10 Networking Tips from Business Professional Andrea Nierenberg

In many business instances, getting a job is not entirely about what you know, but rather, who you know.

Real-life networking is an important skill for students to develop in helping one get a job, keep it, and get promoted, said Andrea Nierenberg, president of The Nierenberg Group and co-author of the definitive guide to "Networking for College Students and Recent Graduates". 

"Real networking can happen anywhere, anytime and can be learned from all the people you meet," she said. 

In an article found on pearsonlearningsolutions.com, Ms. Nierenberg explores 10 networking tips to help students in successful networking. 

1. Be prepared. 

Ms. Nierenberg states that opportunities for networking can happen anywhere and at anytime. In order for students to be ready for these interactions they must be "polished, poised and professional 24/7." 

2. Be confident. 

Things like eye contact, a strong handshake, and actually listening to another person will help students to create a unique presence. 

3. Have a prepared introduction. 

Ms. Nierenberg states that it is best to begin a conversation with a generic statement about oneself including things like major, pursued degree, and expected graduation date. However, keep this opening statement short and clear and have several different lines that you will be able to use in different settings. 

4. Have a goal to actually build a relationship in which you give before you get. 

Business professionals like to know the skills that students have to offer as an individual that could potentially benefit their company. As a student, let the business know that you have these skills and are willing to offer them to the company for the company's betterment. 

5. Show genuine interest in the people that you meet. 

Ms. Nierenberg suggests that students should ask personal questions about the professionals they meet inquiring about their own business experiences and any advice that they could give. 

6. Do your homework. 

It is wise for students to research the companies and people that work for them before actually meeting them, said Ms. Nierenberg. This is a good idea so that students have talking points and so that the professional knows that you care enough about the company to understand how they work. 

7. Always follow up — no matter what. 

When you do this, be sure to ask for the preferred method of follow-up communication as well. People have different preferences of communication and it is best to never assume. 

8. When at an event, be on-time and in character. 

Ms. Nierenberg said that students need to realize that at any type of professional event where the potential of networking is possible, they are on display from the minute they walk in the door. Therefore, they should be on their best behavior. This includes taking the initiative in meeting people, being genuinely interested in what they have to say, listening more than you speak and taking some notes. 

9. Always carry a business card. 

Students should create a card with their name, contact information and areas of interest so that others can easily contact you, Ms. Nierenberg said. She also added that it's a good idea to carry a piece of paper and pen so you can write down things that you need to follow up on, and remember important things that people told you. 

10. Send a "Thank You" note. 

Ms. Nierenberg suggests following up with people that you have just networked with by sending a note and thanking them for their time. This will help you stand-out and create a lasting impression. 

Allie Jeppson

Sound Baffles

Plans for the new Huntsman building are dedicated to benefiting students in a way that is conducive to their learning. In order to provide a state-of-the-art learning facility, the feature of sound baffles will be added to the structure of classrooms and lecture halls in the new building.

Sound baffles are tools of noise mitigation and will make it easier for students in the classroom to hear the instructor. A couple of different types of baffles will be included in the new classrooms. The first type of baffle will be placed at the front of the room where the ceiling and front wall meet. The baffle will join the ceiling and the front wall at a slanted angle allowing the teacher’s voice at the front of the room to be better carried throughout the entire class. The sound will echo up to the baffle and then be projected back to the students.

The other type of sound baffle to be included in classrooms will be located along the surrounding walls of the classrooms. These wall-type baffles are designed to deaden any noise outside of the classroom and enhance sound inside of the classroom. While the baffles in the layout below look fairly pronounced, they won’t be quite so noticeable in actual reality.
Sound baffles are just one of the ways that classroom design has gotten better over the years and as an institution, we are trying to take advantage of that by creating facilities for students in which they can become better learners.

Ken Snyder 

Apple vs. Samsung: Innovation vs. Plagiarism

Although I don’t own a smartphone or a tablet, I’ve been following the news on the ongoing lawsuit between Apple and Samsung religiously. If you’re like me, you should know that in the US, the patent infringement lawsuit rules in favor of Apple. 

I love Apple products and I am biased toward Apple. In fact, I’m typing this blog post on a MacBook Pro. This case, however, made me think about the negative message that Apple is sending to potential entrepreneurs.

As entrepreneurs, creativity, invention and innovation are essential to start businesses. Common sense tells you that creativity leads to invention and creativity plus invention equals innovation. Innovation, by my definition, simply means improving an existing entity for the betterment of society.

In my opinion, although creativity and innovation are not the same, they are similar in terms of the mutual relationship that they have with one another. Without innovation, there won’t be any room for creativity. Just imagine if mankind were not allowed to innovate. There wouldn’t be digital cameras as we see it today. We’d probably still live in caves and people would still drive steam trolleys instead of cars.

