5th Annual COB Networking Night

5th Annual College of Business Networking Night
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Oshkosh Convention Center

5-8 pm

UW Oshkosh College of Business Networking Night:
An event that connects more than 700 College of Business students to over 200 employers by creating relationships while students explore career options within their major and develop/enhance their professional networking skills.
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The College of Business Networking Night is quickly approaching!

This incredible opportunity to network with professionals is perfect whether you are looking for an internship, full-time position or just need more direction on what you are looking for in a career. Even if you are not currently seeking an internship or full-time position, this event is a great way to learn and practice professional networking skills.

Are you prepared?

With less than a month to go, now is a great time to start gathering your professional attire and creating your business cards. It is also a good time to start researching potential companies you would like to network with at the event. Below is a list of businesses that will be in attendance.

2010 Businesses in Attendance:
(as of 8/25/10)

Platinum Sponsor:
Northwestern Mutual Financial Network - The Holter Group

Alta Resources
Baker Tillly Virchow Krause
Bemis
C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc.
Cintas
Direct Supply
Enterprise Rent-A-Car
Federated Insurance
Frito Lay
Great Northern Corp.
JJ Keller & Associates
Miles Kimball
Northwestern Mutual Financial Network - The Blevons Group
Nsight
Oshkosh Corporation
Primerica Financial Services
Prudential
Schenck SC
SECURA Insurance
Sherwin-Williams
Society Insurance
Target
The Knight Group
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans
US Bank
Vogel Consulting
Wells Fargo Financial
Wipfli LLC

Watch for upcoming emails with event details.

For more information, schedule of events and event preparation, click here.

Tocqueville Asset Management

Brian Krieger
BBA: Accounting

Tocqueville Asset Management focuses on contrarian value investing. The firm has about $8 billion under management. Tocqueville has six funds as well as many private accounts. I spend most of my time working with the Tocqueville Gold Fund.

The internship has a lot of freedom. The theme is you get what you put into it. I basically have the freedom to choose my own path. I told my superior I was interested in the precious metals industry and I was immediately introduced to the senior analyst of the Tocqueville Gold Fund. I have been working under him ever since. We do have somewhat of a “base” program, but the majority of my time is spent doing work that I have direct influence on.

Typically, I am given (or I choose) a company to look at. I start by trying to understand the industry if I am not familiar with it. Then I start looking at the company’s annual report and quarterly filings and building a financial model. For example, I am looking at platinum mining companies right now, so I started by learning the platinum and palladium markets (supply, demand, industrial uses, etc). After I understood the platinum industry, I started researching specific companies within it.

Having a background in accounting has helped me immensely. Knowing how the financial statements flow together is vital to my position since we often recreate them and project out into the future.

I have learned a lot in the first month of my internship. Some of the most valuable knowledge I gain is from our internal meetings. I am able to absorb how very intelligent individuals think about the market. It’s something that you will never learn from a textbook.

We (there are 3 other interns) are also allowed to sit in, with some limitations, meetings with CEOs, CFOs, industry analysts, etc. It is a great experience. I also have access to a variety of information sources that I would never have been exposed to if I was not working here.

The other analysts are always willing to help the interns out. They take time out of their day to show us what they are working on and give us a lot of valuable information.

My main challenge was encountered the first week of the internship. I had no idea what to expect. To my (pleasant) surprise, the work environment is very easy going and promotes self discipline. Spending all day surrounded by individuals on a whole different intellectual level as yourself creates motivation to put in extra time and effort to learn as much as I can while I’m here.

I didn’t really know what to do at first. My expectations were that I would show up and they would just tell me what to do. It took me a few days to realize I was going to have to put myself out there to get the most out of this experience. The challenge was having the courage talk to my superiors to open up new opportunities. In hindsight, I should have never hesitated since the culture here eliminates the typical company hierarchy. Overall, its a great experience being able to work alongside so many intelligent people.

Target

Alexandra Bourke
BBA: Human Resources

Target is a company that has a large focus on leadership development, along with being the best company ever. When many students think of an internship, they think of filing paper, refilling coffee, and making copies. The internship program at Target could not be farther from that. I have spent the first half of my ten-week internship learning and working in various areas of the store, and the second half is spent on a special project that focuses on improving the store specifically and possibly even improving Target’s fast, fun, and friendly culture.

