Experience abroad, be it in a company or as a student, is still very important for companies that think and act globally.

After all, managers are also required to have a cultural understanding and think beyond the national market. The MBA or master’s degree has always been the most common degree at international level. Studying abroad for an MBA or Master offers a variety of opportunities to get to know other cultures better. However, this experience abroad can also be very costly, which should not be underestimated. Consider the costs already in the planning phase and consider for yourself whether studying in another country is really necessary. If the answer is “yes”, then it is up to you to decide which country and which study program offers the most positive impact on your professional career.

Many MBA or Master’s candidates not only want to study abroad, but also want to live and work there afterwards. If you are aiming for an international career, an MBA or master’s degree abroad is certainly a good prerequisite for this. The course offers a wide variety of opportunities for networking and exchange with other students, lecturers and tutors. Seen in this way, a study program is the ideal stepping stone into the subsequent world of work. When preparing, you should not forget to carefully inform yourself about the country-specific visas, work and residence permits!

In many countries, immigration laws require that a stay in another country be approved by the respective employer. In Great Britain, for example, there are special guidelines that make it easier for students to stay and work there after graduation. How easy – or how difficult – to find a job after graduation depends very much on the respective business school where you studied. Graduates from top class business schools will have no problem getting a residence permit and a job in a hip company. Graduates from mid-segment providers are likely to have to work harder for their visas and their jobs – unless they are in the top 10% of each year. Even if the career path should take place in your own country:

The experience gained abroad brings with it international thinking and understanding of global networks and markets. This knowledge can also be very useful for local companies. As already mentioned, a study program abroad is very expensive. For this reason, you should be clear whether time, effort and budget for your own career really pay off, or whether you should strive for a program in your own country. Business schools and universities usually offer longer study visits or internships at partner schools or partner companies abroad.

So find out what priorities you have in your career, what precautions you need to take and whether a foreign MBA is an advantage or disadvantage for you. If you want to pursue a career internationally, you should consider which country interests you the most. The US and UK traditionally offer the most good MBA and master programs, but European and Asian programs are also becoming increasingly important. In the following we would like to give you a brief overview of the different regions.

EUROPE

As already mentioned, the importance of MBA and master programs in Europe is steadily increasing. European MBAs are also recruited by international companies. The strength of European offers is particularly in special MBA programs and Europe’s entrepreneurship programs (corporate governance) lead worldwide!

With a wide choice and a large economic community, Europe is a strong choice for MBA and Master’s candidates. Despite the fact that the EU is an economic and political community, you should consider yourself a non-EU citizen in terms of residence permits and inform the visa in the respective targeted country, because the laws for this are adopted individually by each member state. As already mentioned, laws have been passed in Great Britain which entitle graduates or students of British business schools to apply for 1st place. This allows employment and residence permits in the UK for up to 24 months without the support of an employer.

NORTH AMERICA

America remains one of the most popular destinations for students. Since the MBA training was started in the USA, you will find the world’s best and most renowned business schools here. Graduates from Harvard, Wharton, Tuck, Stanford, or other top business schools have little difficulty finding an employer to handle residence permits in the United States. Graduates from middle-class business schools, on the other hand, find it a little more difficult. The current economic situation and the weak dollar are causing the number of unemployed in America to rise. This does not make it easier to put your foot in the door of a respected company, even with an MBA. Anyway:

Canada is seen as an interesting alternative if you would like to study in North America. The country has some internationally highly regarded training centers. Canada is increasingly becoming a country with good living and working opportunities and is proving to be an attractive opportunity to start an international career.

ASIA

Asia’s study market is becoming increasingly important. The number of business schools has grown steadily in recent years. Destinations such as China, India, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Japan now have top institutes and MBA and master programs of exceptional quality. The economic boom in Asia is of course doing its part. Check Countryaah to see country profile of China, India and other countries in Asia.

Completing the MBA or Master in Asia is a very cost-effective alternative. The standard of living in Asia is also increasingly being adapted to the western. The fact that many European and American business schools have established branches in Asia means that studying in Asia offers the ideal opportunity to get to know the interesting and dynamic Indian and Chinese market and to bring both worlds – the Asian and the European – together.

Australia and New Zealand are also very popular when choosing to study for an MBA or Masters. However, entry to one of these countries is very dependent and conditional on your own country of origin. The possibility of finding a suitable job also depends on the country of study or the branch you prefer. Before you enroll in a program, you should contact the institute and find out about work permits and career opportunities.

Providers of MBA and master’s degree programs attach great importance to internationality and cultural exchange among students. It is therefore advisable to spend at least a certain amount of time studying abroad. The decision in which country you will ultimately complete your studies depends primarily on your professional interest.

If you want to gain a foothold in the United States, you should also complete your MBA or Master there if possible so that you can make contacts in advance and get to know the country, people and business during your studies. The same applies to Europe and Asia: You should definitely understand the language and know the customs and traditions of the country in which you look for a job after successfully completing your studies.

Next you need to analyze the job description in a similar way.

Keep in mind, however, that job descriptions are often very general, describing more than one position.

Any additional knowledge you may have or surmise about the position is also helpful in this exercise.

As we did before, identify the key skills and knowledge sets in the following job description.

The successful candidate will possess several years experience managing vendors and creating sourcing strategy and policies. This position will supervise a staff of 4 people, manage project budgets in excess of $12 million, and concurrently manage up to 12 projects. Coordination of projects in a multifunctional team environment is important. Knowledge of SAP or other ERP systems is desirable. This position also consults with aerospace clients on systems needs-determination and negotiates contracts. Assignment: Using the same Microsft Word document you opened earlier, you may do this exercise for a position of your choosing. You may find a sample job description on any major Internet job board, like HotJobs.com, Monster.com, or CareerBuilder.com. Just keyword search for “MBA” in the funcational area (finance, marketing, etc.) of your choosing. This will be helpful in constructing a cover letter for the mock interview process, part of your Business Communications class at The Broad School.

Skills Vendor management Strategic Planning Sourcing Strategy Negotiation Supervision Budgeting Project Management Teamwork Consulting Needs determination Business-to-business relationships Knowledge ERP Systems Aerospace Industry Multifunctional Coordination Customer Service

Finding the Matches – From the Two Lists Just Created

From the Resume	What They Have In Common	From the Job Description
Skills Strategic planning Budgeting Negotiation Consulting Supervision Marketing Business-to-business relationships Business-to-consumer relationshipsKnowledge Technology Organizational Design Position Creation Customer Service Aerospace Industry Multifunctional	Skills Strategic Planning Budgeting Negotiation Consulting Supervision Business-to-Business relationshipsKnowledge Technology Aerospace Multifunctional Customer Service	Skills Vendor management Strategic Planning Sourcing Strategy Negotiation Supervision Budgeting Project Management Teamwork Consulting Business-to-Business relationshipsKnowledge ERP Systems Aerospace Industry Multifunctional Knowledge Customer Service

Prioritizing the Matches

In CommonSkills Strategic Planning Budgeting Negotiation Consulting Supervision Business-to-Business relationships Knowledge Technology Aerospace Multifunctional Customer Service

Including all ten items at right in a cover letter is too much.

You want to focus on the top 3 to 5, emphasizing skills over knowledge.

So, you need to prioritize them based on your judgment of what the job requires and your relative strengths in each area.

A sample prioritization is:

• Strategic Planning
• Consulting
• Aerospace
• Negotiation

Assignment: By now you have completed both an analysis of your resume and a sample job for the mock interview process. Take a moment to find the common knowledge and skills between the two and prioritize them.

The first step in writing your cover letter is to determine your unique differentiators.

These are the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that you possess and are your strongest assets.

Some definitions follow:

Skills � what you have learned to do.

• 揝oft� skills � leadership, teamwork, communication, risk taking, consulting, customer service, managing vendors, etc.
• 揌ard� skills � technical skills like cost accounting, analysis, engineering, html, process improvement, project management, foreign languages, negotiation, etc.

Knowledge � information you hold, this is often industry-specific or things you know about but do not actually do.

• Examples � familiar with the aerospace industry, understand database design (although you may not actually do this), understand calculus, etc.

Abilities � these underlie both your knowledge and skills. Without an innate ability you would neither gain knowledge nor learn how to do things.

• For example, not all people can reason in three dimensional space. Those people would never be able to learn to do an isometric drawing, fly an airplane, or operate a fork lift.
• Even if you do have the underlying ability, it is not useful (or marketable) until you have built skills- or knowledge-based upon it.

The focus of your sell in the cover letter will be on Skills and Knowledge, in that order.

Assignment: Now, an activity for you. Using your resume�

• Highlight your skill sets in one color.
• Highlight your knowledge sets in another color.

Here is a sample of a resume that has been reviewed for knowledge and skills. Skills are listed in green, knowledge sets are listed in gold. A summary is listed at right.

Created and implemented new technology strategy based on outsourcing, resulting in reduction of 2 staff positions, improved service to constituents through reliability and availability. Managed marketing budget constituting 25% of departmental budget, shifted spend from print to web-based resources. Negotiated contracts with 12 vendors of technology services, served as consultant to vendors to improve product offerings and service to own customers. Allocated annual budget of $10 million and supervised staff of 12. Over duration of employment reduced budget by 11%. Created new organizational structure for office, including determination of positions, job descriptions, and staffing budget in aerospace industry.

Skills Strategic planning Budgeting Negotiation Consulting Supervision Marketing Business-to-business relationships Business-to-consumer relationships Knowledge Technology Organizational Design Position Creation Customer Service Aerospace Industry Multifunctional Coordination

The list you have just created is a list of skills and knowledge you have to offer employers.

Is it complete?

If not, then add text to your resume to demonstrate any missing skills or knowledge.

Keep the list you just created on hand � you will need it later.

According to topschoolsintheusa, behavioral interviews (aka targeted selection interviews) are based on the notion that past performance predicts future behavior. The questions asked in this type of interview assess your accomplishments and measure your potential in critical areas such as leadership, problem solving, initiative, and decision making. In a behavioral interview, you will be asked to cite examples of your past performance in designated areas.

Using the “CAR” method provides you with a framework to use when responding to behavioral interview questions.

Context: Briefly explain the context or circumstance for the event.

Action: Describe what you did to accomplish the task

Result: Describe the outcome of your actions.

Typical Behavioral Questions

• Why did you choose to attend the Kelley School of Business?
• Tell me about yourself.
• Why should I hire you?
• Tell me about a time when you created group commitment to a goal.
• Describe a situation where you drew a conclusion quickly.
• Give me an example of a situation where you influenced a decision without using authority.
• How would someone who knows you well describe you? Tell me both the positive and the negative.
• What has been your greatest failure? What did you learn from it?
• Describe an ethical dilemma you faced and how you dealt with it.
• Walk me through how you accomplished XYZ on your résumé.
• What kind of position are you looking for?

