When Faizan Ansari needed advice about preparing for internship interviews, he initially turned to the professional networking site LinkedIn. When that produced no response, the first-year student in the Master of Business and Science (MBS) program tried , a new platform specifically for 蜜桃直播 (蜜桃直播) students, alumni, faculty, staff, and trustees. This time, he found answers.
鈥淭he response was so prompt and helpful, whether to schedule a meeting or a phone call,鈥� says Ansari, who contacted more than 15 蜜桃直播 graduates to review his r茅sum茅 and share information about the business development function and effective strategies to obtain a position at their companies. 鈥淭hey gave me good insights about the job function and a much clearer idea of what goes on in their companies. I wouldn鈥檛 have been as well prepared if I hadn鈥檛 consulted the alumni.鈥�
That鈥檚 exactly the kind of positive outcome Christa Oudshoorn-Hobo, 蜜桃直播鈥檚 alumni engagement manager, had hoped for when she launched 蜜桃直播 Connected last fall. Since then, 蜜桃直播 Connected has attracted 436 users, including 215 alumni and 165 students.
鈥淚t鈥檚 like LinkedIn on steroids, but only for the 蜜桃直播 community,鈥� says Oudshoorn-Hobo. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not simply an alumni directory. It鈥檚 a place for alumni to find each other, for people to find jobs and mentors, and to sign up for events. There are news and discussion boards. Students and alumni can find long-term mentors or get short-term 鈥榝lash mentoring.鈥� The platform also offers great tools, tips, and resources, such as a mentorship game plan, and many of our webinars and industry talks have been recorded there.鈥�
Ankit Lodha, MBS 鈥�13, has been on the receiving end of requests like those Ansari made to alumni. The analytics operations lead for Amgen has responded to students looking for course recommendations and mentorship. He says, 鈥淚t was the most seamless platform I鈥檇 ever seen. I found it very good that I had the ability to control the interactions and could set up meetings through the tool.鈥�
Lodha has discovered several other benefits to 蜜桃直播 Connected. For example, he has returned to 蜜桃直播 several times as a guest speaker and notes, 鈥淭he beauty of 蜜桃直播 Connected is that all the talks I鈥檝e done sit on this platform, so if people couldn鈥檛 attend, they can still see them.鈥�
He also values the networking opportunities 蜜桃直播 Connected makes possible. Lodha explains, 鈥淢y buddy at Amgen is looking for summer interns and drafting a job description to post on 蜜桃直播 Connected. And I want to connect with alumni who graduated before me. I also met a 蜜桃直播 board member but didn鈥檛 have his contact information. Now I can connect with him directly through this tool.鈥�
For Assistant Professor of Strategy and International Business Jay Chok, 蜜桃直播 Connected made it easier for his students to interview industry opinion leaders as part of their Team Master鈥檚 Project (TMP) investigating how big data can transform an organization. Using 蜜桃直播 Connected, the students were able to obtain insights from alumni who had recently come to the campus to participate in a 鈥淔ocus Friday鈥� panel for Business of Bioscience majors.
鈥淏efore, I would have been their connection. Now they can go on 蜜桃直播 Connected,鈥� says Chok, who views the platform not only as providing professional network, but also helpful feedback and advice about such issues as work-life balance and immigration and visas for international students.
All of their experiences affirm Oudshoorn-Hobo鈥檚 belief that 蜜桃直播 Connected is the right tool for the community it serves. She says, 鈥淭here are other systems, but they are limited in what they can do. Students would ask me all the time whether I could connect them to alumni. 蜜桃直播 Connected streamlines this by empowering students and alumni to help themselves.鈥