ABA hosts Deloitte

Developing your personal brand and networking are two very important things that one should do in the business world, representatives of Deloitte said. 

In front of a packed room of over 40 students, Scott Holt, a senior associate for Deloitte's financial advisory services division, and Ezekiel McMillan, a manager for the audit and enterprise risk services division, and a few other Deloitte representatives hosted a personal brand and networking session at the Smith School. 

After a brief personal branding exercise, the Deloitte representatives delved into what makes up one's personal brand. 

"If you don't define [your brand], others will," said McMillan. 

"All things go into your personal brand," said Holt. 

This idea was represented by the formula the representatives presented.  Your brand they said is the sum of your experience, personality, reputation and appearance. 

An important thing the representatives said is to be careful of what you put on the Internet because it is ultimately a reflection of your personal brand.  But one should not be afraid to use social media to your advantage while crafting your brand. 

"You should show people why you are a great person, why you are an asset to potential employers.  You should emphasize the good things," said McMillan. 

The next portion of the presentation moved towards networking.  As part of this portion of the presentation, students were instructed to prepare a quick elevator speech.  These are essentially short 20-30 second speeches designed to highlight your strengths and experience.  It was stressed by the representatives that what you've done is very important.

One thing that was keyed upon about networking was the importance in forming relationships.  You need to be a "people collector". 

"Informal relationships are just as important as formal relationships," Holt said. "Informal relationships allow you to be candid."  

"It's not just a one way street.  You need to bring something to the table," when it comes to networking, McMillan said.

In order to build your network as large as you can, "Don't take for granted the people around you," Holt said. 

"I came to meet people from the firm," said Josh Finkle, a Deloitte intern. "This serves as a good networking opportunity.  It also was informative for those not familiar with the recruiting process or Deloitte in general." 

Matt Chin, a sophomore accounting and IS major and the co-president of the Accounting and Business Association, helped to set up the event. 

"I thought it was helpful and engaging.  Sometimes firms we invite talk for the whole 50 minutes without really engaging the audience," Chin said.