Jennifer Boyanovsky, UD MBA ‘03, recently spoke to students in the marketing theory & practice and value based marketing class at the University of Dallas – Satish and Yasmin Gupta College of Business.
Today, Boyanovsky serves as the executive director of brand management for AT&T Inc., but she began her career making cold calls. And while many see this as the bottom of the ranks, the skills earned during this time in her career stayed with Boyanovsky long term. “It not only forced me to get outside of my comfort zone, it also helped me learn to deal with different types of people,” she told students.
Boyanovsky discussed market strategy and segmentation in addition to her personal history with the telecommunications giant with the class, taught by associate professor of marketing Laura Muñoz, Ph.D.
From cold calling, Boyanovsky moved into business acquisition sales and eventually channel marketing, serving as a liaison between marketing and distribution channels. “I was really a negotiator in that role,” she said. “It was my job to make sure marketing plans got executed on the front line.” At a large company like AT&T, Boyanovsky comments on the importance of balance – the brand must stay stable but also evolve to meet the customer’s changing needs.
Furthermore, Boyanovsky mentions how the ability to break down the barriers between departments is crucial to a large company’s success. “Our marketing plan focuses on advertising broader solutions rather than just individual products,” she says.
The company also focuses on acquiescing new talent through two different programs aimed at current students and recent graduates. The first, a summer internship program for undergraduates, allows students to rotate through several different departments throughout the course of three summers. The second, a 16-week B2B sales program allows graduates to serve as apprentices within the company and earn “excellent career and learning potential.”