OwenBloggers: Jared - MBA 2009

What's that countdown thing and what's OwenBloggers 2.0?

Some of you have written in ask why, suddenly, is OwenBloggers trying to freak people out with an ominous countdown on the front page? To mollify the questions, we thought we would give you a hint:

No, it's not the time until the first, first year cracks from the pressures of interviewing for internships. No, its not counting down until the weekend (although it might as well be). Obviously, something is going on here at OwenBloggers and we're really excited about it.

Check back tomorrow morning (Friday, February 1st) and we promise we'll reveal everything.

Technorati Tags: ad campaign, OwenBloggers, Vanderbilt University

A Reality Show Spin Inside the World of Brand Management

It's not surprising that one of the central questions most interviewers ask aspiring interns is "Why do you really want this job?" Of course we want the internship, but how well do we really know the answer to that question?

For instance, in the course of exploring brand management internships, I've noticed that brand managers have to be more than great marketers, but also great navigators of organizational obstacle courses. Take, for example, this new site I found: http://www.adamandtyler.com/

Emceed by Adam and Tyler, two brand managers working on a launch for Philadelphia Cream Cheese, the on-going series of short YouTube marketing/reality tv/viral video clips reveal what it's really going to be like to be a corporate brand managers. The story is more about how ideas are generated and implemented in complex corporate structures than the glitz and the glamour of the Brand Management lifestyle.

Then again, that's why I like it.

Interviewing for internships can be a roller-coaster ride of emotions. One day you're riding high on landing that great second interview, the next you've been dinged for the position in favor of someone else. The important thing is that we keep that question in mind: "Why do you really want this job?

More so than your talents, your background or even how well you can STAR the heck out every question that comes your way - having an answer to that one question is probably going to be the real determining factor in wether or not you get it.

Props to Jackie at Church of the Customer for brining this to the forefront.

Technorati Tags: ad campaign, brand managers, church of the customer, adam and tyler

One more for the strategy discussion, professor.

First off, I have to say that seeing Professor Scudder decked out in the the signature Jobs' black mock turtleneck yesterday to make a point about Apple's market strategy was yet another great Owen MBA moment.

Secondly, to add onto the discussion, I found this intriguing trailer for a new movie called MacHeads:

Macheads - the movie (trailer)
Uploaded by brunogarattoni

Talk about the Apple "Halo Effect!"

Perhaps even more interesting is the topics it brings up relative to the possible threats to the core Apple image and community-associated strategies. What do you think; Time to re-asses the cult of mac or is it still a solid strategy?

Technorati Tags: Apple, Cult of Mac, Gary Scudder, Owen Graduate School of Management, MacHeads, Strategy

The MBA Internship Search Paradox

Palms sweating and nerves racked, this time of year 1st year MBA students are frozen in place, hovering in a anxiety-stricken state of uncertainty. And that's just before you hit the submit button.

It goes without saying that one of the most important parts of being an MBA student is finding the perfect internship. As a school climbing the rankings, Owen does all it can to help students get the right kind of exposure. However, the team here at Owen Career Management Center (CMC) seldom gets the kind of recognition that it should.

As rising stars in the career marketplace, Owen MBA, MAcc and MSF students have to work a little harder than most. In fact, some top tier employers are just now getting a glimpse of the kind of authenticity, drive and innovation Owen students bring to their respective positions.

What this means for Owen students is that the job hunt is more than just walking in the door of the CMC and expecting a job to be waiting. It means investigating multiple opportunities and dispelling the stereotype of the entitled business student.

In very real terms, the CMC is the living embodiment of how Owen works; a team of the best professionals in the business, succeeding when students decide to step up to the challenge. The only limiting factor to your job search is how much you want it.

Technorati Tags: Career Management Center, careers, MBA, MBA Internship, OCNS, Owen, Owen Graduate School of Management, Vanderbilt, Vanderbilt University

Catch the Owen Town Hall live on the OwenBloggers Twitter!

http://www.twitter.com/owenbloggers

Technorati Tags: Jim Bradford, mba twitter, Owen, Owen Graduate School of Management, OwenBloggers, Town Hall, twitter

SBUX vs. McD's - Let the battle of the baristas begin!

Anyone that's seen me around Owen knows that I don't go to Starbucks. Ok, maybe not ALL Starbucks but definitely not the one across the street.

