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The University of Missouri-St. Louis held its International Business Career Conference in the J.C. Penny building last Friday, Feb. 27. The IBCC was a regional conference and schools such as University of Missouri St. Louis, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, St. Louis University, Washington University, Lindenwood University, Fontbonne University, Missouri State College, Arkansas State College, Westminster College, Greenville College, Principia College and Webster University were in attendance.
The conference consisted of Stephen J. Burrows, former Chief Executive Officer and President of Anheuser-Busch International Asia Pacific Operations, Michael Hackett, President of Hackett Security as well as a panel board of speakers from different companies that incorporate international business in their companies.
Although this was the first International Business Career Conference, it will most definitely not be the last. The IBCC will hopefully become an annual event according to Kim Kessler, International Business Institute and Betty Vining, faculty advisor for International Business Honor Society (IBHS) and International Business Club (ICB).The IBCC was organized by a committee of students from the newly formed IBHS and met for four months to compose the conference.
There were 260 registered students and 150 who came to hear Burrows give his personal take on the global economy and the future of international business.
Burrows was employed with Anheuser-Busch for 30 years and served as a member of the strategy committee for the parent company of their Asia-Pacific operations. He is a native of Albany, New York and received his Master of Business Administration form Lindenwood College in St. Charles. Burrows gave advice on how to prepare for finding future jobs as international students, saying, "nineteen percent of all workers will look for a job this year. Market yourself, hunt for companies and set realistic goals. Change is what companies need right now; new blood will make that change"
Students and faculty attending the conference were given raffle tickets for prizes such as $25 gift certificates to The Cheesecake Factory, USB thumb drives and autographed hockey pucks.
During a 15 minute break people were allowed to network with some of the sponsors supporting the conference. State Farm, Siemens PLM Software, Scottrade, College of Business-Alumni Association, College of Business-Exchange Program, Hostelling International, Johnny Mac, Boeing, Novus, 90.7 KWMU, AAA, Anheuser Busch, Arrivage Cookies by Lexi, Express Scripts, Fidelity National Global Solutions, NNR Global Logistics and the International Business Exchange all sponsored the I.B.C.
A panel of four executives also gave their opinions on how international students can improve and prepare their futures.
Ross Bushnell, Senior VP of sales and marketing at Silgan Plastics Corporation and former Monsanto employee, gave suggestions such as: research certain requirements, do your homework about the company you want to work for and use your time as a learning experience.
Terrence Elmendorf, Director of International Contacts for Boeing suggested students value their internships, interact with others and use volunteering to create a network channel to get involved.
"Think about it as [if you are] always in an interview and think about how people are always watching," Elmendorf said.
Susanne Evens, President of AAA Translation, suggested that international students would make positive impacts with bilingual references, staying open-minded and getting involved in a campus organization.
Michael J. Costello, Assistant Teaching Professor at UM-St. Louis, felt that good flexibility and exposure to companies is key for a student studying international business.
Students did get difficult questions answered; often the panel members gave an example of what they thought might be the best way to handle a particular situation.
Students who want to impress, according to Burrow, should be clear and be honest in interviews. Some companies, such as Scottrade, according to Evens, like to hire future employees that come with some bilingual experience, prefering students who speak Chinese, Cantonese or Spanish.
Many schools offer international business scholarships, including UM-St. Louis and Webster University.
Companies such as Scottrade and Boeing are just a few that offer internships to students waiting to succeed in tomorrow's workplace.
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