Corporate Relations Is On The Move By Sylvia Boyd, Assistant Director - Corporate Relations 
From Albuquerque to Wall Street to 21st Avenue South…if you are an Owen alum, those are a few of the many places you could connect with Peter Veruki, Director of Owen Corporate Relations. Over the past year, Peter and Dean Jim Bradford have been on the road, devoting their efforts to reconnecting alumni back to the school, telling the Owen story across the country and throughout the world.
During the 2007-08 academic year, Peter visited over 25 cities and met with over 250 alumni and companies. In addition, the office of Corporate Relations hosted over a dozen companies for individual “Day at Owen” events, allowing them to get an in-depth look at the school, experience our talented students first-hand and team up in the classroom with our renowned faculty.
How do Peter’s travels and corporate visits help the entire Owen community? In two important ways.
First, our alumni play an integral part in helping to move Owen forward. The majority of Owen’s contacts with corporate friends and recruiters are facilitated through our alumni. As they tell their professional networks about Owen, the entire Owen network is broadened and strengthened.
Second, in a world where Wall Street is no longer a sure thing for our finance and investment banking students, Corporate Relations is working to cultivate other corporate relationships in a variety of industries and geographies. For example, in 2007, Peter invited Gary Weed, Downstream Business Services Vice President and Controller of Exxon Mobil, to visit Owen. Corporate Relations took his visit a step beyond the typical day at Owen: He met with the Dean, had lunch with Finance faculty and spent the majority of his day interacting with students. Gary was so impressed by Owen and the caliber of talent, he made three summer internship offers, all of which converted into full-time offers. As a result, we have established a broader relationship with Exxon, and look forward to partnering with them. Gary plans to come back in the fall to meet a new class of talented students.
So where in the world is Peter Veruki? Peter is everywhere we have alumni. He will continue to showcase our students and Owen as he travels across the country with the mission of reconnecting alumni and uncovering job opportunities.
Stay tuned…Corporate Relations is on the move!