Behavioral Interview Tips

• Determine what skills will be needed for the position for which you are interviewing by:
  • Researching the company and industry
  • Reviewing the job description
  • Attending the company’s presentation and other events
  • Talking to others who have interned or worked for the company
  • Preparing multiple CAR examples that demonstrate your ability to perform the skills the company is seeking
• Listen carefully to the question and paraphrase the question to ensure you understand what the recruiter is asking (GCS has received feedback in the past from recruiters indicating that Kelley students have good answers but for the wrong question, especially distinguishing a question on teamwork versus leadership).
• CAR responses to behavioral interview questions should be succinct (no longer than 1-2 minutes). The majority of your response time should be spent on describing the results and actions you took with less time given to describing the situation and task.

These are common behavior-based interview questions taken from topschoolsintheusa. The best way to practice for these questions is to write your answers out, using the STAR answering model (Situation/Task, Action, Result). The questions are divided by competency category. Italics indicates what kinds of behaviors would indicated evidence of the competency.

Questions on this page pertain to:

Business Knowledge | Bias for Action | Integrity | Customer Focus
Team Work | Innovation | Performance | Communications | Interpersonal Skills
Functional/Technical Competency | Leadership/Initiative

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BUSINESS KNOWLEDGE
Knows the competition; Is familiar with strategies and tactics; Manages by fact; Demonstrates knowledge, interest, aptitude for business.

What do you do to keep up with current and possible future trends and issues? Give me a couple of examples.

Describe a situation where your strategy did not work well for you. Why? How did you handle it?

What key business setbacks have you experienced? What did you learn from them?

Give me a couple of examples of some calculated risks you have assumed. What were the results?

How have you translated a strategy into action with your team?

Describe a strategy you developed and your contingency plans.

Tell me about your key strengths and how they are demonstrated in your track record.

Give me a couple of examples of what you have done to prepare to deal with global business opportunities.

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BIAS FOR ACTION
Reduces cycle time and bureaucracy; Demonstrates high energy; Sets priorities and seizes opportunities; Focuses upon speed; Demonstrates a sense of urgency to achieve important goals; Eliminates waste and unnecessary work.

Describe your typical work day. What time does it start and end? What do you do to relax?

Tell me about a situation in which you felt you acted too quickly and later regretted it. What caused it?

Give me an example of when something needed to be done urgently and you postponed action on it. What were the results?

How do you ensure that work you delegate gets done properly and on time?

Give me a couple of examples of when you had to motivate your team to get a project or assignment completed. What did you do?

Describe a couple of situations when you had to maintain a high level of enthusiasm when things were very difficult. How did you do it?

Tell me about a situation in which you took action without anticipating the impact of that action upon other parts of the organization.

Describe a couple of examples which required quick action. What made them so? What criteria did you apply in making those decisions?

Tell me about the major challenges you have faced in your job or at school over the last year. What made them so?

What have you found to be the most significant obstacles to getting people to take action? How have you handled these obstacles?

What have you done to eliminate unnecessary or redundant work in past positions you have held?

Describe a couple of opportunities which you capitalized upon and a couple you did not. What were the results?

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INTEGRITY
Widely trusted; Takes ownership; Candid and forthcoming; Delivers on commitments.

Give me a couple of examples of when you had to bend the rules to get the job done. Why was that?

Describe a situation in which someone confided in you and you felt you had to break that confidence.

Tell me about a situation in which you made a significant mistake and had to admit it to your boss or peers.

What were a couple of instances in which you had to deliver bad news to someone? What worked? What didn’t?

We all have some areas we would like to improve upon. What are some of yours? What have you done?

Describe a couple of examples in which you believe someone broke the unwritten rules of business. What was the impact? How did you deal with it?

Tell me how you have attempted to build trust with your employees, peers and customers.

What has been your toughest conflict you have had to deal with interpersonally on the job? What made it so and how did you deal with it?

Describe a situation in which you promised more than you could deliver. How did you handle it?

How have you handled providing feedback? What mechanism did you use (face to face, letter, etc.)? How often?

Explain when you have had to take a stand at variance with management. How did you handle it? What were the results?

Tell me about at time when you had to deliver on a commitment and found it extremely difficult. What did you do?

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CUSTOMER FOCUS
Identifies customers and demonstrates that meeting their needs is first priority; Meets external and internal expectations; Promotes and maintains strong partnerships; Focuses work processes on customer satisfaction.

Describe and example in which you had to meet a difficult customer need.

Tell me about a time when your relationship with a key customer was unsatisfactory and what you did about it.

In your current or previous position, who have been your customers? How did you determine and to what extent did you satisfy their expectations?

At times we’ve all been unable to meet our customer’s expectations. Describe a situation in which you were unable to do so. What did you do?

What have you done to keep informed of your customer’s objectives and priorities?

What processes and methods have you used to keep your customers informed? How have they worked? How have they changed?

Based upon your experience, what actions have you found most effective in building customer relationships? What hasn’t worked and why?

Describe the process and procedures you have put into place to improve the quality and timeliness of customer service.

Tell me about a situation in which you had to inform a key customer of a serious problem and how you handled it.

Relate for me how you have leveraged a customer relationship successfully. (unsuccessfully)

Give me an example of the toughest customer relationship you have had to work with. What did you do? What were the results?

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TEAMWORK
Initiates and supports meaningful team projects; Demonstrates trust in team members; Serves on teams; Celebrate successes.

Tell me one of the most effective teams you worked on and what you contributed to its effectiveness.

What techniques or approaches have you found helpful in dealing with turf issues on your team? Give me an example.

Describe what actions you have taken to encourage teamwork.

Tell me about some key issues that you have found which need to be addressed in buildig a team.

Explain what you have done to build trust among team members.

Provide me with a couple of example of teams you have served on describing the kind, problems, challenges and results.

When teams reporting to you have been successful, what actions have you taken?

What have you found helpful in determining what is and is not suitable for a team project?

Describe how you have monitored the progress of team assignments.

What specific criteria have you applied in selecting members for a team project?

Give me some examples of how you have supported teamwork.

Tell me what you have found to be the major obstacles to effective teamwork.

Describe you worst experience in working on a team. What did you take away from the experience?

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INNOVATION
Promotes creativity and informed risk taking; Strives for technical and market leadership; Establishes process for continuous improvement.

How have you developed imaginative solutions in the past? Describe a couple of examples.

Think of a situation where old solutions didn’t work. How did you deal with it?

Give me a couple of examples of specific example of how you have encouraged and supported new ways of doing things.

Cite some situations in which you had to introduce change and how you did it. What was successful and what was unsuccessful?

Using a specific example, explain the criteria which you have used in evaluating risk.

Tell me about some significant risks you have had to take and how they worked out. Also cite an example where it did not work out.

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PERFORMANCE
Sets and achieves ambitious goals; Measures the right things; Drives for continuous improvement; Listens and responds; Provides feedback and recognizes achievement.

What has been the most significant goal you have achieved? How did you achieve it? Were there other key goals you were unable to achieve? Why?

In your past jobs, how have you determined what needs improvement and how have you ensured it was addressed?

Have you consistently delivered expected results? Please explain.

Describe how your performance has been evaluated by your last two bosses. What did they identify as strengths and developmental opportunities?

Tell me about some of the major challenges you have been confronted with in your job. Why were they challenges? What did you do about them?

What have you done to recognize others’ achievements?

Tell me about a couple of the most difficult situations in which you had to give feedback.

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COMMUNICATIONS
The skills necessary for effective expression in oral and written communications and observable in the interview.

Give me an example of a time when you asked someone to complete a task and they did it incorrectly. What did this experience teach you?

What are some of the most complex processes or ideas or technical information you have had to explain to other people?

What kinds of writing have you done? Describe some examples. How did you approach it? Tell me about its content and the reactions you received.

What kinds of reports are you currently working on that are most challenging and why?

Describe one of your most successful oral presentations and what made it successful.

What have you done to increase your effectiveness in making presentations? To what extent have you been successful?

Tell me about one of the most difficult presentations you have had to make. Why was it difficult? How did it turn out?

Give me an example of the most serious communication problem you’ve had. What did you do about it?

What methods do you use to communicate with other people? How effective are they?

Sometimes its important to disagree with others to keep a mistake from being made. Tell me about a time when you were willing to disagree with another person in order to build a positive outcome.

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INTERPERSONAL SKILLS
Communicates effectively using multiple methods; Able to interact with people at different organizational levels; Able to focus on mutual goals; Persuasive; Able to deal with conflict.

Give me an example in which you and a peer disagreed significantly. What caused it? What did you do?

What are some ways you have used to put people at ease? When haven’t they worked?

Tell me about a major conflict you had with a peer or customer that you were unable to resolve successfully. Why were you unsuccessful? What did you learn?

Tell me about an incident involving someone you had to deal with who was very difficult. How did it work out?

Which bosses did you like and dislike working for? How did this impact your relationship?

How would your peers and former co-workers describe their relationships with you? Why?

Tell me about one or two actions you’ve taken to build working relationships on the job with someone you personally did not like.

What do you see as your strength and areas for improvement in working with others?

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FUNCTIONAL/TECHNICAL COMPETENCY
Displays function/technical competency.

Describe a time when you were proud of your ability to use your skills in ___ (HR, finance, marketing, etc.) to solve a particularly difficult or challenging problem either at school or in a work assignment. What principles did you use, and what did you learn from the experience?

Provide me with one or two examples of some of the most complex assignments or projects you’ve had. What made them so? What was your role? How did it turn out?

Give me an example of a difficult problem you’ve had to deal with and how you gathered information and evaluated it. How did you identify the root cause of the problem?

Explain how you solve problems. Give me a specific example.

Tell me about one of the major plans you developed and had responsibility for accomplishing. Explain the scope, objectives, time frames, budget and end results.

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LEADERSHIP/INITIATIVE
Getting ideas accepted; Guides a group towards a task accomplishment.

How do you influence your boss? Give me an example.

Tell me about some of the toughest groups you have had to get cooperation from. Did you have any formal authority? What did you do?

How do you influence your peers? Provide me with some examples.

Describe your leadership style. When does it work? When doesn’t it work?

What tends to be your approach in working with a group?

What have you found to be the most significant obstacles to get people to take action? How have you handled these obstacles?

Describe your effectiveness as a leader. What have you used as criteria?

Describe one or two examples of ideas you were successful in getting accepted.

