20 Cities Survive Amazon HQ2 Shortlist
Four months after Amazon announced plans to construct a second headquarters, North American cities have been making grandstanding pleas in order to court the ecommerce behemoth. New York City’s mayoral office lit up the Empire State building with Amazon’s glowing orange hue in a symbolic gesture, while certain cities like Chicago went the more extreme route, proposing laws that could funnel income taxes directly back to the company. After much speculation, here is the official Amazon HQ2 shortlist:
- Atlanta
- Austin
- Boston
- Chicago
- Columbus, Ohio
- Dallas
- Denver
- Indianapolis
- Los Angeles
- Miami
- Montgomery County, Md.
- Nashville
- Newark
- New York
- Northern Virginia
- Philadelphia
- Pittsburgh
- Raleigh, N.C.
- Toronto
- Washington, D.C.
Unsurprisingly, most of the cities that made the cut were among the largest in North America, with only one Canadian city—Toronto—left standing. Over 230 cities from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico made official bids for the company’s second headquarters, with Amazon prioritizing tech-centric metros of populations larger than 500,000. In fact, only four of the 20 metro areas—Miami, Nashville, Newark, and Pittsburgh—have a population of less than half a million, with Newark being the smallest of the entrants. Notably, Newark offered perhaps the largest financial incentive to the company, proposing upwards of $7 billion in tax incentives.
How the Amazon HQ2 shortlist was formed is not totally known, according to the New York Times:
“According to people briefed on the process who would speak only anonymously because the deliberations were private, the process was conducted by a team of about a dozen people within Amazon, including economists, human resources managers and executives who oversee real estate. Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s chief executive who was the mastermind behind turning the search into a public process and coined the term “HQ2,” was also involved, the people said.”
At the time of the initial announcement, Amazon released a stream of positive economic statistics about its impact in Seattle, home to the original headquarters. The company stated (although these statistics are still not yet verified by any source outside of Amazon) that it added $38 billion USD to the value of the city from 2010-16 alone, due to its investments and rapidly expanding workforce. Detractors argue that the financial value added to the city did not positively impact the quality of life, however, with more than 51 percent of Seattle residents making less than $50,000 per year and more than quarter of city residents earn less than $25,000 per year. The influx of high-level employment also contributed to rapidly rising housing costs and poorer traffic.
Experts from CNBC believe that Raleigh might be the front-runner of the remaining entrants, which matches the initial bid criteria the most. Although some speculate that Austin most aligns up with Amazon’s future. The company declined to announce when the final decision will be made.
What Amazon Means For MBA Students
Not so secretly, Amazon has become one of the world’s largest MBA recruiters, hiring students from top schools all over the world. We’ve previously outlined the details of why it has become such an attractive destination for business school students.
The company creates a direct pipeline from its MBA internship program to full-time employment, which should rapidly increase with the creation of HQ2. In a previous interview with the Financial Times, Miriam Park, the Amazon Director of University Programs, highlighted the company’s recruitment strategy:
“The Amazon recruitment process is designed to ensure we hire top candidates with high-growth potential whatever their background may be. As part of this we recruit current MBA students and MBA alumni for permanent and internship opportunities worldwide and see MBAs as an important part of our leadership development. We value people who can balance long-term strategic thinking with tactical execution, and who have the ability to make data-driven decisions.”
Stay tuned for more information about the second headquarters and more potential MBA employment opportunities with MetroMBA.
The QS World MBA Tour Is Coming To These Select Cities
There are few better opportunities to learn about the exemplary business school opportunities than at an MBA fair. And luckily, for many prospective MBA students, that opportunity will soon be arriving in their city with the QS World MBA Tour.
Rounding Out the Best Return on Investment for New York City MBAs, Part III
In an accelerated political and economic landscape, New York City remains the center of gravity for international business. But year after year, how do newly minted New Yorkers survive in a city where the cost of living is reportedly 70 percent higher than the national average? This is especially true now when fewer and fewer aspiring professionals can afford to sacrifice continuity of employment to advance their careers.
Why More and More MBAs are Coming to LinkedIn: #LinkedInLife
Since its 2003 launch, LinkedIn has been shaping the way people find jobs, becoming the most extensive professional social network on the planet. With over 530 million users, it is clear how the platform could pair job seekers with a multitude of career prospects. LinkedIn was just voted Company of the Year by HRDive for the comprehensive recruitment resources it offers its users. However, a network this expansive presents its own pool of opportunities. In fact, Glassdoor dubbed LinkedIn one of the 25 best places to work in 2017. For a company that prides itself on such a unique work environment, its employees even have their own hashtag (#linkedinlife). The company’s rising importance as a recruiting tool in the global economy (hence, over 30 offices worldwide) and its award-winning work environment make a career at LinkedIn an excellent option for MBA grads.
