Black MBA - Summer 2008 - (Page 68)

CAREER What’s in a Name What’s in a Name? Great Career Opportunities Await MBAs Willing to do a Little Research By Marianne Kunkel All companies go to great lengths to stand apart from their competition, but those with less obvioussounding names face a unique challenge – educating the public on what they do. DO YOU REMEMBER the first time you heard the word “Google”? What about “McDonald’s”? It may seem silly to think that, at one time, these world-famous company names were unfamiliar to you, but they were. Imagine, as a small child, being escorted by your parents on your first trip to McDonald’s. ‘Huh? What’s McDonald’s?’ you may have wondered. All companies go to great lengths to stand apart from their competition, but those with less obvious-sounding names face a unique challenge – educating the public on what they do. How important is the name that a company chooses? And how telling is a company’s name of its success? If companies like Starbucks, Nike or Apple are any indication, an obscure name does not necessarily hold a company back. For Benfield Inc., which specializes in reinsurance – that is, developing risk mitigation strategies for insurance and reinsurance companies, as well as government agencies, to help spread risk in the event of a catastrophe – its company name represents its positive reputation in its industry. Established in 1973 and headquartered in London, with 33 international and 17 U.S. locations, it was recently voted most innovative broker and best reinsurance broker by the global insurance magazine Reactions. “We like to say, ‘Reinsurance is insurance for insurance companies,’” says Ronald Maye, assistant vice president of human resources at Benfield, when asked to explain what Benfield does. The fact that the company has become well-recognized within its industry – it is the third largest reinsurance intermediary in the world – makes it easy for Maye and other members of Benfield’s recruiting group to appeal to job-seeking MBAs who may not initially be familiar with Benfield. NICE TO MEET YOU To boost awareness of Benfield and its career opportunities for MBAs, the company sends recruiters to universities and colleges several times a year to conduct information sessions. “Most of the colleges and universities we go to have risk management and/or insurance curriculum,” says Maye, “so they’re very aware of who we are because of the curriculum. Some of the colleges that we are starting to build a relationship with now have great skill sets and talent, but may not have risk management and insurance programs – we have to go in and introduce ourselves and brand ourselves.” Brand management, ever the buzzwords in corporate offices, is no doubt the key to a company with an obscure name becoming successful. Even if a customer may not know what to make of a company’s name, he or she might be struck by this company’s logo, slogan or – most importantly – its product. Job-seeking and graduating MBAs are equally susceptible to good brand management, says Maye. Benfield focuses not only on maintaining high visibility on colleges and university campuses – as well as at community events and career fairs – but on delivering a distinct, powerful message. “Once we tell our story and who we are and all of the opportunities to advance in our company,” says Maye, “people say, ‘Wow, I didn’t know about Benfield. I didn’t know about this reinsurance career opportunity.” Benfield reports that, on average, it hires anywhere from 40 to 50 candidates 68 BlackMBA • Summer 2008 • www.nbmbaa.org http://www.nbmbaa.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Black MBA - Summer 2008

Black MBA- Summer 2008 Contents Mailbag Up Front From the President & CEO Politics of Change Catalyst for Change: Results of our 2008 Political Poll Know Whose Shoulders You Stand On: The Legacy of H. Naylor Fitzhugh Howard University: Changing With the Times Straight Talk: CEO to CEO Creating Your Own Sandbox Dual Threats Avoiding the Faux Pa Invest in Your MBA Everything You Need to Know About...Estate Planning On Campus Plan Ahead The Big Show What's in a Name? On the Move Market Forecast Jeff Friday Keith Wyche Life Lessons On the Ground Real Biz A Golden Opportunity Entrepreneurial Institute Tech Tools Read for Success Stacey Tisdale Advertiser Index

Black MBA - Summer 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.