The job market for people with a master’s or MBA degree continues to flourish and the professional opportunities are more diverse than ever before. Since postgraduate training includes both a master’s and an MBA, the labor market situation adapts to both qualifications.
Whether an employer prefers an employee with an MBA or a master’s degree usually depends on the position to be filled and the company in question. Some companies see both qualifications on an equal footing and have no prejudices against one or the other degree.
We are primarily looking for employees with specialized training and relevant professional experience. Others prefer MBAs because they bring a special attitude and a certain drive to the work. However, all employers have an idea of ​​the future employees in common: They should master special skills and abilities of the respective branch, should be socially competent, have research knowledge and the ability to find and develop new concepts and ideas as well as motivated to do the job.
The MBA qualification has gained popularity and awareness among employers in recent years. Current studies predict this title to be increasingly present and widespread. Karen Dowd, an MBA recruiting expert from North America, believes: “Wherever new trades and branches of industry arise, there seem to be key roles for MBAs that on the one hand shape the industry and on the other hand help companies successfully compete against each other. ”
Salaries in different industries mostly reflect the demand for employees. The increase in salaries as a global trend is indicative of the struggle between the best and most brilliant MBA and master graduates worldwide. Since international companies offer higher salaries on average (around $ 95,000), local companies are forced to follow this trend in order to attract equally talented students to their own company. In general, it can be said that the wage differentials between employees with an MBA or master’s degree and employees without a title are widening – in some industries, the average is even around 81%.
In areas such as banking, consulting, production and marketing, untitled employees earn significantly less. Salaries for MBA and Master graduates are highest in North America and Europe, followed by Asia (Pacific). In Europe, it is the UK that pays the most for an MBA or Masters. If you are considering moving abroad to work there, it is recommended that you first find out the nominal wages of the company and region you are targeting.
If you don’t have a title, financial prospects are not as bright as with this coveted business title. Recently, however, masters and PhD degrees have also increased in reputation among employers. In general, postgraduate degrees are becoming increasingly popular in international companies. Employers are also increasingly willing to pay more financially for those employees who have a good education with a serious background and some years of professional experience.
With a master’s degree in health and pharmacy, employees earn much more than with a lower education. The same applies to the energy sector, the telecommunications sector, the transport sector and other special sectors. This trend will continue in the near future. In our globalized economy, the demand for MBA and Master graduates will not decrease as they bring special skills to international companies.

If you are interested in a part-time MBA, you can not only advance your individual career, but also expand the professional network with diverse contacts.

What speaks for the part-time MBA

To be successful is good. Some find better to be more successful! Those who have a satisfactory full-time job face a problem. After all, you don’t want to give up the job for a full-time MBA. Those who continue to work and continue to earn money but still want to expand their specialist knowledge will benefit greatly from part-time MBA programs. You have no influence on your existing career and your degree will surely leave your employer with more than just a good impression.

The preference for part-time study programs is usually clearer the higher the career level achieved in the job. Over 90 percent of employees who already work in top management prefer to study part-time.

The advantages of a part-time MBA

The advantage here is that the majority of the lessons often take place on the Internet. In addition, there are online courses and learning content that can be processed on the computer. In this way it is possible to be fully professional and still be able to participate in the learning process. An additional plus: on the Internet it doesn’t matter how many students complete a program, so there are of course no restrictions as to the number of participants.

As far as the learning material is concerned, schools with part-time MBA programs take great care to ensure that the scope and level of difficulty is designed for those students who work full-time alongside their studies. A good example of such courses is the Open University (OU), which is very popular in England, followed by Germany as the second largest market for OU programs.

Why the part-time MBA is also interesting for companies

With the still prevailing hype around part-time MBA studies, one should not forget that the employers are also not uninvolved. They like to advertise this type of academic further education, after all, the employees stay with them in their company and at the same time they benefit from the added educational value of the employees. For this reason, they also share the tuition costs in many cases – so it is definitely worth asking!

Interesting facts about MBA distance learning

If you want to start an MBA distance learning course and obtain the final MBA of the same name, you should have a lot of self-discipline and a corresponding level of organizational talent. The contents of an MBA distance learning course are the same as for regular studies directly at the university. Around 50 distance learning courses with MBA degrees are currently offered in German-speaking countries. Some universities cooperate with partner universities in countries such as Great Britain or the United States.

The advantages

You don’t have to change your place of residence or live in the immediate vicinity of a university to study the Master of Business Administration. There are no fixed attendance times and you can divide the study time completely individually and learn in the evening or at the weekend. However, there are certain attendance times that can be inquired about at the respective college or university before starting the course. At these times you have to appear in person at a branch or directly at the chosen distance learning school. Distance learning is in any case ideal for all those who work full-time. Graduates of an MBA distance learning course are often preferred for applications because they have chosen this course voluntarily and financed it themselves.

The disadvantages

You need a lot of eagerness to learn, because the teaching material to be mastered is usually very extensive. The contents have to be worked out by yourself and the exam preparation is completely self-directed. There are no fellow students or professors with whom you can now exchange information about the subjects and their contents. Those who are not goal-oriented and disciplined run the risk of dropping out of college, the rate of which is around 30 percent. A bright spot in terms of the lack of interaction are various online campus installations, chat rooms or learning platforms, the number of which is constantly increasing.

What are the requirements?

One of the conditions for admission to an MBA distance learning course is a successfully completed course of study and the acquisition of a bachelor’s or diploma title, both of which can also be achieved through distance learning. In addition, you should have between 2 and 5 years of professional experience, the required period varies depending on the university and specialization.

For the duration of an MBA distance learning

This depends on many factors such as the chosen university and also depends on the discipline of the student. As a rule, the study duration is 18 to about 30 months.

When you have reached the goal

The MBA obtained with distance learning fully corresponds to that obtained through regular studies. A degree may be hard-fought, but it is all the better to reap the fruits of this diligence afterwards. Many graduates work in leading positions in companies in the international economy. This is also evidenced by the fact that the proportion of those students who take a distance learning course is between 20 and sometimes even 50 percent, measured by the number of all MBA students.

Case interviews are based on the analysis of a business question. One of the main purposes of case interviews is to evaluate candidates’ problem solving skills. This type of interview is most commonly used in the consulting industry, although quite a number of MBA recruiters now incorporate “mini-case” questions in interviews for other functional areas such as marketing and finance. Check topschoolsintheusa for other types of interview.

In a case interview, recruiters are assessing the following:

• Analytical skills and logic
• General business knowledge and acumen
• Attention to detail and organization
• Comfort with quantitative analysis
• Creativity
• Practical judgment/decisiveness
• Communication and presentation skills
• Response to pressure/lack of information

Tips for Case Interviews

Do not worry about trying to come up with the “right answer”. Employers are assessing your analytical skills, logic in approaching the problem, and your thought process in how you got to your answer and recommendations. Think out loud and provide insight into the logic behind your technique and decisions.

Never lose sight that a case interview is also an interpersonal interview. In addition to analytical skills, firms also judge candidates on their communication skills, persuasiveness, interpersonal skills, professional readiness, and achievement drive/energy.

Listen carefully and make sure that you answer the question that is posed. Restate the question back to the interviewer so that you can be sure that you understand what he/she has asked you to address.

Ask questions that build relevant facts to the case. Remember that the questions themselves and the order in which they are asked demonstrate your ability to analyze an issue in a logical manner. Frame your questions methodically and not in a random order.

The case interview is not a race. Take time to compose your thoughts. Bring a notepad and pen so you can take notes and organize your thoughts.

Make clearly stated, reasonable assumptions when you do not have enough information. One of the primary purposes of case interviews is to assess a candidate’s ability to deal with ambiguous situations.

Although there are typically no “right answers”, remember that some approaches may be more right than others. Most cases are taken from actual client engagements. In an interview situation, you have a limited amount of time so focus on the key elements of the case. Listen to the cues your interviewer gives as you ask questions. Often, they will guide you away from the dead ends.

Use a framework to help you organize your thoughts. Each framework has relative strengths and weaknesses so pick the one most appropriate for the given scenario. When using a framework, do not just say for example, “I would use Porter’s Five Forces Model”. Use the particular framework as a guide in articulating your thinking and perspective.

Synthesize your analysis into a compelling story. Be decisive and define what the client should take-away. Summarize the problem, relevant issues, and your solution in a concise way as if you were sitting in front of an executive at a client engagement.

Practice with sample questions. Being adept at case interviews is a learnable skill. The only way that you will be able to improve your ability and comfort level with case interviews is to practice.

Now that we have determined the 搒ell� of the cover letter, we抣l turn our attention to the mechanics of writing such a letter.

The major sections of the cover letter are:

• Heading (your name, address, telephone number, email address)
• Date
• Inside address (Mr./Ms.–full name, title, company, complete address)
• Salutation (Mr./Ms.) Sir or Madame not recommended
• Body of the letter
• Closing (Sincerely,)
• Signature line (your name typed)梩ypically leave four spaces
• Signature (your name signed)

Make sure to center your text from top to bottom on the page.

Zoey A. Bain

1234 College Avenue
East Lansing MI 48910
(517) 555-1234
email: [email protected]

September 5, 2002

Mr. Bob D. Apple
Generic Manufacturing, Inc.
SCM Operations
1234 Corporate Park Drive
Wherever, MI 12345

Dear Mr. Apple:

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Sincerely,

Zoey A. Bain

Encl.

Career Path: Consulting

Consulting is the business of giving expert advice to other professionals, typically in financial and business matters. Management consulting is one of the more popular career paths in most business schools, particularly as one considers the growth of internal consulting positions within firms. While management consulting firms hire many graduates, of increasing importance are corporate positions in strategic business development, general strategy, and internal consulting. Many MBAs find that consulting skills prepare them for analyst or general management positions. Most firms generally emphasize some combination of consulting in three areas – strategy, operations/supply chain, and information systems.

• · Strategy consulting: Strategic consulting focuses on matching the company’s external environment with internal strengths to decide which paths the company should follow when faced with a wide array of opportunities.
• · Operations/supply chain consulting: Business processes occur in almost any functional area of the firm from accounting, to customer service, to manufacturing. Business process improvement can often yield significant results in cycle times, cost, quality, and customer satisfaction. Supply chain consulting takes the operations process view outside of the firm to focus on the movement of inventory and information across the entire supply chain in order to improve quality, service, inventory, labor, overhead, and transaction costs to the profitability of the entire supply chain. Operations/supply chain consulting requires involves strategic thinking and a good understanding of information systems.
• · Human Resources/Organizational consulting: Human resources professionals can find roles in consulting as well. Many organizations benefit from a consulting firms view on proper structure, efficient communication mechanisms, compensation to support corporate goals, and specific human resources processes.
• · Financial consulting: Financial consultants engage in a variety of projects ranging from helping firms establish more efficient processes for managing financial information to helping companies make better financial decisions with the data they have. Consultants are also utilized by investment banks and other institutions to guide on portfolio management and the hiring of top financial talent.
• · IT Systems and Implementation consulting: IT consultants play a role in designing, developing, and/or implementing information technology systems for financial reporting, inventory control, human resources, customer relationship management, e-commerce, etc. This type of consulting often requires a thorough understanding of the information technologies, the business processes and the strategic context in which the information system is deployed.

