My colleagues and I were at the University of Sydney in March to promote the RB Commercial Graduate program to prospective graduates.
Reckitt Benckiser who?
It wasn’t surprising that students had no clue who we were. But when we started listing about our brands – Strepsils, Nurofen, Pine-O-Cleen and Napisan, they were more inclined in finding out what we had to offer in terms of a marketing/sales career.
Working at the University of Sydney Careers Tent
No doubt our company is held in high regards amongst the FMCG and financial industries, but final year students often overlook our graduate program, not only because of the lack of familiarity of the RB corporate name, but because of many unfounded qualms and reservations which I would like to address in this blog post.
Working with unglamorous brands
Sure, marketing air fresheners or insect repellents doesn’t sound like the most riveting job and for many of you, your ideas of marketing products revolve around luxury goods or cosmetic products with massive launch parties. However, just because our products aren’t glamorous doesn’t mean that you won’t be learning heaps along the way.
“When I found out I was going to be working on multipurpose cleaners, I thought it was going to be a challenging brand to work on because I hate cleaning!” said Katie, Assistant Brand Manager for Pine-O-Cleen and Glen 20 in Australia and fellow Commercial Graduate.
“However, when I started getting involved with the product, I quickly understood just how loyal consumers are to these brands, even though it’s just a general household item. Combine that with an understanding of our fantastic strategies and you soon become just as compassionate as your consumer.”
“You’ll still be actively involved in new product development, designing ads, dealing with PR and advertising agencies and have access to huge marketing budgets – just as exciting as any cosmetic product,” Katie said.
RB is ranked 14 in top 20 Advertisers in Australia. (Source: Nielsen Australia, June 2009)
In Australia, RB rates as one of the top advertisers in Australia, ranking higher than P&G, Unilever and McDonalds. So whilst there are more glamorous brands out there in the marketplace, working with strong FMCG brands means big marketing budgets and frequent advertising touch points, so it’s a sure way you’ll develop your skills and experience to become a savvy marketer.
3 Years for a Graduate Program is too long!
How can we compete with competitors who offer programs that only last for a year? How about the opportunity to develop a strong foundation in both marketing and sales that puts you yards ahead of the competition?
Whilst some marketing graduate programs are shorter in duration, the chances are you will finish and get an entry level position within the company. At RB, you’ll be expected to take on the role of a Brand or Account Manager position after the Commercial graduate program, a position which normally requires 3+ years experience.
Think of the 3 years as your developmental playground, a time in which you will be exposed to both sales and marketing functions, get involved in meetings, conferences, get full transparency amongst the senior and regional leadership teams and access to training and mentoring that other direct entry employees may not get access to.
Time flies when you’re having fun, learning new things and experiencing new challenges!
I’m only interested in Marketing and don’t want to do Sales
Bet you didn’t think that you’d be slaving away at university for 3+ years and end up implementing layouts in a supermarket in your first full time job.
“From the outset, it was certainly the least appealing part of working at RB, sales always felt like a dirty word when I was at university. But looking back, my time on the field was the most valuable base foundation I could take into my marketing role. You can offer a different perspective based on your experience on the road and have a greater understanding of how a customer may react to a new product launch or campaign” Katie said.
Katie giving a presentation at University of Sydney about life as an RB Graduate.
To think that you can have a successful career in marketing without being exposed to sales is quite risky, considering the two are interrelated. And don’t discount sales as a fulfilling career either, as graduates who were so keen on marketing as a career have ended up as successful Account Managers after their graduate program.
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High expectations are put on all of the RB graduates, but if you’re a go-getter, you’ll thrive and get the opportunity to hone your skills in a flexible yet structured environment. Have a look on our careers website for more information.
Tags: advertising, assistant brand manager, brand management, Brand Manager, career development, Challenge, graduate, innovation, Marketing, new challenge, Opportunity, Success, taking on new challenges, trainee
I wish , I could work with RB in India. Sadly, Chennai has no openings..
But here is a doubt, in order to be a sucessful brand manager what kind of mathematical prowess do you need? Should the person be good at hypothesis or other management science and stats ?
Hi Sri, remember to check http://www.reckittbenckiser.jobs/apply periodically for new job openings. In response to your question, you certainly need to have a level of financial understanding to be a successful brand manager, but that does not mean you require a specific degree in mathematics/finance or statistics. At the end of the day, we have marketing people from a variety of disciplines who are successful, not necessarily because of their degree, but because of their passion and willingness to learn. Hope this helps!