5 top tips for MBA Recruiting in Tech

I was recently back on campus to recruit MBA's for Microsoft's flagship MACH program. Going back on campus is a cathartic experience for me. It makes you forget the inevitable frustrations of your everyday, forces you to look at what the company does from an outside perspective (which is easier to say than do sometimes), and often surprises you with views that are innocent yet perceptive at the same time.

As I do more of these, with different schools and groups, some things pattern themselves fairly strongly. These patterns cut both ways - for students as well as companies on campus, and I've repeatedly seen successful interactions follow a majority of, if not all of these. So if you're in the game either as a recruiter heading onto campus soon, or as a student preparing for the upcoming recruiting season, give these a read.

Know before you go - Often underrated, always assumed, and never enough, preparation to this interaction (like a lot of things in life) is key. Technology is a broad industry and while there are shades of similarities across most companies, particularly the big ones, understanding the nuances of which tech titan you're speaking with is key as a student. After all, you won't want to mix Alexa & Cortana, but you'd even only be able to do that if you knew who those 2 were. A ton of times students don't, and amidst the pulls of preparing for a multitude of companies across industries, try and ask broad questions that might fit anywhere. It doesn't work, and shows up pretty fast. What's also equally important is that recruiters understand the relative strengths and profile of the school they're at. This is where having a long term relationship with schools is beneficial. It's not a 1 time exercise, and if your organization is serious about it's MBA program, then a meaningful connection with your preferred schools is absolutely essential. It unlocks good slots on campus, provides a plethora of recruiting options (not just limited to career portals) and is in general a better all round experience. Microsoft is really good at this, and we continue to evolve and improve our university recruiting programs to be the preferred pick of students at the schools we're at.

Understand the realities of the market - Everyone would love their pick of team, role, location and boss. Guess what? Doesn't always work out :) One of the realities of the world we live in today is that work authorizations and visas are things we need to deal with and while some locations and teams will receive more interest than others, it's just not possible to get work authorization in some countries. At Microsoft we make a conscious effort to try and match preferences, but we're open and honest to admit that there are some things outside our control - students deeply appreciate this approach. For recruiters - this cuts the same way. You might want talent somewhere but it might be better to build flexibility into recruiting plans just to ensure that it's not binary. Being a little broad and taking a "Talent Acquisition" approach as opposed to "Recruiting for a position" approach might be the way to go if you can afford it.

Openness & Honesty go a long way - This is one of those underrated, "soft", EQ aspects that sometimes gets forgotten in the largely Type A, top tier MBA school(s). Granted we want MBA's to be go-getter's and sometimes that needs a certain approach that might come across as not the most EQ-based, but being an ass will still stand out (applicable to both students & recruiters). I've seen this work wonders as a recruiter. We make it an effort to be open about our business on campus, and not once have I seen Microsoft-ies shy away from accepting instances when we as a company could have done better. Even individual employees talking about their past, present and future go a long way in making students feel like it's a relatable and honest environment.

Be flexible - As much as you want a certain role, sometimes it's better getting your foot in the door than rejecting an offer. I am in my 4th year at Microsoft, and in that time I've had 5 managers, 2 jobs, 3 role titles across 2 offices. Moving around and flux is a part of life in Tech, I'd in fact say that my example here is about average. As a student if you want to work in Tech, and have picked a company that you feel there's a future at - keep an open mind and take roles that aren't perfect. I can assure you that circumstances, locations, people, roles and managers will change - that's the status quo!

It doesn't always work out - This isn't a cop out. Every cycle we have students reject offers a company made to their preferred candidates to do something different, and at times students don't get the nod from their one/only/dream company. It happens everyday, just feels more amplified when you're on campus. It's not the end of the road, and coming into the same company/recruiting the same student later as an Industry Hire happen every day as well.

I deeply cherish my experiences on campus, and hope that these 5 learnings are useful as you think about your own role with MBA recruiting. I'd love to hear your views on this key channel for talent, and look forward to welcoming the next generation of our leaders at Microsoft!