The magazine for alumni and friends of the UB School of Management
Issue link: http://ubschoolofmanagement.uberflip.com/i/168939
Autumn.2013Final_layout 8/1/13 12:49 PM Page 29 Those activities include not only interviewing School of Management students for positions at Capco, but also becoming involved in a hands-on way with the school. Capco sponsors the Undergraduate Consulting Club and played a key role in the club's first case competition, held this spring. "The competition was a culmination of more than five months of dedication by the Buffalo-based Capco team in helping to develop future management consultants by teaching them consulting methodologies, introducing case studies and providing coaches to help prepare for the competition," Cohn says. "I really credit our Capco folks in Buffalo," Cohn says. "There has been a ton of enthusiasm, and the people working with First Niagara are willing to dedicate their after-hours to helping. Our head of recruiting, Jennifer Stammen, established a recruiter-in-residence program to assist students with résumé writing and interview skills." Cohn also offers praise to the students who are involved. "They take it very seriously," he says. "They come to events wearing suits—little things like that make a difference." Wagner is thrilled that the relationship with Capco has resulted in a number of School of Management students receiving offers from the company. And both he and Cohn note that Capco's involvement and mentorship of the consulting club will help students find jobs at other firms, too. In fact, the past year's activities have inspired Wagner to help ramp up recruitment efforts from First Niagara. "My number one focus for 2013 is to get First Niagara more involved with the School of Management," he says. Wagner began sowing the seeds when he invited a number of his company's HR people to the CRC's annual awards banquet in April, where he received the Alumnus of the Year award for having the greatest positive impact on students and student clubs in the School of Management. x If your company is interested in recruiting our top-notch students for internships or career positions, contact the Career Resource Center's Dan Wolfe at 716-645-3232 or danielwo@buffalo.edu. Excited for a New Opportunity As an undergraduate, Patrick A. Dela Cruz worked as a teaching assistant for "Career Strategies and Planning," a course conducted by the Career Resource Center. "It opened a lot of doors and networking opportunities for me," he says—including getting in on the ground floor of Capco's involvement with the School of Management. "I was very impressed when Capco held their first information session and flew in a number of employees from different corporate levels to talk about their experiences," Dela Cruz says. He attended many of the workshops they held and met with Jennifer Stammen, Capco's U.S. recruiting manager. Dela Cruz joined Capco's Associate Talent Program (ATP) in July, working out of their New York City office. "ATP was exactly what I was looking for," he says. "The program focuses on acquiring talent at its earliest form and developing associates into consultants in due time." As an associate, Dela Cruz works in a collaborative team alongside other Capco employees from all corporate levels to meet client demands. He also takes part in a wide range of specialized courses teaching industry-leading practices, based on the work of Capco colleagues. "Every associate follows a training road map, specifically designed to help achieve individual developmental goals," he says. He also has been assigned a mentor from an earlier ATP class to help him along the way. He is excited to see where the program takes him. "I think Capco has given our students a magnificent opportunity to kick off their careers in management consulting," he says. x Patrick Dela Cruz Photo: Tom Wolf Autumn 2013 Buffalo Business 29