The Industry

Consulting is a very broad term. For many they think of large firms like McKinsey & Company or A.T. Kearney. However, there are many boutique firms that only consulting within a particular function, like supply chain.

Large consulting firms are a typically a collection of functional practices. In these firms there are typically virtual industry-based practices as well. Projects would then happen in an intersection of one or more functional practices with the industry practice. Consultants would typically have their office within the functional group.

Skills Desired

The consultant’s job is generally to define the problem facing the client and propose or implement the appropriate solutions. Candidates should be able to quickly take advantage of prior experience, hypothesize solutions, analyze them, find a course of action, and effectively communicate their recommendations. Firms seeking internal or external consultants expect candidates to have a well-developed ability to work in teams, strong communication and presentation skills, financial analysis skills, leadership skills, and strong problem definition and critical thinking skills.

Using the Curriculum at Broad

Functional Consulting – see the relevant “Careers in…” for curricular recommendations if you are focusing on consulting within a function.

Management Consulting – For more broad-based consulting, firms will recruit any major. Any of the four primary concentrations at Broad (Finance, Human Resources, Marketing, and Supply Chain) are a good starting point. As for a choice of secondary concentration:

• Supply Chain. Some firms have a preference for SCM due to it process-orientation.
• Finance. Knowing finance is essential in any business setting.
• Marketing. Additional studies in marketing are useful for positioning.
• Leadership and Change Management. Evaluates how changes are implemented.
• Strategic Management. Focuses on strategic decision making.
• Hospitality. If you are interested in firms with practices serving this industry this would be a good choice.

Resume Construction

Consulting resumes may look very much like their functional counterparts. However, constructing the resume so it more closely mirrors the work being performed is a definite advantage.

Specifically, experiences can be listed by project, with the supporting bullet points elaborating on the process used to manage the project. These activities include building a team, collaborating with the client, doing a needs determination, as well as the business aspects of the project itself.

The key here is to focus on a few wide-ranging projects that demonstrate a variety of skills. You wouldn’t want to elaborate on every project.

Getting In

When interviewing, it is very important to know the practice for which you are being interviewed. Typically at the Broad School you will be interviewing for a specific practice, and not the firm as a whole. When interviewing for a firm more broadly, consultants like it when interviewees have specific practices in mind. So, you need to do your research on the structure of the particular firm.

Case interviews are often used by consulting firms. The MBA Career Services Center at MSU will help you practice your case interviewing. After you have learned how to manage a case interview, it is important to keep practicing with classmates until you have at least ten case practices completed. Case interviewing may constitute several rounds of back-to-back cases. It is not unusually for firms go give up to 17 interviews across four rounds of interviewing.

Etiquette and how you present yourself at dinner meetings will also be assessed. Prepare for very strict dining etiquette before attending interview day on site.

Meeting and getting to know an alumnus in the practice is also a very helpful way to make it into the process. Consulting jobs are highly sought after, so even getting a start can be competitive.

Some firms, like McKinsey, only recruit during a specific period of the year. The process begins with an on-line application. Watch eRecruiting and emails from the CSC to notify you of when to apply. You should keep on top of the websites of target firms as well.

The Lifestyle of a Consultant

The commonly held perception that consultants travel a lot is true. Many consultants live away from “home” for weeks or months at a time. Others fly out on Sunday night and back on Thursday night to spend Friday at the office, though that becomes tedious.

The work-life balance, though, is highly dependent on the practice you are in, where the clients tend to be located, and whether the work can be accomplished remotely. Especially in boutique firms, consultants spend little time at the client site, or have clients located nearby. Occasionally in large firms, though, there are practices that are located near their client base and have less travel.

In general, though, expect a lot of travel. Decide before you apply if you are willing to accept the trade-offs involved in a career in consulting.

According to topschoolsintheusa, the purpose of the cover letter is to tell the reader on the idea that your qualifications match the job requirements very well.

As opposed to your resume, which is a general document, the cover letter is specific to each job.

If your resume contains all your qualifications, why have a cover letter?
The resume demonstrates your qualifications in general.
The cover letter more clearly elaborates on how your qualifications fit any given position.
Also, it convinces recruiters to read your attached resume.

You always send a resume with a cover letter.

The cover letter is known as a “covering letter” in many countries.

Your goal is to show the recruiter that you are of unique value to them.

It also demonstrates your knowledge of the company and position.

Finally, the cover letter allows you to demonstrate how your career interest fits with the company. That is, you aren’t just looking for a job, you are looking for THAT job.

Cover Letter Strategy

Employers do not always look at the cover letter. Many employers, however, recognize the value of the letter and will read it.

In order to communicate your message to them, the letter must be interesting enough to keep their interest.

You must also differentiate your cover letter from the many others recruiters will read.

The list we just formed must set into a context to make it interesting. This context is within the job or a project itself.

An example follows:

A sample cover letter paragraph follows. Note that it includes the prioritized knowledge and skills, as well as some others.

While working at Aerospace Systems I was deeply involved with the strategic planning process, particularly with systems and technology issues. Consulting with diverse vendors of technology services in the aerospace industry allowed for many opportunities to achieve significant results for the vendor as well as my own firm. In managing these vendors I coordinated the entire project, from initial negotiation through project completion.

Assignment: Now, using the Microsoft Word document you used earlier, construct your own paragraph.

Types of scanning

It is important to clarify what they mean by ‘scanning’. It is very common for companies to scan your resume and keep it as a graphic image. Once you have applied to a company you will be entered into their ‘applicant-tracking database.’ An important part of this database is allowing any user in the company to access your profile, and view or print your resume. Your current resume works fine for this system.

Alternatively, some organizations scan the resume then run Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software on it. This software scans the document, removes any “unwanted” text and then does a key word search. The resume is essentially ‘graded’ against established criteria, such as a minimum GPA. The software also counts the number of occurrences of keywords or phrases such as project management, engineering, profit and loss, distribution, etc.

How often will OCR happen?

• Internet. It is safe to assume that any time you complete an on-line registration form on the Internet, or upload a resume to a public site that it will be scanned with OCR.
• MBA PCC. Recruiters who get your resume from the MBA PCC tend to not scan. At least not initially. Pre-selection is based on personally reading your resume and meeting you. At some point later in the process it may be scanned. If you are not selected for an interview, your resume may be scanned with OCR for later retrieval.
• Other sources of leads. These companies may or may not scan. Even companies with OCR do not use it on every candidate. Senior management, MBAs, and engineers are often read personally. Unsolicited resumes and undergraduate resumes are often scanned simply because of the volume of those resumes.

Writing a scannable resume

According to topschoolsintheusa, a scannable resume is a hard copy version of your resume, but different than what you normally do for your resume. Take note that the keywords are all skill-focused nouns. In your current resume the emphasis is on verbs. Here are some basic rules to follow when writing a scannable resume:

• Keywords in the resume should be skill-focused nouns.
• Be sure to spell out “P&L” to “Profit and Loss” and use both “purchasing” and “procurement” and “standard query language” for “SQL” or American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS).
• Since the resume is converted to a text file and graded, include NO graphics. This means no lines, bullet points, boldface, italics, images, etc. OCR will encounter errors when trying to translate these. Too many errors may negatively impact your résumé’s ability to be graded well.
• Send only originals of your resume (do not send a photocopy). Do not fax the resume, and do not fold or staple the resume. This will improve its grading by OCR.
• Font should be 10-14 point. Fonts should be sans serif style (i.e. Arial) and not Serif (i.e. Times New Roman, Garamond)…in-other-words, no “curl’s” at the end of letters and more “block” lettering is preferred. This is often referred to as PDA style writing. It is less fancy and how you learned to print in grammar school. This is Times New Roman, This is Arial.

Writing a text resume

A text resume is a text-only version of your resume that makes it easy for pasting into websites. Here are some rules for text resumes:

• You need top headings rather than left columns. Nothing should be in columns.
• Make sure to replace all tabs and use the space bar for spacing. It is best, however, to not try to line anything up because you do not know if the output uses proportional spacing or not.
• Avoid trying to use asterisks (*) for bullets – they may produce an error. So will hyphens, slashes, etc. Use blank lines to make the resume look more appealing.
• Do not make manual line breaks except for the end of a bullet/sentence. Just let the text run on.
• Font format & style do not matter; they will put it into a database.
• Most will limit the resume to 700 characters, which can contain a 2-page resume (although not recommended).
• You may want to add a “keyword” section at the bottom. Since the resume is in a database it can be keyword searched.

Keywords tend to nouns (“project management”) rather than verbs (“managed project”). When using keywords, list them in ALL likely forms (i.e. “SQL”, “standard query language”, and “sequel server”). See second bullet point under “scannable resumes,” above. Resumes searched in databases tend to use keywords that are nouns (i.e. negotiation).

Typically, when a resume is read, it is the verbs that stand out (i.e. negotiated). The keyword section should have common noun-forms for your skills.

• Paste from MSWord (to avoid sending viruses) into Notepad, or some other basic word processing program, and then rearrange it so that it looks good as a text document. Check your resume each time as it may paste different each time you do it.

For more information visit:

• Electronic Resumes –

http://www.wetfeet.com/asp/article.asp?aid=195&atype=Resumes

• e-Resumes –

http://www.wetfeet.com/asp/article.asp?aid=176&atype=Resumes

• Scannable Resume –

http://www.wetgeet.com/asp/article.asp?aid=123&atype=Resumes

• Scannable Resume –

http://www.vault.com/nr/newsmain.jsp?nr_page=3&ch_id=421&article_id=1042

So, what do I send?

In general, send your current, accomplishment (verb-based) resume unless you have reason to suspect otherwise. Companies who scan will often list on their web pages what type of resume to send. Read carefully any literature from a company that discusses the application procedure. If you are in doubt – ask someone at the company.

This guide is intended to introduce MBA candidates to an overview of finance careers, specific resources for finance job-seekers, and helpful advice to getting into various finance careers. It is not a comprehensive guide, you can download those from www.vault.com and www.wetfeet.com.

Moreover, you will work closely with the finance career coach in the MBA Career Services Center on tailoring your unique experiences and desires into an action plan for your specific career goals.

We several up front cautions, however. First, if you intend to have a career in finance, you should endeavor to do your internship in finance. Students who choose finance and supply chain as a dual major are at a disadvantage to those who choose finance and corporate accounting as their concentrations. Further, while your background before the MBA program does not necessarily niche you into any certain area, doing an internship in supply chain will likely niche you into supply chain in the eyes of corporate recruiters.