So where do we draw the line between plagiarism and innovation?

All I can say is that potential entrepreneurs might be afraid to innovate for fear of hurting their reputation as a result of the ugly battle between Apple and Samsung. Businesses should probably think twice about the future of innovation before they start suing each other for plagiarism.  

Until then, you can view some of Samsung's advertisements at the following link, which may or may not be an act of retaliation toward Apple (Apple fans be warned): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DateFKa5j_c


Nadiah Johari

Why I Wish I was a Huntsman Student: Excellent Professors

Let me start off by saying that I am a proud print journalism major in the journalism and communications department. I've greatly enjoyed my time as a student in this department and have grown to love the students and faculty members that I work with. 

That being said, in another life, with the experiences that I've had working for the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business, I think I would have really enjoyed being a Huntsman student and here is one reason why: because of the Huntsman School professors. 

Last week I had the opportunity to meet with a couple different professors as part of a work task that I needed to complete. I was able to sit down with Management Department Head, Dr. James Davis as well as Associate Professor, Dr. Tim Gardner to discuss some things. While in our meetings, the concern that these professors had for their students was so apparent that even an outsider like myself was able to see that these professors have the best interest of their students in mind. They are more than willing to go to great lengths to ensure their students' academic and future success.

Not only that, but many Huntsman professors that I've seen while working at the Huntsman School of Business or while at a business school event, work diligently to establish a relationship with their students. Many times I will see an interaction between a student and a teacher that I think is invaluable to the student's education. The fact that professors are so willing to freely build relationships with their students and talk with them, as if they were old friends to offer advice or mentor-ship, is something that students should greatly treasure because though relationships such as these are found in other colleges around campus,  it is not seen so often or to this great extent. 

Students of the Huntsman School of Business, take advantage of the willing and able professors that you have. I've seen first hand how willing they are to help you; They are there for YOU and want to help you succeed and this is one reason that I wish I was a Huntsman student. 

Allie Jeppson

Bus Rides and Parachutes Could Improve Presidential Politics

Editor’s note: Steve Eaton, who works for the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business, writes a column for the Deseret News. We thought that with the presidential debates going on, this satirical article, which ran before the first debate, might demonstrate how some innovative thinking could change the political process. It is used with permission from the Deseret News.

By Steve Eaton

We are getting to that point in the presidential elections where some of the foolishness is set aside and we can get down to the serious business of picking our next leader.

This is when we try to figure out who can best bring people together to work for the good of the country by pitting the two candidates, who are capable of raising and spending money the fastest, against each other. We ask them to get up on a stage to demonstrate their leadership abilities by having them argue with and criticize each other before a live audience of millions. The presidential debates are upon us.

Up until now, the election has focused on seeing which candidate could go the longest without saying something that could be lifted out of context and called a "gaffe." Now, instead, we'll be watching to see which candidate can go the longest in a debate without saying something that can be lifted out of context and called a "gaffe."

It's not that there hasn't been some serious campaigning. One of the candidates, and I won't say which one, has sent large, colorful, empty campaign buses around the country to help us decide who would be the best guardian of our money. I'm not naming names because I don't want the other guy to feel bad because he doesn't have as many empty buses available to him. But he shouldn't feel at a disadvantage. He has this cool plane with a bump on it that he borrowed from Harrison Ford and a fleet of bullet-proof cars.

The bottom line is that both of these candidates want to connect with the average voters who struggle to make ends meet and let them know that they will care about them deeply until the election. And while holding campaign rallies where we are allowed to scream our praise at them and applaud enthusiastically is one way to do that, I have a few new ideas I'd like to throw their way.

Why not let some of us ride around in the buses? We had one stop in Logan recently and there wasn't even a surrogate on it, that I know about. If a crowd of hard-working Americans is willing to gather just to look upon a campaign bus and imagine a caring candidate inside, wouldn't it make sense to have a bunch of real people on the bus?

You could have 10 or 20 people at a time taking turns getting off the bus and getting praised enthusiastically while connecting with the other average voters. The more articulate and creative bus riders could get off the bus and shout promises at the crowd to make them feel loved. If the crowds got too big, you could send a couple of campaign Cadillacs around the country, too, and have contests to see who could drive two of them at the same time.

Or the other guy could take people on his airplane with him. We could convince him to do this by booting off the press and letting real people sit in the back. It would be a big party and if anyone tried to get too serious or started to ask questions, like the press always does, everyone could go downstairs and watch the candidate throw the offending people off his plane like Harrison Ford did in "Air Force One." We'd give those who had literally fallen out of favor with the candidate colorful parachutes with campaign slogans on them and the promise that someone would eventually find them and feel their pain.