The biggest challenge I faced transitioning from a college student to an executive intern was definitely the fact that I had no Target or retail experience in the past. However, as the internship progressed, I realized it was not a challenge at all. Tasks can be learned, it is energy, and passion that can’t be. In my position, I am a leader in the store. I have leadership experience daily in the forms of leader on duty, helping team members, and assisting guests in various areas of the store. In five short weeks I have gained leadership beyond what I imagined, and a love for business. In Target, the fast, fun, and friendly attitude is something that you see on all levels of our team. The team members are willing to lend a helping hand or a listening ear to anyone that needs it. I am honored to be a part of this team!

Kiersten Beecroft
Finance & Human Resources Management

I am currently a Financial Planning Intern with Thome Benefit Solutions, a financial services provider that offers financial strategies and products to clients, including insurance, investments and retirement planning services. As an intern working alongside principal financial professional and president of Thome Benefit Solutions, Kate Thome, I have the opportunity to experience many of the different aspects and perform many of the responsibilities involved in operating a financial services business.

I am responsible for completing a variety of different tasks that are different every time I come to work. That’s one aspect of being an intern at Thome Benefit Solutions that I really enjoy; each day I do something different and learn something new, which keeps the experience interesting and fun. My responsibilities so far include preparation of client presentations and account documents, client file organization and maintenance, and communication with various clients, producers, and vendors. I have recently started working on an e-newsletter project that will be my responsibility to oversee the process of getting it distributed to Kate’s clients.

My experience has been very positive and rewarding in providing me with new knowledge, hands-on experience, and personal growth. Among other things, it has helped me improve my communication skills and gain confidence in my ability to apply some of the knowledge I've learned in my College of Business courses to actual business scenarios.

It has also helped me realize how operating a business involves many different aspects and requires much more learning in addition to what I have already gained from classroom instruction. I believe this internship experience will continue to provide me with valuable knowledge and help me further develop skills that will be very beneficial to a career in finance.

The biggest challenge I have faced so far is remaining organized and keeping on task. I will be given 3-4 projects at a time, and then other additional things will come up, so it is important to prioritize in order to get everything done in a timely manner.

Northwestern Mutual Financial Network - The Holter Group

Jeffrey Magedanz

BBA: Marketing

Northwestern Mutual Financial Network is a Mutual Insurance company based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The company has been in existence since 1857 and provides several financial services, including life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability insurance, annuity services, mutual funds, and employee benefit services. The company is the largest individual life insurance provider in the country, and has maintained the highest ratings possible for insurance financial strength from each of the 4 major rating agencies. Among these rating agencies, A.M. Best, Standard and Poor’s, Moody’s, and Fitch Ratings all awarded Northwestern Mutual with the highest possible rating level. Northwestern Mutual IS the standard that other insurance companies strive to achieve.

Northwestern Mutual has been financially strong enough that they have been able to pay out a dividend to their policy owners every year and have never had to take a government bailout to ensure their stability. The company was largely un-phased by the financial downturn of 2008, and was still able to provide its policyholders with an increased divided from 2007 to 2008. While many companies have been laying off employees or making wage reductions in the wake of the financial recession, Northwestern Mutual increased their hiring rates of new Financial Representatives in 2009-2010 by planning on adding nearly 3,000 new reps nation-wide, understanding that in order to grow their business, the financial representative is the one who must participate on the front lines. The company is the strongest in its industry and intends to remain that way with a commitment to growth, and first rate training of new employees to ensure a confident and versatile sales force.

As a financial representative with Northwestern Mutual it is my job to help my clients achieve financial security in life. Financial security means different things to different people at different times in their lives, generally it addresses such issues as dying too young, becoming sick or injured where you are unable to earn a paycheck, and addressing certain financial planning ideas for the future such as retirement and estate planning. As a financial representative I act as a conduit between my clients and the different products and services that Northwestern Mutual has to offer, I create individual accounts and help to service them as needed throughout the length of their contracts.

I have learned a lot about the products and services offered through the Financial Services industry, as well as the importance of believing in the products that you are selling. I have had the opportunity to go on meetings with several full time representatives and hear their different styles of selling, which have helped me to develop my own language when meeting with potential clients. I have also learned how to handle objections and rejection in general, there are many days where I will make 40 phone calls and only set meetings with 2 or 3 prospects, and it can sometimes be difficult and frustrating to deal with. This internship has already done a great job of teaching me to manage my time effectively, and is really giving me a crash course in how to run my own business.

