems. It is hiring people who can solve business problems. What do you have to offer the company? Also, do you fit with its culture?

Go beyond basic research, and use a little psychology. That recruiter you’re talking with has been flying around the country talking with one person after another, day after day. Can you put yourself in that person’s shoes? He or she wants to talk with an interesting and confident person who’s ideal to work with and who stands out from the crowd. You’ve made his or her day if you turn out to be the right person to bring in for a second interview.

In the cover letter and interview, briefly convey your knowledge of the company, and communicate information that demonstrates your fit with the company and the advertised position.

Know yourself

You can’t effectively communicate what you have to offer an organization if you don’t know your own talents, strengths, and weaknesses. To effectively differentiate and sell yourself, know what makes you unique. In the cover letter and the interview, prove with examples and results that you have skills to help business professionals solve their business problems.

Prepare

Good presenters and writers prepare in advance. They rehearse their presentations and tweak their writing until they feel their messages are clear and compelling. Even if you are a charmer, no one will be impressed if you demonstrate little preparation for the interview. For interviews, predict the questions you could be asked, prepare for them, and practice answering them.

In letters, customize your message for that particular audience.

Be concise and organized

You’ve heard that time is money. That’s why businesspeople won’t have patience for a disorganized and wordy paragraph or a rambling answer during an interview. Avoid wordiness. Consider whether headings, subheadings, and bullets in your written correspondence will help the busy reader easily navigate your message. In general, make the first sentence of each paragraph the main point, and then support that point.

Be accurate and truthful

If someone discovers you’ve lied, you’ll lose your credibility. Proofread, or you’ll be perceived as someone who doesn’t pay attention to details.

Know when to listen and when to talk

Good communicators have different personalities. Some are outgoing, and some are thoughtful listeners. The best communicators can listen to the other person and keep a conversation going.

One strategy for keeping a conversation flowing is to demonstrate interest by asking good open-ended questions.

Really listen, and you’ll learn a lot about the job and the company.

Being intentional in your career transition is, in my mind, the most overlooked “step” in successfully going from A to B. If you Google “intentional career transition,” what are the results? (Because face it, everything these days starts with a Google search, right?) I found a few websites for services to help with career transitions; however, the number of references were fewer than I expected. When I Googled “steps for a career transition,” I hit the jackpot. On the first page alone there were sites or articles that listed as few as five steps or up to 10. Most of the steps are very tactical: “Put together a resume” or “Update your LinkedIn profile.” All good advice, but I am going to talk about a more strategic step.

I believe the first step is to be intentional. Being intentional when you decide to venture into something new is along the same lines as putting together a solid project plan when you are about to implement new software or develop a new marketing campaign. The project plan documents your intentions. Documenting your intentions in your career is not really all that different.

When documenting your intentions, or your plan, you need to specify the five w’s – why, what, when, where, and who.

Why am I seeking a career transition?

You need to articulate why this change is occurring. Being very clear with why helps to make sure your plan is focused and leading to your desired end state. Without a clear understanding for why, then you may easily veer off into something interesting but not necessarily relevant. Ask yourself: Why now? Why something different?

What am I looking for in this career transition?

This is the big Kahuna of intentionality. This is where you get down to brass tacks on what exactly the plan is going to achieve. What is it that you are looking for in your next career or job? Can you define the characteristics, objectives, outcomes?

When will this transition take place?

Depending on when you are looking for a change, the actions you take to get there may be different. Timing is also partially dependent on what it is you are looking for in the future. If you are thinking the change should happen in six months there may be one set of actions to get there. If it is a longer-term plan (say 3 years) there is a totally different set of actions.

Where are you looking to go?

We are taking simple geography here. If you need to – or want to – only look in a particular part of the world then you need to be clear on that. Don’t waste your time looking in say, Australia, if that is simply not realistic. While the job down under sounds fun and exciting, if it really isn’t in the cards don’t put it in the plan. Being distracted during your intentional search will derail your progress.

Who will help you in this career transition?

This is where your network comes into play. You have a network, right? If not, you need one. (I feel another blog topic coming on!) Being intentional with who you want to connect with about your new career/job search will allow those connections to be meaningful and sincere. Again, it is about intentionality, the foundation for focus. Additionally, you don’t want to abuse your connections, and if you simply randomly tap into your network you could wind up alienating them and doing more harm than good.

Being intentional is hard. I know–I have been there myself. Determining the 5 W’s for my own career transitions laid the foundation for all the changes I made. Some of my transitions were made in six months, some in three years. Whatever my time frame was, I approached it intentionally. I can help you do the same.

This post originally appeared on LMHAdvisors. In addition to LMHAdvisors, Lisa Hebert serves as a Career Advisor specializing in supply chain, consulting, and Olin’s veteran student population.

The past year has been an extremely successful year for Olin Strategy and Consulting Association, an MBA student-run and led organization aimed at developing leaders in the disciplines of consulting and strategy.

As a measure and testament to our success this year, we are happy to announce that 18 students received full time offers to join external consulting firms and 12 students received offers to intern at external consulting firms.

We are very excited to have increased the percentage of consulting offers to 13% of the MBA class. Our MBA students will be joining a variety of firms including: Accenture, Bain & Company, Boston Consulting Group, ECG Management Consultants, Navigant Consulting, McKinsey & Company, and North Highland Consulting.

OSCA members with WCC advisors and faculty

Recently the students were able to sit down for a luncheon with some of the outstanding faculty at Olin who have previously worked in consulting firms. Students were able to gain insight on how to succeed going forward in their internships/full-time offers by hearing stories of their professors and learning about the “do’s and don’ts” of consulting.

In addition to faculty support, we were joined by our awesome  Weston Career Center (WCC) staff members who helped make the luncheon possible and have been our biggest supporters all year long.

Guest blogger: Sarah Lobo, MBA Candidate 2016, President, Olin Strategy & Consulting Association

Mark Schlafly, who is currently the interim director of the WCC, has accepted a position as executive vice president of Waddell and Reed.

At Waddle and Reed, Mark will assume responsibility for their 1,850 advisors, lead their advisor acquisition strategy, oversee the recruiting department, and manage the investment products group. It is a tremendous opportunity for Mark and we celebrate his success.

I’m happy to share that Mark will remain affiliated with our Olin family, though with far fewer hours to spend with us as he moves forward in his new endeavor. To quote Mark, “It is too hard to leave these incredibly talented students, and I would be honored to remain a part, even though small, of their future dreams.”

Karen Heise

We are pleased to announce that Karen Heise will serve as our new interim director of the Weston Career Center. Karen, a 13-year Olin veteran, is highly qualified for this role. She served as interim director of the career center in 2008, which ensures that the WCC has an experienced leader at the helm. Karen is currently an employer relations manager with the WCC team, partnering with firms to develop and implement recruiting strategies to hire talent from across Washington University. She also leads Olin’s alumni strategic initiatives to involve alumni in employer relations, student development, and career preparation. Prior to Washington University, Karen was a recruiting and HR manager with EY, Capgemini and Towers Watson where she led university and experienced-hire recruiting programs.

Please join me in thanking Mark for his contributions to our outstanding career services and congratulating Karen as our new interim director of the Weston Career Center. We are in good hands as we continue our national search for a permanent career center director.