Life After B School

By Anne Henseler Petschel

I've recently been in touch with Professor Rothausen-Vange because I've asked her to be a reference for my application to the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. In talking with Dr. R., I've heard some great things about the new first-year class, which has lead me to reflect a little bit on how much things have changed for me since I started the program.

Now that I'm working and happily married, I've found that there is this extra thing called "free time." I've been using my new-found free time to re-connect with the friends I've neglected for the last two years. On the other hand, now that I'm used to the freedom, I seem to be regressing back to first year and desperately looking for things intended to give me a crazy schedule again. Go figure!

After a nice long summer break, wedding and honeymoon, I started working at General Mills as an associate channel manager in August. I got my job through one of my career mentors who was introduced to me through family. However, I would like to point out that I got my internship and first post-graduate offer of employment (at Miller Brewing Co.) by applying on their Web site – so it is possible to get a job without "knowing someone who knows someone"!

As an ACM I am in B2B marketing. It's similar but not identical to the role of a brand manager on a retail product. I support the sales force who sell General Mills retail products (things such as Pillsbury biscuit mixes, Yoplait yogurt and Cheerios) to other business such as bakeries, convenience stores and restaurants. The main difference between my position and a brand management position is that I do less with advertising and overall brand messaging and more with creating "solutions" that help our customers (who are not our end users). Day to day, my job is a lot of project management. I develop marketing strategies and then am the point person on a cross-functional team that executes those strategies. I develop promotions, marketing materials and new products and packaging that help solve problems facing our customers. In addition, I am responsible for annual plans, forecasting and managing a budget.

One of the things I learned about myself prior to going back to school and really developed during my UST MBA experience is what I didn't want to do and the kind of culture I didn't want to work in. I honestly think that is more valuable than knowing what you are looking for, for a few reasons.

First, knowing what you don't want to do helps you to not end up in a job you will ultimately hate while waiting for that perfect job to come along. Let's face it: the "perfect" job is most likely a few years off, so not hating what you do while getting to your perfect job makes life a lot easier! Second, it keeps your options open during your job search. If there is only one perfect job then there are dozens of non-perfect jobs, and understanding which of those you'll be happy doing makes for an easier job search. Knowing what you don't want to do also helps you to know what questions to ask, which key words to listen for and gives you an easy jumping-off point to start conversations in informational interviews. This self-reflection can be invaluable in determining whether you'll be a good fit for a certain job or specific culture.

Good luck to the first years as you begin an awesome experience. And second years, have fun this year-- you have the rest of your life to work!! (Although the paycheck is pretty nice!)

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