Finance is the management of large amounts of money, especially by governments or large companies. Additionally, many roles in finance seem quite glamorous. Investment banking, mergers and acquisitions, and other fields are all highly sought after. We find that frequently candidates changing career do not fully understand what these roles are and the commitment (and excessive hours) they require. Similarly, these positions may not be the road to wealth that many people expect. Make sure you go in with your eyes open to the reality of the positions for which you apply. Finally, while we encourage you to reach for the stars, make sure to keep your feet grounded as to what to realistically expect given your prior experience level in accounting and finance. You may be required to “pay your dues” or start at the bottom and work your way up.

Overview of Industries

Corporations

Corporate Finance

The primary recruiting base for MBAs from Michigan State University is corporations looking for finance staff. A significant number of these employers recruit MBAs into rotational programs aimed at giving the new hire experience in several areas of finance, familiarity with the multiple businesses of the company, and exposure to the executives across the company.

Positions: Financial Analyst, Finance Development (Rotational) Programs

Getting In: Expect technical finance questions and case questions. Full-time recruiting typically is during fall semester. Intern recruiting begins in fall and continues through early spring.

Corporate Treasury

Another common role in corporation is Treasury. This is the staff that manages the corporation’s investments into stocks, bonds, real estate, and other assets.

Positions: Treasury Analyst, Treasury Development/Rotational Program

Getting In: Expect technical finance and case questions. You might also be asked to give a stock pick. Full-time recruiting typically is during fall semester. Intern recruiting begins in fall and continues through early spring.

Mergers and Acquisitions / Venture Groups

Some corporations that grow through acquisitions have a group dedicated to that function. These positions are few and require significant experience in finance.

Positions: M&A Analyst, Corporate Venture Analyst

Getting In: Solid prior finance experience. Recruiting typically happens at various times throughout the year. Except for the largest firms, most hire when they have a need.

Consulting Firms

Many MBAs find opportunities within consulting. Consulting can either be “management consulting” or functional consulting. Finance is one of those functions where consultants can focus. Consulting firms tend to be organized by practices aligned along functions, which determines the office in which a consultant is based. Virtual (and sometimes actual) practices are often aligned along industry expertise. These two dimensions (function and industry) form matrix organizations. Consultants tend to work at specific intersections, known sometimes as “nodes.” Whether your goal is management consulting or financial consulting, you need to first identify the practice in which you want to be based.

Positions: Senior Consultant, Consultant (for lesser experienced MBAs)

Getting In: Many consulting firms rely heavily on case interviews, as well as technical interviews for functional practices. Full-time recruiting typically is during fall semester. Intern recruiting begins in fall and continues through early spring.

Commercial Banks and Insurance Companies

Commercial Banks

Commercial banks present opportunities often overlooked by MBAs changing careers into finance, and thus are great prospects. Banks often have management rotation programs, as well as direct hire positions into commercial credit, or in wholesale banking, which means taking care of all the financing needs of a Fortune 100 client, including investment needs, debt financing, and merger financing. Some banks also hire MBAs into risk assessment roles.

Positions: Management Rotation Programs, Commercial Credit, Wholesale Banking, Risk

Getting In: Typical interview process. Full-time recruiting typically is during fall semester. Intern recruiting begins in fall and continues through early spring.

Insurance Companies

Insurance companies also have management rotation programs leading up to senior management positions.

Positions: Management Rotation Program

Getting In: Typical interview process. Full-time recruiting typically is during fall semester. Intern recruiting begins in fall and continues through early spring.

Investments

Bulge Bracket

Bulge bracket firms are what many people think of when they say investment banking. There are numerous positions within the company. A commonly desired entry point is as an equity or fixed income (debt) analyst or associate looking for investment opportunities in their industry of expertise. Associates pitch their stock picks to the Portfolio Manager, who decides what stocks are in and which are out. When the decision to invest or sell is made, the trade is ordered from the trading desk. On the “distribution” side MBAs work with possible institutional investors who may want to buy into the various portfolios available. Hedge Funds are high risk funds that are widely diversified across equity, debt, currency, real estate, and other assets. Hedge funds are highly desirable, but are managed by the best of the best, and take years to work into. Bulge Bracket Banks also Corporate Finance and other services.

Positions: Equity Analyst/Association, Fixed Income Analyst/Associate, Trading Desk, Distribution, Portfolio Manager (for very experienced MBAs), Hedge Fund Manager (for very senior, experienced MBAs).

Getting In: Be prepared to pitch a stock pick either in writing or in person. Stick to an industry you know well when making these picks. Also, all these positions are very competitive to get into, so make sure you sell your passion. Prior investing on your own may make the difference, although the being in the Student Investment Fund will help. Full-time recruiting typically is August and September. Intern recruiting often follows the same time frame, though some firms recruit interns during January.

Mid-Cap and Boutique Firms

These smaller firms run more limited investment portfolios, but the roles are very similar to those in Bulge Bracket firms. Being smaller, they may be easier to gain entry into if you can develop contacts in them.

Corporate Finance

Although the name can be confusing, banks use Corporate Finance to refer to the structuring of deals centered around Mergers and Acquisitions. If a company were to acquire another, the mixture of debt and equity financing can yield major returns for the company. Only MBAs with significant experience in finance will land these prized positions.

Positions: M&A / Corporate Finance Banker

Getting In: Know how to structure a deal in great detail. Full-time recruiting typically is August and September. Intern recruiting often follows the same time frame, though some firms recruit interns during January.

Private Equity

Private equity firms arrange for investment in companies that are not publicly traded on any stock exchange.

Positions: Associate

Getting In: Look for firms that are raising funds. Sell your prior industry experience heavily since that knowledge is what the firms find attractive. You need to demonstrate excellence in both finance and strategy. Full-time recruiting typically is August and September. Intern recruiting often follows the same time frame, though some firms recruit interns during January.

Venture Capital

Small firms looking for cash to grow their business find financing with venture capital firms, which are a form of private equity. These firms collect private capital from interested investors, then look for prospective businesses to grow. Venture Capitalists not only identify prospects within their area of industry expertise, but also are actively involved in the management of those companies as they grow.

Positions: Associate

Getting In: Look for firms that are raising funds. Sell your prior industry experience heavily since that knowledge is what the firms find attractive. You need to demonstrate excellence in both finance and strategy. Full-time recruiting typically is August and September. Intern recruiting often follows the same time frame, though some firms recruit interns during January.

Skills Desired

Finance careers require the same soft skills as any other career. However, quantitative skills need to be superior. Finance professionals in many roles need to analyze both quantitative (typically financial) and qualitative data, then build models upon which to base decisions. Here are specifics about desired skills.

• Critical, detail-oriented thinking, with strong quantitative skills.
• An understanding of managerial accounting, and operations background can help in project analysis. MIS coursework may help with both internal systems and general analysis tools.
• Knowledge of financial markets, capital structure and other fiscal policies and risk management.
• An understanding of financial statements, an ability to analyze those statements and an ability to translate financial and other information into opinions about credit quality and relative pricing of equity securities.
• Candidates should be able to forecast scenarios, analyze them and recommend a course of action.
• The ability to create and use financial models is essential.
• All employers seek leadership skills and the ability to work in teams.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.
• Personal computer proficiency and information technology skill.

Resume Key Words

? Accounts Payable: Streamlined accounts payable functions, established common vendor files, eliminated duplication and reduced monthly processing time by 20%.

? Accounts Receivable: Introduced improved accounts receivable and collection policies that decreased outstanding receivables by an average of 40% monthly.

? Asset Disposition: Determined proper asset disposition, sale, and leasing options following plant divestiture.

? Asset Management: Established Asset Management Division to control $55 million in capital equipment and technology.

? Asset Purchases: Structured and executed asset purchase of Zylong Corporation in Canada.

? Audit Controls: Implemented a stringent program of audit control to reverse previous findings during Coopers & Lybrand external audit review.

? Audit Management: Directed financial and operational audit management programs of 89 sales, manufacturing, and distribution businesses worldwide.

? Capital Budgets: Formulated, justified, and managed $8 million in capital budgets annually.

? Cash Management: Redesigned cash management processes, renegotiated banking relationships, and created the corporation’s first comprehensive corporate treasury function.

? Commercial paper: Structured and negotiated over $125 million in commercial paper transactions with Chase Manhattan Bank.

? Corporate Development: provided strategic, financial, legal, and negotiations expertise for corporate development initiatives, including mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, and technology licenses.

? Corporate Tax: Led a team of eight responsible for corporate tax filings in more than 1,000 local, state, and federal jurisdictions.

? Cost Accounting: Implemented automated cost accounting systems to analyze all labor, material, technology, process, quality, testing, and manufacturing costs for each product line.

? Cost Avoidance: Introduced proactive management techniques to strengthen focus on cost avoidance and elimination within each manufacturing process.

? Cost Reduction: Delivered over $2.8 million in first year labor, inven­tory, and delivery cost reductions.

? Cost/Benefit Analysis: Conducted large-scale cost/benefit analysis studies to capitalize upon long-term growth and profit improvement opportunities.

? Credit & Collections: Reduced DSO by 28% through improved credit and collection processes.

? Debt Financing: Negotiated $2.5 million in debt financing with a major banking institution and a regionally based venture capital firm.

? Divestiture: Planned and executed profitable divestiture of the $ I.5 million emerging electronic commerce product line.

? Due Diligence: Orchestrated complex due diligence reviews in coopera­tion with outside financial advisors, accountants, and legal counsel.

? E-Commerce: Launched the company’s entrance into e-commerce to capitalize upon Internet marketing and partnership alliance opportunities.

? E-Trade: Designed and implemented client-server based e-trading system to allow the instantaneous processing of stock and bond transactions.

? Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP): Led Weinhold Winers through successful LBO and ESOP transactions, creating a corporation that is now ranked #1 in nationwide market share.

? Equity Financing: Structured a three-way partnership between 3M, Telecom, and IBM for $160 million in equity financing for new tech­nology venture.

? Feasibility Analysis: Led 22-person finance team managing complex feasibility analysis and developing projections for TLC’s global market expansion.

? Financial. Analysis: Created team-based financial analysis models integrating financial data for all 52 operating locations worldwide.

? Financial Audits: Planned and managed more than 50 financial audits throughout all Xerox sales and service operations.

? Financial Controls: Designed and implemented a comprehensive program of financial controls and accountability to reverse previous years^‘ losses.

? Financial Models: Developed financial models for cost/benefit analysis, joint venture analysis, staffing analysis, and compensation design.

? Financial Planning: Directed financial planning functions for both U.S. and European operations, and presented final results to the Board of Directors.

? Financial Reporting: Eliminated unnecessary financial reporting and created a comprehensive PC-based program to integrate financial data from all operating divisions.

? Foreign Exchange (FX): Implemented foreign exchange and currency hedging programs to protect IBM^‘s Asian assets.

? Initial Public Offering (IPO): Raised $54 million in public and private investment to fund IPO.

? Internal Controls: Designed and implemented a comprehensive program of internal controls governing finance, accounting, capital assets, and technology acquisitions.

