Jon M. Huntsman School of Business

This spring marks the second year of my enrollment in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business. Although I risk sounding cliché, time has gone by very quickly. The highlight of my experience thus far is acceptance into the Huntsman Scholar Program.

The Huntsman Scholar Program is known as Utah State University's "...premier academic and leadership opportunity for students interested in Business and Global Affairs." Applicants to this program are expected to obtain academic excellence in their field, show strong leadership and communication skills, and serve the local community and global world. Acceptance to the program is based off an application and eight hour interview process. 

The rewards of being a member in this program are infinite. Not only are lifelong friendships built, but networking opportunities are created. In the Scholar Semester (typically an individual's junior year), select members of the Huntsman Scholars program are part of a unique 6-4-6 course conducted on the Utah State Campus and abroad in Europe. Starting the semester off with six weeks on campus, scholars prepare to travel Europe by learning languages, international economic policies, and current events in politics and business. This is followed by three weeks of traveling in Europe visiting sites such as NATO and Nestle chocolate factory to learn how business is conducted internationally. The semester ends with the students returning to Utah State's main campus in Logan, Utah for six weeks. During these six weeks, scholars analyze and discuss the vital role of international business and how their travels support their ideas.

While I have yet to participate in this Scholar Semester, I have reaped the benefits of being a candidate in the Huntsman Scholar program. Through this program, I have come to love the field of business. I can say that before participating in this program, I did not particularly care for the field of business. Yet, through my weekly meetings, academic discussions, and contacts in the Huntsman Scholar Program, I have found the humanistic side of business--the side that can truly make a difference in people's lives. The Huntsman Scholar Program has changed the way I look at and study for my business classes. It has also changed my attitude about international business and has helped me to set goals to study and work abroad in the field of business.

Overall, my Huntsman School of Business experience would have been incomplete if it were not for the Huntsman Scholar Program. The friendships, networking opportunities, academic rigor, leadership skills, service requirements, and international experience that result from the program continue to shape me into a better business person.  

If you would like to learn more please visit the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business or the Huntsman Scholar Program websites.

How can a blog be used to professionally present yourself in a job interview?

In 2007, Sarah E Needleman authored an article for the Wall Street Journal (Eastern Edition) discussing the importance of creating and maintaining a blog. In her article she states,

Ryan Loken, a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. recruitment manager, says he spends one to two hours a week searching through blogs for new talent or additional information about the candidates he has interviewed. "Blogs are a tool in the tool kit," he says. Since he joined the Bentonville, Ark., retail giant three years ago, Mr. Logen estimates that Web journals have helped him fill 125 corporate jobs. Most of the recruits were referred to him by bloggers and blog contributors, and some were the writers themselves.

In a recent interview, Alex Halavais, assistant professor of communications and graduate director of informatics, at the State University of New York-Buffalo, discussed how blogging serves as a focal point in creating a personal brand. Halavis explained,

Having a blog is almost-like building a brand for yourself, so it's largely meant for that tacit process of having people scout you. If you have a medium readership of 1,000 or so people who read your blog daily, those are 1,000 more people who might think of you when a job opens up.

If the blog is maintained correctly, it will contain entries on various personal and professional subjects. These entries can show expertise in a field of study or show the well-rounded individual your close acquaintances know you to be. Blog entries are samples of your writing skills--a trait which always lands at the top of the list of  characteristics desired by companies.

Blogging may give potential hires the human-edge missing from the pages of a resume. A personal blog brings an individual to life outside of their qualifications and opens a door for potential employers to understand how a hire may work within a company.

Lastly, maintaining a person blog will help control an individual's online identity. Debbie Weil, author of "The Corporate Blogging Book", explains,

Everybody has an online identity whether they know it or not, and a blog is the single best way to control it. You're going to be Googled. No one hires anyone or buys anything these days without going online first and doing research.

Creating and maintaining a personal blog will help develop a person's online identity and personal brand. It will show potential employers expertise in a given field or how well-rounded an applicant is. It creates a portrait to compliment the paper resume, helping employers find the application that stands out in the pile of paperwork waiting to be processed. To be sure, blogging is an asset to any serious professional in these modern times.


For more information please visit:

Blogging Up 
How Blogging Can Help You Get a New Job
Memo to Students: Writing Skills Matter

What can collaboration technology do for a business?

Bill Gates once stated, “Information technology and business are becoming inextricably interwoven. I don't think anybody can talk meaningfully about one without the talking about the other.” This statement has proven to be true many times throughout the past decade as the field of information technology (IT) continues to expand. One growing branch of the IT field is collaboration technology. Components of collaboration technology include the following: GoogleDocs, wikis, Facebook, Twitter, text messaging, instant messaging, LinkedIn, Google Wave, and more.

Collaboration technology has been proven to support “knowledge workers”, jumpstarts innovation, and improve profits (see Using Technology to Improve Workforce Collaboration). However, collaboration technology will succeed only if business leaders“…think first about behavioral and structural factors, not social media and other IT communication tools.” (The Technology—Collaboration Disconnect).

The effortlessness of worldwide communication through collaboration technology is astounding. However, in a business setting, “This ease of collaborating online is rarely experienced...Of those companies that do deploy collaboration programs, 75% consider them fair at best.” According to the staff of the Corporate Executive Board at Bloomberg’s Businessweek Magazine, businesses often mistakenly decide to think about the potential of technology instead of the “behavioral and structural factors”.

 

Instead, successful companies begin by determining the capabilities “knowledge workers” require, not what the technology can provide. Businessweek provides four questions to determine the collaboration needed to beef up productivity. The four areas include innovation, cost, execution, and talent. After these questions have been answered, only then can collaboration technology be utilized to increase innovation and profits while supporting the needs of “knowledge workers”. 

For more information please see:

The Technology-Collaboration Disconnect

Using technology to improve workforce collaboration