“All good things must come to an end” — at first this is how I felt after I heard Alan Wilson, CEO and President of McCormick and Company tell Allison Murray “you’re hired.” Making it through six cases, four interviews, and a handful of all-nighters throughout The Associate competition I felt defeated to find out that I was not “hired.” In my opinion it’s not whether you win or lose, rather how you play the game. Looking back on the entire competition I feel that I still came out a winner. During the competition I managed to learn a great deal about myself and was able to hone my presentation skills, improve my leadership qualities and expand my personal network. I am certain that these will benefit my future career development. For this reason I feel that all good things don’t have to come to an end. The Associate competition provided me with an opportunity to gain exposure in the Greater Baltimore business community and I can leverage this to my advantage during my job search. Aside from the other candidates I don’t think there are many local graduates that can tell the story of the real-world experiences which were gained throughout the competition. This will serve as a competitive advantage in the upcoming weeks when I am going on interviews and speaking with potential employers. Although I haven’t aggressively searched the job market because I’ve focused a great deal of time and energy on the competition, I’d like to think I’ve established a solid network through my involvements in student organizations and from previous internships and jobs.
I feel that I have defined the word “associate” from my experiences during the competition. By definition, the word “associate” means: “to connect or bring into relation, to join as a companion, to unite or ally.” I’ve connected with my team members over the past couple of months and learned to rise to the occasion. Even though it was difficult at times, I tried my very best to overcome these challenges with the best of my ability.
So long for now — it’s time to start sending out resumes and reaching out to my contacts.
Dov Hoffman's Insights 