? International Finance: Resigned core domestic financial systems and processes to create a new international finance function to support business expansion and product line diversification.

? Investment Management: Assigned concurrent executive responsibility for administration of $50 million in investment management.

? Investor Accounting: Personally managed investor accounting, report­ing, and presentations.

? Investor Relations: Created a sophisticated investor relations, program, restoring credibility throughout the financial community.

? Job Costing: Restructured job costing standards to eliminate excess expenses and strengthen bottom-line profitability of all key projects.

? Letters of Credit: Issued $10 million in letters of credit to fund the acquisition of gold, silver, and other precious commodities.

? Leveraged Buy-Out (LBO): Led management team in successful LBO of ABC Transportation, formed new executive team, and re-launched national sales programs.

? Liability Management: Created a formal liability management program to control major losses resulting from downward trend in the aerospace industry.

? Make/Buy Analysis: Designed PC-based templates to support make/buy analysis for the Construction and Real Estate Investment divisions.

? Margin Improvement: Restructured corporate pricing on all major product lines and delivered a 12% margin improvement.

? Merger: Identified opportunity, negotiated and executed transaction for the 1999 Xerox and IBM merger.

? Operating Budgets: Managed $2 million in annual operating budgets allocated for personnel, facilities, and administrative expenses.

? Operational Audits: Planned and directed operational audits of all Red Cross blood banking facilities to ensure compliance with Red Cross policy and federal regulations.

? Partnership Accounting: Designed multi-tiered partnership accounting systems for 25 limited and general partnership real estate development projects.

? Profit Gains: Accelerated profit gains through an aggressive program of facilities consolidation, staff reduction, and asset divestiture.

? Profit/Loss (P&L) Analysis: Reviewed historical data to prepare complex P&L analysis as part of acquisition due diligence plan.

? Project Accounting: Managed project accounting function for the $3.6 million Bayside Tunnel Development Project in New Orleans.

? Project Financing: Negotiated $2.5 million in World Bank project financing for economic development programs in Ghana.

? Regulatory Compliance Auditing: Established a structured process to expedite regulatory compliance auditing, reporting, and defense.

? Return on Assets (ROA): Increased ROA on real estate investments by 26%.

? Return on Equity (ROE): Invested $10 million in start-up industrial products company and, over six years, achieved an average 22% ROE.

? Return on Investment (ROI): Purchased failing company, revitalized sales and distribution, and delivered a 48% ROI to investor group.

? Revenue Gain: Negotiated distribution contracts throughout the Pacific Rim, delivering a 12% revenue gain in first year.

? Risk Management: Strategize and implemented TouchTone^‘s first-ever corporate risk management, insurance, and pension plan administration function.

? Shareholder Relations: Restored corporate credibility through a com­bined shareholder relations and shareholder communications initiative.

? Stock Purchase: Identified opportunity for market expansion and negotiated transaction for $837 million stock purchase of the Telephone Group, Inc.

? Strategic Planning: Facilitated cross-functional executive team through a complex, multi-year strategic planning process.

? Treasury: Redefined the vision, mission, and objectives of the Corporate Treasury Department to align financial targets with operational goals.

? Trust Accounting: Developed and implemented formal trust accounting and pension plan reporting functions to replace reliance on third-party administrator.

? Work papers: Streamlined accounting processes to reduce work papers and documentation requirements.

Getting In

? Contact alumni. Working with alumni is key for MBAs trying to get in. Alumni can provide advice, help you learn more about the career path, and perhaps provide contacts for you. Alumni also will help you have in-depth insight into the types of projects done in the company or during internships, so you can make your cover letter, pitch, and other interview answers more relevant. See www.mba.msu.edu/careers/services.cfm for notes on how to log into Alumni Connection.

? Corporate packet – use P&G North American Financial Seminar as an example of on-line only.

? Always apply 0n-line to any company where you want to work. At very least when they meet you in some other venue (career fair, campus presentation, referral from an alumnus) they will be able to find you in their system and begin to process you as an applicant. At times, however, being registered on-line may spark an interview, especially if MSU is one of their target schools or they recruit mainly through their website.

? Check eRecruiting for notes on specific employers. You may see posted there any insights we have collected from past candidates. If companies have a limited window to apply, that may be noted as well.

? Be passionate about finance! Know why you want to work in finance and what you want to do. All to often students focus on their desire for the particular company or qualifications (which are important, too), and fail to sell that they want to work in finance.

? Research, Research, Research! Too many candidates have lost out because they didn’t understand how the company is structured or what the finance career path is.

Technical Interview Questions for Finance

Technical interviews test your knowledge of finance. Below is a list of questions MSU MBA candidates have been asked in recent years. Many of these questions are like a verbal quiz about finance. Others are more like miniature cases based on real situations in finance.

? What do you know about WACC? Where do the cost of capital and cost of debt values in the WACC equation come from?

? What is better for our company, 2/10 or net 30?

? If you are analyzing the credit of a potential customer, what factors would you consider?

? What is good/bad about debt/equity?

? Walk me through the steps of conducting an NPV analysis.

? Is ROA a good measure of success?

? What are the methods of raising capital for a project?

? What could be some reasons why our actual cash flow was less than forecast?

? Does it ever make sense to accept a negative NPV project?

? What are some things you can do to further investigate a negative NPV project?

? How do you calculate WACC?

? What is an accrual?

? How would you go about pricing a product?

? How would you go about analyzing a situation where demand exceeded capacity?

? Which is better for your company, offering a 2% discount if paid in the first ten days, or getting the net due in 30 days?

? If you have two products that are similar, how would you decide which one you want to launch (or both?)?

? How does the increase in interest rates affect our company?

? How would you make a business profitable (discuss P&L for this one!)?

See also the Vault.com guides to finance interviews (listed under readings, below).

Pitching a Stock – Investment Careers

For many roles in investment banking, venture capital, and even corporate treasury, you may be asked to pitch a stock. The company is looking for a highly structured financial and legal analysis. If done verbally, they will want a less than two minute explanation of the stock you think is undervalued and why. Be prepared for many follow up questions, both strategic and getting into the real details of the company’s finances. If in writing, they are looking for a several page brief with charts. The best training for this is presenting the board for the Financial Analysis Lab by taking FI857 Security Analysis. Written samples are available from the MBA Career Services Center.

A common mistake people make in picking a stock is to choose to ‘cover’ an industry in which they have never worked. Remember, you will likely be hired to cover specific industries, and your past industry experience is going to be a major part of the recruiter’s decision. So, stick with something you know. If you have worked for a pharmaceutical firm and want to get out of that industry, your inside knowledge and understanding of the industry is exactly what you need to leverage to do well in this exercise.

Also, recruiters are looking for candidates who have a passion for investing. If you maintain your own investment portfolio, be prepared to talk about it. If not, then involvement in the Student Investment Fund is critical.

The following specifications pertain to the résumé that you submit for the résumé book.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS

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• Your résumé must be no longer than one page
• Use Microsoft Word
• Use 11 or 12 point font for everything but your name
• Your left margin should not be less than 1 inch and the rest of the margins, no less than 0.75 inch
• Use Times New Roman or Arial font
• It must be in the specified Kelley format
• Use black ink and plain, cheap white laser quality paper

RESUME OUTLINE

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• Name: 14 point font, ALL CAPS, centered and in bold.
• Address/Phone Number/E-mail: Centered under your name.
• DO NOT include an objective.
• Use the following three headers: EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, ADDITIONAL (ALL CAPS, bold, and left justified with a line beneath each header extending across the page).
• Use the “Bottom Border” function to create the line beneath each header.

EDUCATION

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• List each university in bold.
• Under each university, highlight extracurricular activities that demonstrate leadership and initiative.
• Also include academic achievements (GPA if above 3.7 and GMAT if above 700).

EXPERIENCE

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• List each company name in bold.
• List each position title in italics.
• Under each position, highlight your accomplishments, starting each bullet with an action verb.
• If space is not a limitation, you may want to consider adding a brief parenthetical clause to describe the company, particularly if the company does not have strong name recognition.
• Experience should be listed in reverse chronological order with no gaps in dates
• A good guideline to follow is that each position should have no more than 5 bullet statements and each bullet should be no longer than 2 lines.
• Avoid the use of acronyms and technical terms

ADDITIONAL

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• List all foreign languages you know and indicate whether you are fluent or conversant.
• Include unique features such as special interests, honors, and achievements, etc.
• Remember, this section gives you the opportunity to add some personality to your résumé.

On this page you’ll find questions specific to various functions:

Strategic Planning and Corporate Finance | Investment Banking | Sales and Trading
Public Finance | Venture Capital | Marketing | Consulting/Management/Human Resources
Human Resources | MIS, Electronic Commerce, Telecommunications | Health care management

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STRATEGIC PLANNING AND CORPORATE FINANCEWhat is the long-bond at?

Explain discounted cash flow analyses or valuation methodology.

Define the concept of cash flow vs. net income.

What is our stock price trading at? Market value? Sale? Net income? Price-earnings ratio?

Why corporate finance as opposed to sales and trading?

What do you hope to gain by working for our company?

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

How do you see your career progressing in our company?

What do you know about our industry?

Our ____ division is thinking of introducing a widget new product. How would you go about determining if this is a good idea?

How does M&A activity in banking affect our industry?

We are having trouble managing our (division). What do you think the key performance metrics might be and how might your go about improving them?

How would you go about valuing our (division) for a potential sale, spin-off, or liquidation?

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INVESTMENT BANKINGWhy an MBA? Why Kelley (Indiana)?

Why investment banking? Why this bank?

What are your outside activities? Why would you be willing to give them up for such a demanding job?

What role do you play in group situations?

What would you do if offered drugs as part of the deal? (or other ethically focused questions)

How smart are you? How do we know how smart you are?

Sell us on your quantitative skills.

If we made you an offer today, would you take it?

What did the Dow, S&P and NASDAQ close at yesterday?

What stocks do you follow and why?

What other firms have you talked to?

What does it take to be successful in investment banking? Highlight those skills from your experience.

What qualifies you to work in I-banking? In which department will you be most successful? Why?

What motivates you?

How do you perform under pressure? In what kind of environment do you work best?

Give an example of an accomplishment in your life? Failure?

Where is the _____ industry going? The market? This firm?

Ethics and I-banking: has the industry been represented fairly?

How do you regularly read on the industry?

What do you regularly read on the industry?

Name the top firms. For what are they known?

Technical: How would selling a long-term bond affect all three of the financial statements?

Technical: What is the difference between an operating lease and a capital lease? How are they reported on each of the three financial statements?

Technical: I am the owner of a privately held company and I want to take one of my subsidiaries public. I come to you for advice. How would you find the subsidiary’s value and IPO price range? How would you go about obtaining the information you need?

