Question

Topic: Career/Training

Brand Mgmt & Non-mktg Experience?

Posted by Anonymous on 8/22/2011 at 12:52 PM ET 250 Points
Hello!

Education & Experience: 3-year College Marketing Diploma, followed by a B.Com. in Entrepreneurial Management completed in 2010. Will start an MBA with a Marketing specialization, pending some post-degree work experience. +/- 5 years of unrelated, non-Marketing PROJECT MANAGEMENT experience.

1. Is a Marketing Assistant job a necessary foot in the door, despite the fact that I am essentially negating my entire career progress thus far? Is there a more appropriate entry point for someone with my education and experience?

2. If I must bite the bullet, can I get into entry level CPG Marketing Assistant or Marketing Research Analyst roles with little more than my education and some University faculty references? I do have a recent employment gap (2 years) and my reference situation is thus pretty weak. I think I am depending on faculty references from my University courses. :-/

3. Any other thoughts pertinent to my situation and desired career goal (i.e. getting that all-important foot in the door) would be welcome and highly valued.

Thanks in advance!
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 8/22/2011 at 12:59 PM Author
    Additional info (I had to ridiculously shorten my question):

    My PM experience can be massaged a little - I handled projects with a bit of a Marketing component. But nothing exposed me to market research, statistics, etc. beyond my education.

    In my PM role that I left 2 years ago, I had a $100K+ income and managed a team. It is (hopefully understandably) frustrating to have to go back to the bottom of the ladder... Hence my eagerness to get in somewhere at least *a little* higher than ground level.

    My gap is justified. I got married, and my husband and I goofed off and traveled the country. I did finish my B.Com. during the gap, so it is really only a 1-year post-degree gap, but still it leaves me weak on the references. This is, I feel, the weakest aspect of my application. So a response that focuses on this aspect would be great.
  • Posted on 8/22/2011 at 9:09 PM Author
    Thank you sincerely for the encouragement, Conrad!

    I was an IT PM working with large Financial clients. For example, I worked on a project for one of the largest Insurance companies in Canada, as well as a project for one of Canada's "top five" banks. It is about as far removed from the Consumer Packaged Goods industry (which is where I want to be) as I can get, I think.

    So as a hiring manager, you don't feel that I will be hindered in applying for a leadership role in Marketing by:

    1. My lack of immediate, verifiable experience? I left my job two years ago and short of an HR "reference" confirming my employment term and salary, I don't have much else by way of employment references.

    2. The fact that I don't have any exposure to the roles of the people I would be managing in a Marketing leadership role?

    3. The fact that my experience doesn't include any mathematical interpretation of statistical data (i.e. i never did a Statistics course)? I am a little concerned with how important this seems to be for a Brand Management career path.

    Thanks again. :-)

  • Posted on 8/22/2011 at 9:39 PM Moderator
    I think you might have a shot at a brand management job in a smaller company, but the CPG giants won't be interested in your prior experience. In fact, it's likely they'll think you're overqualified in some respects (e.g., management responsibilities) and not want to risk that you'll be frustrated with the kinds of assignments they'll give you.

    I also think the references will be seen as "weak soup" and largely irrelevant for a real brand management job. Most CPG companies would much rather see your brand management and marketing experience and accomplishments.

    I know this isn't very encouraging, but I don't see how you're going to pull this off without (a) starting at the bottom, or (b) having the requisite degree and educational qualifications. If your prior experience really is worth anything, you will probably progress to a marketing management position more rapidly than someone with no prior experience.
  • Posted on 8/23/2011 at 2:51 AM Accepted
    Let me suggest you get a copy of The Potato Chip Difference. The subtitle is "How to apply leading edge marketing strategies to landing the job you want."

    There are several sections in the book that address the issues you're facing, and several case studies about how creative marketing solved job-search problems. All you need is one of them to "crack the code" for you.

    The book is available through major booksellers in the United States, and through Amazon.com -- though I'm not sure about Canada any more. You can also order the book through the publisher at: https://bit.ly/9Zq3jh
  • Posted by Peter (henna gaijin) on 8/23/2011 at 11:35 PM Accepted
    To start with, I don't fully understand what your experience is (marketing diploma, b.com, etc. are terms I don't know). Hopefully it is clearer on your resume.

    The experience in project management, even though not marking specific, will be very valuable in most any marketing position. Don't play that down. Team management (both people who report to you, and people you have to influence to do the work you need) also.

    My feel is that the large consumer packaged good companies would more likely hire you after getting your MBA. If you really want to get in to one of these companies, find out which schools they recruit from and go to that school. You really want to be part of their college hiring, as that would be the easiest route in. Being outside that route makes it much harder.

    Smaller consumer goods companies can be all over the place in what they look for and how they go about it. networking is the best route. Do the standards, such as business organizations. But also consider non-standard, such as volunteering at non-profits that may work with these companies (such as by working with sponsors, which consumer goods companies often are).

    I don't think a marketing assistant role would be the right route.
  • Posted on 8/24/2011 at 9:46 AM Author
    Thank you, everyone.

    My plan of action is as follows:

    1. Attempt to leverage some network connections in smaller CPG companies to start. One of my connections (experienced Brand Management professional for years, and a classmate in University) suggests that an Assistant Brand Manager or Assistant Marketing Manager position should not be TOO HARD to get in a smaller company. She confirmed the big guys won't even look at me without an MBA.

    2. Pursue my MBA through some sort of accelerated or part-time means. I have to decide later which is best for me, as there are advantages to borh. Maybe I can even find a company that pays for my MBA.

    3. With my MBA in hand, and 2 to 3 years of CPG brand experience at that point, I would try to get into a higher level role with a bigger company.

    Of course, throughout my initial search for my first Marketing role I will leverage the resources suggested here. I will also leverage a recruiting service - ideally one that specializes in CPG careers.
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