Here's the thing: in addition to seriously disliking their coffee, I find Starbucks to be worth more as a marketing case study than I am willing to pay for a visit there. For instance, I think the mere aura surrounding Starbucks makes people do stupid things...even beyond paying $4.29 for a beverage that normally costs $1.29.

Take McDonald's for example.

Apparently still on a high from their 2006 debut of premium coffee, McDonald's is ready to take Starbucks head-on by installing full coffee and cappuccino bars in their nearly 14,000 stores. In addition to offering their signature premium coffee blend, the new McCafe will include all of the cool drinks that American's have come to expect from Starbucks including lattes, cappuccinos and double whipped, non-fat, double tall, half-calf mocha-chinos. Ok, maybe I made that last one up...I hope.

FastCompany outlines the challenges with this move, nicely.

Anyone that has been on the "other side of the counter" in food establishments knows the complications associated with adding cappuccino makers. In addition to slowing things down, they require an huge amount of maintenance and ultimately distract employees and the company away from the things they actually do well.

In Dean Scudder's Strategic Management course, we talked a lot this week about understanding industries and the competitive role rivals play in strategic positiong. In this case, McDonald's is trying to achieve the same strategic peak as Starbucks in specialty coffee. The question is will they be able to harness their ingrained process, which has proven to work better with a constricted menu, to compete with Starbucks?

Either way it will be interesting to see how things play out. For now, I think I'll take the easy road and just bring in coffee from home.

Technorati Tags: coffee, Gary Scudder, McDonald's, Owen Graduate School of Management, starbucks, Strategic Management, strategy, Vanderbilt University

Only In Nashville: Truck-load of rodeo bulls recovered after hiest.

In any normal circumstance, the news in Nashville is pretty cut and dry. Apparently, today defied that normality.

Last night someone stole a truck-load of rodeo bulls outside the municipal arena downtown Nashville. The thief hijacked the truck, which was apparently being loaded at the time, and made off with 12 bulls slated for the Professional Bullriding Championship and valued at over $100,000 each.

The truck was later recovered on the interstate with all of the bulls intact.

See the full story here - Tennessean: Truckload of rodeo bulls stolen in downtown Nashville.

Reason #118 why I love Owen.

Technorati Tags: bullriding, Bulls, Nashville, Nashville Municipal Auditorium, Owen

Camping...Owen Style

Among the things that make Owen unique are the extra steps the Career Management Center takes to get students ready for interviews. In marketing, one of those extra steps is Marketing Camp, a two-day blitz of marketing expertise and speakers culminating in mock interviews conducted by Owen alumni.

Though we don't really sing songs or do arts and crafts at Marketing Camp, a couple of us couldn't resist the urge to make S'Mores with the CMC's very own John Hamilton.

Technorati Tags: Career Management Center, John Hamilton, Owen Graduate School of Management, Vanderbilt

This Year, Things Are Going To Change

"Resolutions, baby they come and go
Will I do any of these things?
The answers probably no"
~ Jamie Cullum

The new year brings with it fresh clarity about so many things but more than anything else, its a chance to take stock of the opportunities you have in front of you. Even though my break is being cut short by the CMC's Marketing Camp, I still think its exciting to be on the cusp of a new MOD as well as a new year.

Most people are taking the time to make resolutions that as my favorite jazz singer, Jamie Cullum points out, that they will never keep. I say that instead of making several resolutions, people should just make one. In fact, don't even make it specific like "loose weight" or "spend more time studying."

The only resolutions that last, I have found, are the ones you make with yourself to make better decisions. For instance, for the past several years I have had the following resolutions:

• Subtract the negative things from my life
• Feed my personal brand
• Make good things happen one more time

Even though Sam seems to think that my resolutions " sound like a bad beer campaign launched on a late night info-mercial starring Alf and the guy that played Joey on that show 'Blossom'" the scary thing is that these kinds of resolutions work.

Each of these resolutions represents a small yearly attempt at me trying to find a benchmark to improve my own situation. In applying to, choosing and ultimately surviving business school, the situations in which you must make those kinds of decisions become more complex. No longer are the choices black or white but now the "right" decision hinges on two words "it depends."

Despite the complexity, I have a feeling that 2008 is going to be a great year for all of us. I know this because if media like blogs, podcasts and social networking sites can impact anything, its the ability to spread ideas and generate discussion.

Keep listening, keep reading and keep asking questions. If all else fails, start blogging and see what happens.

Technorati Tags: Jamie Cullum, Owen Graduate School of Management, OwenBloggers, resolutions, surviving business school