Microsoft Word file with 200+ I-Banking questions: IB-InterviewQ.doc

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SALES AND TRADINGSell me this pencil.

What other firms have you talked to?

What makes you think you can sell?

What is a bond?

What would you personally invest in?

What are forward rates, LIBOR rates?

What particular markets or instruments are you interested in? Why debt vs. equity?

Where is the market going? Where are rates going?

What does the yield curve look like? What does it mean?

Tell me what you think a trader does.

Why not corporate finance?

Describe an instance where you persuaded someone to do something they initially didn’t want to do.

What about your personality will make you a good trader?

How will you motivate yourself to make the calls you hate to make?

What are your grades?

What do you think having an MBA does for you in this field?

Tell me a joke.

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PUBLIC FINANCEWhy public finance? Why this firm?

What areas are of particular interest to you? (e.g. housing, health care, utilities, education)

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VENTURE CAPITALWhy venture capital?

Why Kelley (Indiana) to study venture capital? Why not Stanford?

What particular strengths do you have for venture capital?

What do you think a venture capitalist does?

What motivates you? How do you motivate others?

Have you interacted with a variety of people from all levels from CEO to technician? With what results?

How strong is your grasp of technical issues/technology?

What operations exposure, management experiences have you had?

In addition to high-tech ventures, where do you think VC money should be going?

Do you think emphasis should be on raising money and putting it to work, or on the human capital?

What do you look for in a venture? Which is more important, the product or the people behind it?

Describe your analytical and interpersonal skills.

Do you have a high energy level?

Are you a good team player?

Have you had to deal with failure in a professional context?

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MARKETING (GENERAL)Why Kelley (Indiana)? Why not Kellogg?

Why an MBA?

What is marketing? Define the difference between marketing and advertising.

What does it take to be successful in marketing?

What are the attributes of a successful marketing campaign?

How do you motivate others, particularly those over whom you have no direct authority? OR I’m sure you’ve been in a situation where you had to get participation from people who don’t report to you. How do you motivate these people?

How have you developed your interpersonal skills?

Give me a specific example of a time you solved a problem creatively?

What is the most important thing that you’ve learned about managing people from your previous work experience?

What is your biggest challenge at school?

What is your biggest accomplishment?

What are you looking for in a consumer goods (or manufacturing, financial services, etc.) company?

Give an example of an innovative solution to a business problem.

Give an example of your approach to problem solving.

What would your last boss say bout your? (How would s/he describe you?)

If I asked your classmates to describe the role you take in a team/group, what would they say?

What is the toughest challenge you faced in the interpersonal realm of your job?

Tell me about an advertising campaign that you think is particularly effective/ineffective.

What are some examples of good and bad advertising and why.

How would you describe your leadership style?

BRAND MANAGEMENTWhat do you think are the most important traits in a product marketing person?

Pick a product and position it.

Give an example of a good new product introduction.

Create a plan to market Brand X in Philadelphia–What’s the theme of your advertising? Be very detailed.

Pretend today is your first day at work as a brand manager for Brand X. What are the ten most important questions would you ask to find out about the brand?

I see that most of your experience has (not) been in consumer products. Do you think you would be as successful as an industrial marketer? (or vice-versa)

Rank order characteristics important for brand management.

What did you dislike about your former employer?

Give me a 30-second commercial about yourself.

Give an example of a well-managed product.

Give me an example of a leadership role you have had. Give me another one, give me another one, give me another one . . .

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CONSULTING/MANAGEMENT/HUMAN RESOURCES
NOTE: In additional to trait and behavioral questions, you will want to practice case interview question. Check with the Management Consulting Academy for more information.

Why consulting? Why this firm?

Why an MBA? Why Kelley (Indiana)?

What does a consultant do? What are the three most important qualities of a successful consultant?

How do you think the consulting industry is structured? How is our practice different form other consulting firms?

How do you rank in relation to your peers?

Do you view consulting as a permanent career choice?

How would you describe the competitive niche of your most recent employer?

Give me an example of a business problem and tell me how you solved it.

How do you feel about the lifestyle issues associated with consulting?

Imagine we are reviewing your performance at our firm after working for us for six months. What do you think our evaluation would be?

Highlight your top achievements/accomplishments?

What has been your biggest setback?

With whom are you interviewing? How have you fared?

What is the most important thing you have learned in the past year?

Give me an example of a situation in which you had a problem, how you identified the problem, the methods you used to solve the problem and discuss the resolution.

If given an offer, how will you decide whether or not to accept it?

What are your strengths? Weaknesses?

Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten years? What are your long-term career goals?

Choice questions from résumé: Why XYZ college? Why XYZ company?

How have you been doing at Kelley (Indiana)? What are your grades? What are your GMAT scores? Your undergraduate GPA?

Describe a situation, work or school, where you analyzed and solved a problem. How did you do it?

Are you competitive?

What do you have to offer this firm?

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HUMAN RESOURCESWhy an MBA? Why not a Masters in Labor Relations or a Masters in Sciences in Human Resources?

Why Kelley (Indiana)? Why not Michigan or Cornell?

Walk me through your résumé.

What are the most significant challenges confronting the human resources function over the next five years?

What have been your most significant accomplishments? Why were they significant?

What obstacles have you faced? How did you overcome them?

How do you think human resource activities add value to our company?

Describe a change effort you have undertaken. What was your role? What specifically did you do?

The ability to develop effective teams is an increasingly important skill. Can you think of a time when the development of a team was critical to a project you were working on? What was your role? What did you do to contribute to the team’s success?

What have been the most important professional experiences you’ve had during your career? What experiences have helped you solidify your skills and/or enabled you to advance to the next job?

If you were responsible for picking your successor, what would you look for in that person? What important skills (technical and non-technical) and characteristics would that person need to possess?

What will the human resources function look like in the future?

How will human resource professionals’ responsibilities change over time? What skills and/or competencies will human resources professionals need in the future?

How would you measure or evaluate the value of human resources to a business?

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MIS, E-COMMERCE, TELECOMMUNICATIONSWhy an MBA? Why not an advanced technical degree?

Why Kelley (Indiana)? Why not Carnegie-Mellon, MIT, or Berkeley?

Describe your skill set. What technologies do you understand?

In what ways have you utilized existing technology?

What programming languages do you know?

What platforms do you know?

What are you competent in?

Have you implemented a change project? What problems have you faced?

What is your past experience with _______ (various applications, past projects, network applications)?

Have you dealt with client/server networks before? Token rings? Intranet programs like Notes or Exchange?

How have you managed your team?

What do you think is the future of network computing? The Internet? Electronic commerce?

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HEALTH CARE MANAGEMENTWhy have you focused on the health care industry?

Why an MBA? Why not a Masters in Health Administration?

Why Kelley (Indiana)?

What are the attributes of management success in the health care industry?

Where/How have you developed those attributes?

What motivates you? How do you motivate others?

How do you function in a group? Give examples of teamwork.

What is the most important thing you have learned about people from your previous work experience?

What do you look for in a job? In a boss?

Did you ever think of pursuing a career in medicine as a health service professional?

Choose one of these issues and give some recommendations on addressing it: managed care, HCA fallout, and any other current controversial public issue involving health care.

What are the most important issues emerging in health care management? Prioritize them.

What functional skills will you bring to a hospital environment?

What are your goals?

According to AbbreviationFinder, Human Resources are abbreviated as HR. Human resources professionals work a variety of roles that span the company both horizontally or vertically. There are many specialties within HR that can include high-level strategic planning, implementation, and/or day-to-day management of the specialty. Many HR professionals complete a rotational program following their MBA for exposure to all of these areas. A skill sets required range from strategic reasoning, to strong interpersonal skills. In many organizations quantitative skills are essential for success.

• Recruiting and Staffing: Staffing departments determine marketing strategy and build plans for recruiting employees possessing key skills set matched to specific positions and functions within the firm. Technical aspects include observance of numerous laws, quantitative justification of selection criteria, with an eye toward retention.
• Training and Development: Work with employees to build skill sets necessary for success within the company, mapped to corporate goals. Most people in T&D both train employees themselves and coordinate third-party training programs.
• Compensation and Benefits: Positions vary from planning compensation and benefits offerings for employees based on strategic objectives and total cost, to working with suppliers of benefits and the employees that utilize them.
• HR Generalist: Generalists provide all the functions listed above, typically responsible to a client group consisting of a department, division or class of employees within the corporation.
• Organizational Development: The focus here is on building organizations to support business plans and strategic initiatives. Typically this is a position attained following success in the above functions.
• Various Other Tracks: Including HR information systems, safety and ergonomics, and labor relations (typically dealing with negotiations, not employee relations).
• HR Consulting: There are consulting equivalents of all of the above HR functions, ranging from strategic to being a third-party provider of the day-to-day operation.

Key Words for resume (example)

Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA): Expanded regulatory com­pliance programs to incorporate new federal ADA regulations and initiated $12 million capital investment program to upgrade facilities to meet access requirements.

Benefits Administration: Expanded in-house benefits administration function to include pension plans, 401(k) plans, tuition reimbursement programs, LOA programs, and joint spouse maternity leave programs.

Career Pathing: Introduced the concepts of career pathing, leadership development, and succession planning into Federal Express in an effort to increase executive staff recruitment and retention.

Change Management: Pioneered innovative change management programs focused on core productivity, efficiency, and safety improvement programs.

Claims Administration: Directed a 12-person claims administration function responsible for all health insurance, disability, and workers’ compensation claims.

College Recruitment: Managed a nationwide college recruitment program to attract talented young engineers and technical designers.

Compensation: Benchmarked best practices worldwide to create Knud­sen’s domestic and international compensation programs.

Competency-Based Performance: Created a competency-based perfor­mance analysis and appraisal system to identify top performers and faci­litate progressive career movement.

Corporate Culture Change: Pioneered corporate culture change initiatives impacting more than 10,000 employees at 54 manufacturing facilities and 122 sales offices throughout Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

Cross-Cultural Communications: Introduced in-house language training programs to strengthen staff competencies in cross-cultural communica­tions.

Diversity Management: Forged the introduction of diversity manage­ment programs and initiatives to expand hiring, training, and promotion of minority candidates.

Electronic Applicant Screening: Spearheaded project to implement the first electronic applicant screening process in the industry, complete with resume scanning and keyword scanning technology.

Employee Communications: Designed and produced multimedia employee communications for new hire orientation, training, and leadership development.

Employee Empowerment: Championed implementation of employee empowerment and participative management programs to increase man­agement/staff relations and cooperation.

Employee Involvement Teams: Formed six employee involvement teams to support HR’s efforts in employee downsizing, reorganization, and consolidation.

Employee Relations: Expanded employee relations initiatives to include in-house EAP and counseling programs.

Employee Retention: Designed performance-based incentives for a 200 person hourly workforce and increased employee retention by better than 26%.