#LinkedInlife
LinkedIn takes a values-centered approach to building its employee culture. According to the company’s website, the values that define LinkedIn are: integrity, humor, transformation, collaboration, and results. Employees are entitled to a multitude of benefits, including 401(k) and Roth contributions, paid parental leave, 17 paid holidays, and an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP). The company also demonstrates its commitment to inclusive strategies by providing back-up childcare resources for employees whose children have special needs.
The Human Rights Campaign designated LinkedIn as one of the best places to work for LGBT equality in 2017. LinkedIn makes an effort to provide resources for its community’s LGBT members, including (but far from limited to) supporting gender reassignment surgery and ensuring that domestic partners and same sex spouses are included in U.S. Benefit programs.
In addition to a unique and inclusive set of standards and values, LinkedIn provides an environment that is far more exciting than that of the standard corporate job. According to The Undercover Recruiter, each floor of LinkedIn’s London office is structured according to a theme. The sports-themed floor has a Wimbledon Room with astroturf on the walls and an umpire chair.
Inside LinkedIn’s San Francisco headquarters/Photo by Eric Laignel.
Getting Hired
In recent years, LinkedIn has trended toward using its website and platform, as well as hosting regional events for recruiting as opposed to using traditional job fair settings. MBAs at LinkedIn can find jobs in sales, marketing, finance, product, and business development through the Student Careers program. At LinkedIn, the community is organized into teams, and each team has its area of focus. Professionals seeking careers specifically in business can choose from about fifteen possible teams. The Corporate Development and Strategy team, for example, leads the way in determining company strategy and analyzing market activity and opportunities. The Global Solutions team focuses on marketing, hiring, and sales. Those who wish to focus exclusively on marketing can look into the LinkedIn Marketing Solutions (LMS) team.
In a 2015 interview with Cosmopolitan, LinkedIn Global Talent Acquisitions Leader Tey Scott discussed how, despite its headquarters being located in Mountainview, CA, the company hires talent from everywhere—which can mean a lot for both domestic and international MBAs.
“We hire from around the world, and we have an amazing relocation assistance program that supports all levels of hires,” she says. “We offer temporary housing, and help employees find daycare, schools, or other things that suit their needs—whether it’s a student relocating from [the East Coast] to Silicon Valley, or someone who has to relocate an entire family and sell a house.”
Scott continues, saying, “We also try to help people get to know the new area they’re moving to. For recent graduates and students, we’ll put them in a LinkedIn group and start conversations with them so they can figure out what neighborhoods they want to live in, and even help them find roommates.”
The company has also made an active effort to convert interns into full-time employees, she adds. “The goal is to convert as many people who come through it into full-time employees. We have interns in all of our locations globally, and we even host interns from other Bay Area tech companies for an annual intern hack day at our headquarters. Undergraduate and MBA interns must be enrolled full-time in a program and return to the program following the internship.”
Find out more about LinkedIn’s MBA internship opportunities here.
Searching for the World’s Top MBA Recruiters: Comcast
Ever year, new MBA graduates are entering the workforce, and companies throughout the world seek new ways to benefit from their educational experience and knowledge. Major companies like the Comcast Corporation seek young professionals to contribute their talent to the company in a number of different ways.
Based in Philadelphia, PA, Comcast is a telecommunications conglomerate that has been taking over the globe since its founding fifty-four years ago in Tupelo, Mississippi. From internet provider to producers of feature films through the NBCUniversal (another one of our favorite MBA recruiters) division, Comcast has an expansive number of markets it can reach.
Today, Comcast makes more than $19.7 billion in media revenue, 88 percent of which comes from its NBCUniversal division. The remaining revenue comes from its cable business and from ownership of the streaming service Hulu. As of December 2016, Comcast employed 153,000 people among its various divisions. Ever looking to expand its reach, Comcast offers a number of opportunities for ambitious MBAs to gain experience and start careers at one of the world’s top media conglomerates.
Why Work at Comcast?
The appeal of working at a company like Comcast can be seen in the numbers: close to one million people have applied for a job at Comcast or one of its divisions every year since 2012. One reason may be the diversity in the kind of work one can do at the company—from creating new television shows to creating new apps and innovative products. With roughly 2,000 positions available at any given time, Comcast is always seeking passionate and entrepreneurial individuals who will help shape the company as it continues to grow and change.
Comcast also offers employees a number of opportunities to grow in their careers and at the company. Valuing teamwork, creativity and entrepreneurship, the company is always looking to empower individuals that represent these features and provide opportunities for them to use their talents in more ways.