Wenger Roofing and Sheet Metal

Benjamin Richardson
BBA – Economics
Graduating: December 2010

Wenger Roofing & Sheet Metal is in the market of both commercial and residential roofs, flat roofs, sheet metal and siding. Wenger is a growing family business with a welcoming atmosphere. Unlike much of their competition, they are professional in all aspects of the business from start to finish. Each client is treated with respect regardless of their needs even when it is evident that Wenger will not be the lowest bid for a job, the importance of giving a potential client the courtesy they deserve shines through. This has paid off since Wenger has received clients based on the treatment they received in the past. They also repair their competitor’s roofs when things go wrong; even though Wenger did not have the winning bid originally, they benefit from the trust they have created and will maintain. The way Wenger treats its customers has led to success through the tough economic times we are currently facing. While competition struggles, Wenger is on schedule to increase the jobs they complete this year in comparison to last year. The increasing business has caused Jake Wenger, my supervisor and Vice President, to look for ways to decrease the time between bids and costs associated with bidding turnover. Jake, a UW-Oshkosh graduate, had been looking for a way to pay it forward as an alumnus. He made room in the business for an intern to create data mining resources for Wenger.

This is a project based internship, the breadth of which is creating a working database Wenger can use to structure around the core of their business’ prospective jobs, job in progress, completed jobs and the costs/revenue, forms/reports and tasks associated with each. Other assignments include creating excel spreadsheets for financial management, researching prospective software packages, helping to define various internal processes and researching potential new markets.

Up to this point I have created a few financial spreadsheets and finished the first phase of the database project with customized forms and reports specific to Wenger’s needs. It was an exciting moment when I received an email from Jake officially informing his staff about implementing my work into the company. I am currently researching a software package called GoldMine, if implemented this program would be used to organize and streamline contact between Wenger and its clients.

My internship with Wenger is a unique experience. I work alongside Jake as he calls the shots and explains his decisions. Jake has taken me to job sites and let me shadow him providing a great chance to watch and learn as he handles the everyday obstacles of business such as: employee issues, time constraints and handling the ups and downs of enterprise. All of this has given me a real world view of what I can expect to see in my post graduation employment. The learning experiences I’ve received from watching and listening to an entrepreneur run business is likely unmatched by many other interns.
In the next few weeks I will be working to finish up the second and third phases of the database and it is important this project be completed before my internship is over. The database must be fully functional to replace some of the paperwork currently used, to decrease costs and increase the amount of bids Wenger can output daily. I will also be creating templates for streamlining and automating the job bidding processes.

So far this internship has challenged me to learn on the go and use my knowledge to help garner Wenger’s future potential. It feels as though I have gained more than I have been able to give and I am thankful to both Jake and Wenger Roofing & Sheet Metal for that. I expect the second half of my internship to be demanding, but I am looking forward to the experiences and knowledge I will acquire.

The UW Oshkosh SHRM Trip to New Orleans in Review

In the past two days, I have been reflecting on the trip. I have done this knowing that I really needed to post one final blog entry. At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I feel a little like Anthony Michael Hall’s character in The Breakfast Club. I am having difficulty putting my feelings about this trip into words. To some this trip might seem like a cheap way for students to go to a cool place over spring break. However, just like that Saturday morning detention in The Breakfast Club was much more than detention, this trip was much more than a trip. I can honestly say that this has been the most fulfilling experience I have had as an educator.

Why was this trip so fulfilling? Why was it so great? This trip was planned and made possible by students. The funding for the trip came from a grant from Target (The UW Oshkosh SHRM executive board applied for and received the grant funding.), the College of Business, and the student participants themselves. While I admit that these students all had the opportunity to experience New Orleans, they all spent a majority of their spring break getting up early to paint, mix cement by hand, dig holes, and install baseboards. Further, each student lived for a week in close quarters with four other people who the student likely did not know well prior to the trip.

This information will help you to understand, why I was so extremely proud when on their last day of service these students agreed to stay late on the Habitat site to insure that two cement pads that needed to be poured were finished. If you have ever mixed cement by hand, you will understand why leaving would have been a very attractive option. Our site leader gave our team the option to leave. Without hesitation, the students said they did not want to leave without finishing the job.

I also think this trip was great because it was a tremendous learning opportunity. I believe all of the participants including me learned a little more about each other, teamwork, New Orleans, and community service. The students showed a thirst for knowledge. They wanted to understand each other better. They wanted to learn how to work together to properly install baseboards. They wanted to venture into the 9th Ward to see what progress had been made toward reconstruction. They wanted to understand how human resources practices had been impacted at companies such as Emeril’s. They wanted to know why our 25-year-old site leader was working for Habitat. This curiosity and willingness to learn is inspiring to observe.

Finally, this trip reminded me that our student body consists of some really great people. I know some parents have been reading this blog, and I hope that they have continued to monitor it. It has been my pleasure to work with your sons and daughters (some for the week, others for a year or more). You should be very proud.

In closing, I would like to thank Target and the College of Business for helping to make this trip possible! We could not have done this without you!