But such talk is probably foolish at this point because the debates are what it is all about. And yet, while it may be disrespectful for me to suggest this, I think there are a few ways we could make them more interesting.

The use of a fire hose would change things quite a bit. What if all the impartial fact checkers the TV people employ were set up back stage and had the power to blast a candidate with a fire hose whenever he stretched the truth or misstated a fact? I'm not talking about a sustained blast that would force us to stop everything to go try and find the candidate, but just a short burst that would knock them off their feet.

Too extreme? How about arming each candidate with a bike horn? That way instead of having to patiently wait, sighing heavily, while the other candidate went on and on about you, you could presidentially honk your horn to drown him out. Then, sometime during the opening statements the networks could make the debate screen into a little box of honkers and we could watch regular network programming while we enjoyed the debates, too.

And now that the replacement refs are out of work, what if we brought them in and let them call penalties on the candidates and gave them the power to keep score or suddenly end the contest? A little humor wouldn't hurt things any. We could even test out the candidates by rolling a football across the stage and letting them each dive to see who was best at recovering fumbles. The refs could then rule against the winner and we could see how the candidates deal with an injustice. That might create some very entertaining "gaffes" and we'd get to see Mitt Romney's hair messed up.

Of course, I believe a combination of all three ideas would work best. I know, I know, I didn't build this campaign or our democracy. There are going to be some bumps in the road in an imperfect system. If they put me in charge, I'd probably just get fired by someone who likes to fire people and then I'd end up being dependent upon the government.

Instead, I'll just sit back and watch them argue. Oh, I'll have my own bike horn to keep me company, even though that's not my first choice. My wife has already warned me that — "especially during the debates!" — garden hoses are not allowed in the house.

Steve Eaton’s columns can be read here:

http://www.deseretnews.com/search/?q=steve+Eaton&type=Deseret+News#steveEaton

Lessons From Legend Steve Sabol

The late Steve Sabol, (October 2, 1942 – September 18, 2012) was one person young entrepreneurs not only know about from watching football their whole lives, but is also an outstanding business man to learn from. His entrepreneurial efforts helped revolutionize the sports broadcasting industry by co-founding NFL Films.

According to an article on entrepreneur.com there are three lessons from Mr. Sabol's life that can inspire others to start something great:

1. Know how to tell your story. 

Mr. Sabol was known for being an amazing storyteller and every entrepreneur has a story to tell. According to the website, “there are both stories of success and failure, but your story defines who you are, what you do and how you can help others. Telling your startup story in a compelling way can be the difference between someone choosing you over your competitor, so take the time to define your story and let the world know why you are great at what you do.”

2. Assemble a great team. 

“As a team, Sabol and his father meshed perfectly. Ed was seldom short of ideas but what he didn't think of, Steve did. And often, it was Steve who suggested the artistic touches that set NFL Films apart and helped the NFL grow in popularity,” the article said.

This example of teamwork should teach us the importance of understanding both our strengths and weaknesses, but also finding the people that can fill in your gaps.

3. Be willing to take risks. 

The article stated, “back in the 1960's, the concept of reverse angle replays, wiring coaches and players during games and setting highlights to music were unheard of. However, as Steve stated in an interview with the Associated Press, ‘Today, of course, those techniques are so common it's hard to imagine just how radical they once were. Believe me, it wasn't always easy getting people to accept them, but I think it was worth the effort.’”

Successful entrepreneurs are wired in a way that allows them to overcome their fears and take on risks that others are not. Part of that is filtering out negative feedback from people who don't understand what you are doing. If you have a vision, take a risk and see it through.

Learning vicariously can motivate our thoughts into actions. I hope we can take a lesson from Mr. Sabol today and, as entrepreneurs in embryo, change the world. 

Klydi Heywood

New Building Will Feature Many New Classrooms

The most important space in our new building is the space dedicated to classrooms. These classrooms will dramatically improve the learning environment for our students. There is more space dedicated to new classrooms than to any other function in the new building.

Our current working design has plans for 22 classrooms in the new building. That’s a huge increase in the number of classrooms on campus. These new classrooms will help ease the campus-wide classroom shortage. Some of the classrooms will be tiered classrooms and some will be flat classrooms. Some will be computer lab classrooms. All of the new classrooms will be classrooms equipped with new technology designed to enhance the learning experience. We have various sizes of classrooms, with some smaller classrooms with as few as 30 seats, and some larger classrooms with 80 seats. These new classrooms will be the dominant feature on the first, second, and third floors of Huntsman Hall. This is such as an important part of the new building that I’ve decided to write about them over the next few weeks. I want to discuss what they will offer our students and how we, as faculty will use them. 

Ken Snyder