Bill Rindfuss ‘87 participated in a Skype conversation with Colgate students on Sunday, March 8.
The Colgate Professional Networks are designed to help Colgate students and alumni in a variety of ways. Over the course of the school year, the Finance and Banking Network has proven to be extremely valuable to current Colgate students through a range of programming focused on professional development.
In November, a group of nine alumni returned to campus for the Colgate Finance Club’s Young Alumni in Finance program. This event took place over a day and a half to allow for ample time for students to learn from young alumni and keynote speaker, Joe McGrath ’85. Nearly 50 students participated in this important program.
Since then, alumni have continued to support students in their professional development. On March 8, the Colgate Finance Club organized a Skype conversation with Bill Rindfuss ‘87, Executive Director, Strategic Programs, Haas Finance Group at Berkeley. More than 30 students participated. Students learned a lot from Rindfuss’ discussion of his previous roles in finance in New York and San Francisco along with his current position teaching in the MBA program at Berkeley-Haas. According to Rindfuss, “Students weren’t shy about asking questions or following up afterward, which is great because I encouraged them to think of alumni as part of their network and to capitalize on that network. It’s easier for undergraduates to take that step when they understand that alumni want to help them and participating in sessions like this shows that’s the case.”
Additionally, the Finance Immersion Trip, a signature event for these groups, will be taking place again in March. With alumni hosts at Credit Suisse, Voya Investment Management, and AllianceBernstein, among others, it is clear the alumni community is a strong supporter of these students. This immersion trip is an invaluable experience designed specifically to give sophomores and juniors exposure to the industry as they start thinking through their future careers.
The collaboration between the Finance and Banking Network and current students is sure to benefit students for years to come. According to Tyler Forbes ‘16, president of the Colgate Finance Club, “The Finance and Banking Network has been great throughout the entire year with regards to engaging interested students. The Network has helped bring back alumni within the field of Finance in order to educate the Colgate Finance Club on multiple different topics. The Network has been very flexible with their approach, and we are very pleased to be working with the Finance and Banking Network moving forward.”