Getting Started
Current MBAs looking to get their foot in the door at Comcast have a couple of different ways to do so. Students in the first year of their MBA program have the chance to pursue an internship at the company’s headquarters in Philadelphia. The preferred candidate for this specific internship would be between their first and second year of an MBA program, and have more than five years of professional work experience. Internship focuses for MBA students can occur in a wide variety of fields, including:
- HQ Functions
- Video Business Unit Strategy
- Internet Product Strategy
- Sales & Marketing
- Marketing Intelligence & Insights
- Corporate Strategy
- Integrated Talent Management
MBA students in their second year may also pursue a slot in Comcast’s MBA Rotational Leadership Program, which offers individualized placement into career-accelerating positions after a two-year rotational period. Students will have the ability to work on critical business projects in a variety of areas within Comcast and NBCUniversal, receive exposure to senior leadership through projects and development sessions, and gain access to mentorship through the programs cohort structure and interaction with peer advisors, mentors and program managers.
The ideal candidate for the MBA Rotational Leadership program has more than five years relevant work experience and a track record of academic excellence. The perfect MBA for this role must be a self starter, communicate effectively, and be passionate about innovation.
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What Types of Jobs are Available?
MBA students and graduates applying for jobs at Comcast after earning their degree will find a number of opportunities available. Here are just a couple roles currently open for MBA students and graduates:
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Director of Contracts Management — Technical Operations
The Director of Contracts management will be responsible for the drafting, evaluation, negotiation, and execution of all types of contracts. The director will monitor all contract work to ensure progress, assist in the training and development of a qualified frontline staff and manage the outsourcing of contract drafting and negotiations. The estimated salary for a Director of Contracts Management is between $98,000 and $144,000 per year, according to user statistics provided by Glassdoor.
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Pricing Analyst
The role of Pricing Analyst at Comcast helps to provide insights to the finance and marketing departments to make decisions for pricing in the Comcast Business division. The person in this role will use business analysis to help gather data and create reports that can help provide business leaders with continued recommendation leaders. The role requires a deep understanding of operational processes, marketing strategy, and strong interpersonal communication abilities.
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Senior Business Operations Manager
Currently open for applicants in the Philadelphia and New York City metro, the Senior Business Operations Manager role with FreeWheel, Comcast’s premium distribution advertising company, is part of the team “responsible for monitoring and providing insights into the health of the overall business.”
The role typically requires six or more years of professional experience and an MBA degree is preferred for the specific responsibilities of the position. According to user statistics provided by Glassdoor, Senior Business Operations Manager tend to make close to or more than six figures per year in the U.S.
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Director, Strategic Analytics
This role, currently open in the Philadelphia metro, unsurprisingly requires a lengthy and comprehensive understanding of business analytics, down to requisite knowledge of tools like R, SAS, and SQL, as well as 10 or more years of professional experience in the fields of computer science, finance, marketing, statistics, economics, and other related fields. Like the Senior Business Operations Manager role mentioned above, an MBA degree is not explicitly required, but Comcast notes it is “strongly preferred” for the position.
Check out more of Comcast’s currently open positions for MBA students and graduates today.
NYU Stern Alumni Create Scholarships for Community College Transfers
The journey to college can be a long and winding one. For some, it starts in community college. But from there, students can end up in one of the best business schools in the country. Like the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Alumni of its MBA and undergraduate programs are now easing that transition for some of the best students switching from community college to major university with some scholarships, per a new press release. The school established three new scholarship funds for two-year community college students who’ve been admitted into NYU Stern. These scholarships are engineered to go to students in need, helping low-income individuals get access to the education they deserve.
Howard Meyers Scholars
The Howard Meyers Family Foundation donated $3 million for the effort. Meyers graduated from Stern’s undergraduate program in 1964. This fund will go directly to community college students hoping to make NYU their next stop, who will be called Howard Meyers Scholars. Applicants need to prove two-years worth of academic excellence and go on to complete their junior and senior years at NYU, with the first two scholars attending in fall 2018.
Pamela J. Craig Scholar Fund
MBA graduate Pamela Craig launched the Pamela J. Craig Scholar Fund, which will go toward students who attend CUNY schools, particularly those from LaGuardia Community College. Craig leads a mentor program there. Her mission is to increase access and inclusivity among diverse students. This fund should help push that further.
Martin Cohen Scholarship Fund
An additional $300,000 gift is will go toward creating the Martin Cohen Scholarship Fund, which will also begin in fall 2018 for two CUNY students per year. The fund will help each student’s last two years of college. Once these scholars wrap up their undergraduate years, perhaps they can go on to obtain their MBAs—at NYU Stern.
