My experiences as an External Affairs Officer of Asset | IB&M
It has been almost a year since I was announced as the new external affairs officer of Asset | International Business & Management. So far, I can look back at an amazing year with many different experiences about which I would love to tell you more about in this article!
My road to the board of Asset | International Business & Management
Before I explain how I ended up as External Affairs Officer at Asset | International Business & Management I will shortly introduce myself. My name is Matthijs van der Leest and I am 22 years old. Last summer I graduated the bachelor International Business Administration after my exchange to Queen’s University (Canada). Next year I am planning to study the masters program in Finance here at Tilburg University.
In the second year of my bachelor I decided that I wanted to join a committee to work on my Curriculum Vitae and to broaden my social network here in Tilburg. Therefore, I became the chairman of the IBA committee. We organized several excursions, with the IBA trip, where we visited Nike and Audi with a group of IBA students, as highlight. When I came back from Canada I was looking for a more formal touch, which made me decide to become external affairs officer of the Recruitment Dinner committee. From that moment onwards I walked into the path of being one of the board members of Asset | International Business & Management…
My function in the board of Asset | International Business & Management
So, after I went through the application process I was the lucky one to be selected as one of the two external affairs officers of Asset | International Business & Management. I can understand that the term ‘external affairs’ can be interpreted in many different ways, which is why I will elaborate on my function specific tasks in this part. First of all, I think it is good to mention that almost all function specific tasks I carry out are done together with my colleague Tom Greenhead.
Let me start with one of the main responsibilities I have had in the past months; maintaining the contracts that are set up in the summer with our corporate partners. These contracts can vary from exposure possibilities on social media to participation in events to a combination of both. During summer, you will visit your partners in their offices in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, etc.. so I guess the best period of my board year still has to come :). To maintain all contracts in a good way you have to stay in close contact with recruiters, which is mostly done via mail e-mail and phone calls. Most of the time this contact is very informal, which I personally like very much. Besides, I should not forget to mention that another benefit of being in close contact with recruiters is that you will really expand your professional network! Next to being responsible for the ‘warm’ contacts of the association I am also responsible for cold acquisition. This entails the search for new partners that can be interesting to bring in contact with our association. Furthermore, I am representing Asset | IB&M in the Acquisition Meetings of Asset General where we meet with all externals from the other departments. Together we are responsible for the acquisition and organization of Asset General events like the Asset Inhouse Days and the Orientation Days.
However, my board year does not only entail these individual tasks but also a lot of work which makes you have to work in teams, with your board as well as with your committees. I was coordinator of several committees of Asset | IB&M like the IBA Week Committee and the Ski Trip Committee. With the IBA Week Committee we organized a successful 3-day event with 7 participating companies and with the Ski Trip we organized an amazing week with 44 students in Saint – Francois Longchamps. Besides weekly meetings I had to carry out multiple small tasks for my committees.
Although every week is different, I hope I can give you a good overview about how my week can look like with this information:
My experiences during my board year at Asset | International Business & Management
I would like to start with mentioning that besides all the formal and professional tasks I have mentioned above I also have enjoyed the lots of social activities that have taken place in the past year. With more than 100 active members and more than 40 other board members within Asset I also have richly enlarged my social network!
Furthermore, I have learned that a board year contains a lot of successes of which you can be proud of in the end, but that it also has its setbacks. These setbacks are key in developing yourself and your team during your board year. Together with your fellow board members you work towards the goals you have set in the beginning of the year and try to bring the association to a higher level in both a professional and a social way.
For me doing a board year was one of the best choices I have ever made. It entailed everything; from personal development in my function specific area to working together in great teams. From enlarging my social and professional network to still enjoying the student life. From a better orientation on what I want to do after my studies to a great addition to my Curriculum Vitae.
Did you become interested in my function or in doing a board year in general? Do not hesitate to contact me via externalaffairs@asset-ibm.nl, or drop by room E1.14!
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