Twenty-five business professionals attended this year's Seminar as guest speakers or panelists, including a variety of College alumni. Jim Bradbeer '84, President of Lilly Pulitzer, gave a presentation on how he revitalized the iconic clothing brand. Following Bradbeer's presentation, students posed questions to a panel of speakers. Included in the panel was trustee Anne-Melissa Dowling '80, Senior Vice President of MassMutual. Dowling spoke about her experience as a member of Amherst's first co-ed class and instructed students on how to develop strategic thinking skills.
David Moore '78, chairman of Sonostar Ventures, LLC and president of the College alumni board, educated students about how business success can lead to philanthropic opportunity. Michael Loeb '77 spoke on a different panel about his experience in founding and developing the Synapse Group.
The week's events ended with a presentation by internationally renowned climber and explorer Bernard Voyer, who spoke on the importance of team motivation and leadership. Following his presentation, PBG hosted its second annual Career Explorations Fair. Among the companies represented were Lehman Brothers, Bain and Co., Pfizer, Capital One, Credit Suisse First Boston, Cancer Treatment Centers of America and Monitor Group.
PBG Executive Director Joseph Maliekel '06 highlighted the importance of maintaining strong contacts with College alumni. He noted that the group's mission to help talented students build successful careers would not be possible without the help of alumni. "We look to create lasting ties between current Amherst students and Amherst alumni," said Maliekel. "We are lucky in that regard because our alumni have always been our strongest supporters over the past three years."
Amherst students in attendance were glad to be able to catch a glimpse of how the business community works. "I thought the seminar was really helpful because it gave insight into the professional business world that is not necessarily provided in a liberal arts curriculum," said Matthew Hui '08. "I think it was interesting how we were able to relate to the alums because we both potentially face the same barriers in terms of finding opportunity in business after leaving college."
In addition to connecting students at the College to the business world through the annual seminar, PBG also assists students in finding employment opportunities. "After seeing the caliber of our students, some of our alumni expressed an interest in having their companies recruit at Amherst," noted Maliekel. "It's an incredibly exciting opportunity for the College. Moreover, it's really fulfilling to work on a program that helps reconnect alumni to Amherst and its students."
Maliekel attributes the success of this year's Seminar to the group's strong student team. "Our Directors Board, consisting of students from Amherst, Smith and Mt. Holyoke, worked incredibly hard toward putting together an incredible event," he said. "The reason we were able to put on such amazing programming is because of their hard work and dedication."
Mike Simmons '06E was extremely impressed by the work of the students in charge. "I absolutely admire how the entire program was student-run for the third year in a row," he said. "It was a phenomenal success."
Another participant, Margaret Davis '06, found that it was well worth returning to campus early in order to attend the course. "It was very valuable. I would recommend it, especially the parts about the process of applying for business schools and the MBA and the resume critiques," she said. "We covered a lot in a short amount of time."