How did you get started in business after you graduated? What’s the biggest business mistake you ever made? What advice do you have for students that are worried about finding a job in this economy?
These were a few of the questions students put to two executive speakers at Mays Business School at Texas A&M University. Former students and highly successful businessmen Terry Hatchett ’68 and Brandon Coleman ’78 shared their accrued wisdom with current students at Mays during recent visits.
“You never know where opportunities will come from,” Brandon Coleman ‘78 told students. “It’s about who you know, way more than what you know.”
Both men chronicled their professional highlights. For Hatchett, that included a 34-year career with Arthur Andersen, involving worldwide travel and progressive management positions such as managing partner and COO of Andersen’s North America division, responsible for $4.3 billion in revenue and 28,000 employees. Coleman’s path to success was more entrepreneurial: while working for an ad agency only a year out of college, this motivated Aggie started his own marketing firm. After 20 years of success he sold the firm to a New York marketing conglomerate and has been consulting with select clients ever since. In three decades of leadership in marketing and brand development strategy, Coleman has represented more than 600 clients in a variety of industries.
During his visit, Coleman addressed an audience of more than 300 students in an introductory management class, as well as a more intimate group of 20 Business Honors students. Hatchett met with two small groups of students in the Professional Program. Each invited students to ask questions about their business and life choices, willing to share, as Coleman put it, “WOMA: Wise Old Man Advice.”
“What has made you so successful?” one student asked Hatchett. He answered with an example: When the Medicare program was created in 1965, it was not well understood by people in the marketplace. He had an interest in the program and so conducted research on its audit implications, inadvertently becoming known as the expert at his firm on the subject. As the program continued to evolve, he was frequently asked to speak to medical offices and hospitals. “It’s really having something that makes you stand out that makes you successful,” said Hatchett.
He counseled students to pay attention to marketplace trends and learn all they can about the next big thing before everyone else. His advice as to what is coming down the line? “Bet on China,” he said.
Terry Hatchett ‘68 (right) advised students to stay on top of marketplace trends and focus on “having something that makes you stand out” from their competitors.
But his best advice to the audience was to avoid ethical quagmires that fill the marketplace. “When in doubt, tell the truth,” said Hatchett.
Coleman’s advice focused on new ventures as he reminded students of the opportunities that lie in challenging economic times. “It’s a great time to launch a new business,” he said, encouraging students to keep a positive outlook, as that is a key to success in any circumstance.
When students asked for advice about landing a job in this economy, Coleman’s response startled some: work for free. Offer to take an unpaid internship if that’s what lands you with a great firm, then work hard and prove yourself. Put some skin in the game and do whatever it takes to be noticed. You may not always be rewarded with a great job, but you’ll have learned valuable lessons and made contacts that can propel your career.
“You never know where opportunities will come from,” he said, recounting how a chance conversation with a businessman at a party helped launch his first business. “It’s about who you know, way more than what you know. You don’t get a chance to tell what you know until you know somebody. Then you’ll have a chance.”
Coleman’s biggest message to students was, “There is no such thing as a self-made man or woman. You never do it by yourself. It’s impossible…Nobody does it by themselves. It’s all about other people.”
In 2005, both Hatchett and Coleman were honored with Outstanding Alumni Awards from Mays Business School. Both men have contributed generous financial gifts to Texas A&M and to Mays over the years for scholarships and faculty support.