Employee Surveys: Wrote, administered, and reported results of corporate-wide employee surveys investigating employee satisfaction and personal career objectives.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO): Achieved/surpassed all EEO and Affirmative Action regulations.

Expatriate Employment: Spearheaded a worldwide expatriate employ­ment and human resources function incorporating recruitment, training and development, succession planning, and compensation.

Grievance Proceedings: Administered over 100 grievance proceedings as the direct intermediary between union and management officials.

Human Resources (HR): Senior Executive with full operating responsi­bility for design, development, and leadership of comprehensive human resources and organization development function.

Human Resources Generalist Affairs: Administered all HR generalist affairs, including recruitment, selection, training, manpower planning, benefits, claims administration, employee relations, and succession planning.

Human Resources Partnerships: Forged innovative human resources partnerships with key operating divisions worldwide to drive common vision and achieve financial objectives.

Incentive Planning: Spearheaded incentive planning functions for sales and support personnel through ITI’s worldwide field organization.

International Employment: Created a comprehensive international employment organization responsible for all generalist HR functions and a complex expatriate compensation program.

Job Task Analysis: Conducted a sophisticated job task analysis study to delineate all core competencies, functions, and requirements of each of the company’s 22 different job classifications.

Labor Arbitration: Negotiated favorable resolutions to several high profile labor arbitration proceedings negatively impacting Bethlehem Steel’s long-term market viability.

Labor Contract Negotiations: Directed 6-person cross-functional team responsible for labor contract negotiations with Teamsters officials.

Labor Relations: Created a proactive labor relations function that successfully thwarted several work stoppages and proposed walkouts.

Leadership Assessment: Developed quantifiable tools for leadership assessment of top operating management.

Leadership Development: Pioneered innovative leadership develop­ment programs to accelerate career advancement of high-potential management candidates.

Management Training & Development: Identified organizational needs and created a 4-part management training and development program.

Manpower Planning: Created manpower planning methodologies to staff new production facilities in Iowa and Utah.

Merit Promotion: Designed a performance-driven merit promotion program to reward top producers.

Multimedia Training: Partnered with Technology Services Division to create multimedia training and leadership programs integrating voice, data, and other electronic systems.

Multinational Workforce: Managed a 42-person multinational workforce with personnel from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Japan, Mexico, and the U.S.

Organization(al) Design: Defined new corporate vision and established new organizational design to streamline management tiers and advance staff to supervisory positions.

Organization(al) Development (OD): Spearheaded OD initiatives incorporating change management, employee empowerment, participative leadership, and process reengineering.

Organization(al) Needs Assessment: Conducted worldwide organiza­tional needs assessment to define core drivers in fast-paced technology industries.

Participative Management: Energized staff and supervisors to successfully transition to participative management organizational structure.

Performance Appraisal: Created a comprehensive performance apprai­sal system based on pre-established performance criteria.

Performance Incentives: Designed a complete portfolio of performance incentives awarded for measurable gains in production yield, quality performance, and customer satisfaction.

Performance Reengineering: Led fast-paced performance reengineering initiatives to keep pace with rapid market expansion and customer growth.

Position Classification: Designed a corporate-wide position classifica­tion system with associated salary grades, levels, and incentive structures.

Professional Recruitment: Spearheaded an aggressive professional recruitment program to identify top industry performers in sales, mar­keting, and international business development.

Regulatory Affairs: Administered regulatory affairs, compliance, and reporting with state and federal agencies governing HR operations.

Retention: Designed staff incentives and increased employee retention by better than 45%.

Safety Training: Accelerated the corporation^‘s commitment to safe work practices with the introduction of a plant-wide safety training program.

Self-Directed Work Teams: Created self-directed work teams respon­sible for full product line management, from initial R&D through manu­facturing and customer delivery.

Staffing: Redefined staffing levels to assimilate new technologies and reduce annual payroll expenditures.

Succession Planning: Created succession planning models adopted by national association as best in practices model for the entire industry.

Train-the-Trainer: Developed curriculum and instructional materials for train-the-trainer programs in technology, telecommunications, and elec­tronic commerce.

Training and Development: Planned and launched start-up of worldwide training and development division to support the company’s expansion into emerging product technologies and markets.

Union Negotiations: Led sensitive union negotiations governing salary and benefit programs for all two million members of the United Auto-workers Union.

Union Relations: Forged positive union relations through cooperative design of safe work practices and full compensation for on-the-job injuries.

Wage and Salary Administration: Developed a corporate-wide wage and salary administration program to ensure equitable compensation across all geographies and job classifications.

Workforce Reengineering: Led a massive workforce reengineering initiative to reduce Terminal’s worldwide staff by 30% by the end of 1999.

Interview Questions for Human Resource

General Questions:
1. Tell me why you chose Human Resource Management as your profession.
2. Do you have a personal philosophy about HR management?
3. What do you like most about HR? What do you like least, and what do you find the most challenging?
4. During your experience of working in HR (if you had one), to which positions have you reported and which reporting structure do you prefer?
5. How do you stay current with changes in employment laws, practices and other HR issues?
6. An employee tells you about a sexual harassment allegation but then tells you they don’t want to do anything about it; they just thought you should know. How do you respond?
7. Describe the most difficult employee relations situation you have had to handle, how it was resolved or not, and why.
8. What would you do to help your prospective human resources department to become a strategic partner?
9. As HR professionals, we often deal with legal and ethical situations. Tell me about an ethical situation you have encountered and what part you took in resolving it. Tell me about any illegal discrimination charges you have handled and how these were resolved.
10. Tell me about your policy development experiences. What employment policies have you developed or revised?
11. Describe your knowledge of/involvement with progressive discipline.
12. Describe your knowledge of/involvement with Performance Evaluation processes.
13. Tell me about your experience in training and developing your employees or managers.
14. Tell me about training and development programs you have developed.
15. Have you ever worked in a Union Environment? What were the positives/negatives?
16. Imagine that a manager wants you as an HR professional to terminate an employee contract in contrast to your company’s termination policy. How would you resolve this?
17. Describe to me in a few sentences the purpose of the following basic Federal regulations: (select one or more, as applicable) Title VII/Civil Rights Act, FLSA, WC, FMLA, ADA

Recruiting Questions:
1. How much recruiting experience do you have? What type of positions have you recruited for in the past?
2. Discuss why you feel that Human Resources/Recruiting is the right profession for you.
3. List your experience with and/or knowledge of Affirmative Action Planning and Applicant Flow reporting.
4. What recruiting tool do you consider to be most valuable to you? Explain.
5. What do you consider to be your greatest talent as it relates to recruiting?
6. What do you consider to be the most challenging aspect of corporate recruiting?
7. Can you work extended hours when needed?
8. What is the most unique or non-traditional recruiting approach you have tried? Was it successful? Why or why not?
9. Are you familiar with full cycle recruiting?
10. How do you develop relationships with line managers?
11. Have you ever developed a staffing plan?
12. Tell me about your internal posting process.
13. If you were to fulfil diversity initiatives at you company tell me about staffing efforts that you would undertake?
14. Are you familiar with e-recruiting? Tell me about your success utilizing this method.

Compensation/Benefits Questions:
1. Provide me with an overview of employee benefit enrollment process at your previous organization. What duties were you responsible for within this process?
2. How did/would you communicate benefit updates to employees?
3. Tell me about a time when you had to present a benefit program to a group of employees to win their buy-in. What was the outcome?
4. What was a compensation philosophy at your previous organization?
5. Describe your previous organization’s salary administration process. In what ways was it effective? Ineffective?
6. What is your knowledge of/experience with variable compensation?

In today’s successful organizations information systems and technology have become indispensable in the way managers define and execute corporate strategy, manage valuable resources, and formulate their organization’s unique value proposition. The IST Portfolio equips IT-capable managers and consultants for a variety of functional areas including Finance, Marketing, Operations, Supply Chain, and Human Resources who are able to leverage IST resources for competitive advantage. The IST Portfolio also develops leaders for the MIS organization who conduct systems and technology planning and analysis, software project management, and technology-based support for business operations and processes.

Some of the typical job descriptions are:

• Consulting: Consultants work in teams with clients to design and implement a wide assortment of IT and system applications. Enterprise systems applications, customer relationship management tools, and e-business platforms are some of the projects consultants implement for clients. These positions demand an eclectic set of technical knowledge, cross-functional business understanding, and strong leadership and communications skills. Consultants typically become well versed with vendor-specific platforms and must work to integrate these systems with the client’s existing systems and the business strategy of the firm.
• Project Management: Project management requires coordination of various teams to achieve timely and economical development and procurement of new software solutions, and successful implementation of new systems in organizations. Strong leadership and communication skills, project management skills, an understanding of the functional areas of the business and the industry context for the system, and the ability to evaluate/justify new technologies are all important prerequisites.
• Business/Process Analyst: Initiating and implementing new systems applications requires an understanding of user requirements, the affected business processes in their industry contexts, and logical modeling of the proposed system. Since analysts bridge the gap between application users and developers, they need business and technical expertise, strong analytical modeling capabilities, and effective communication skills. Analysts apply cutting-edge modeling methodologies such as use case scenarios, UML, object-oriented analysis and modeling, and computer-aided systems engineering tools, along with other evaluative approaches from capital budgeting and managerial accounting, and strategic management.
• Line Management in Other Functional Area of Business: By combining IST expertise with knowledge of a functional area of business such as Finance, Marketing, or Operations, future senior managers will be able to recognize and apply new technology solutions to problems in their organization early in their careers. IT-capable product managers, financial analysts, supply chain analysts, and plant managers can become effective in the information economy by utilizing strong analytical skills, understanding technology evolution and adoption, and accurately estimating the costs, benefits and risks associated with new applications.

Skills Desired:

Individuals in the IST career path create strategic and technical solutions to enhance business processes. They recognize emerging technology trends, conceive and design new business applications, and support the development and installation of new technical solutions for business problems—transforming the competitive capabilities of the firm in the process. All managers and consultants in this area must develop strong leadership skills, communicate effectively, possess analytical problem solving skills, be able to build and lead cooperative teams and partnerships, and understand the organizational change process.

• Consultant skills include the ability to define and analyze business, technical and strategic problems. They should also be able to develop and install creative process and technology solutions, lead and work within teams, communicate effectively, perform financial analysis and capital budgeting, and interface with diverse functional areas.
• Project management skills include evaluation of new technology solutions, cost/risk estimation, management of the systems development life cycle, IT outsourcing, systems implementation, and effective project-related communication with senior management.
• Business process and systems analysis skills include modeling user requirements, process modeling, analytical skills, use of CASE tools, and enough of an understanding of programming to be able to do some of the work that others in a software development team actually do full time.
• Line managers in functional areas of business are able to leverage IST resources when they develop skills in the strategic use of IT, decision analysis, databases, systems development, applications integration, and technology architecture.