The Inspiration From My Senior

From: Muhammad Faiz Mohd Azani [mailto:faiz.azani@gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, 12 November, 2010 3:29 PM
To: Nor Idham B Che Ghani (HEP/UTP)
Subject: TQ Abe


Salam Abe Idham,

I am writing this email to you to share my precious experience
regarding to my job interview with company marcus evans. Last month
(Ocober 2010), during a career fair at Mid Valley, me and other 10 UTP
friends went there for seeking job. A lot of companies from various
industries opened their booths. marcus evans also had too. So,I
dropped my CV at marcus evans' booth. After 3 days, I got phone
interview from marcus evans people. She asked me some common
phone-interview questions but most of them related to event management
matter. For your information, marcus evans is a global leading
business information company that based in London and this company has
various of division and susidiaries. A few hours after the phone
interview, she sent me an interview invitation through email. Thus, I
need to attend the interview at Bukit Bintang Street (location of
marcus evans office) after my EDX presentation since the interview is
a day after EDX. I got no proper preparation due to EDX involvement.
But, I said to myself "Just Go & Try". I went there for interview and
one manager told me that I need to go through 5 stages of interview in
order to be employed by marcus evans. I was shocked! No way for me
with no proper preparation to pass all the stages plus my CGPA is not
solid as other candidates. But again I said to myself "Just Go & Try".
Alhamdulillah, I managed to pass and beat hundreds of candidates and
made the final 10. Only 10 candidates were passed all the 5 stages of
interview. Suprisingly, the potential candidates that attended the
interview were from various background; pilot, junior scientiest,
manager, Master holder, oversea employees, age of late 20s, and middle
30s and few middle 40s. But only 10 candidates only survived the 5
stages of interview including me and I am the youngest and most
inexperience in industry.


Thus, I would like to share my secret and recipe of success of the
interview. Remember when I just finished my EDX, I had no proper of
preparation for attending the interview and I just said to myself
"Just Go & Try". It sounds like "Bunuh Diri" right? Because how to go
to battle field but without enough shooting training? So, this is the
secret. This all about my outstanding event involvement during my 4.5
years of study in UTP. Not many people know so far I managed to be
involved in almost 25 events including Convo 2006 & 2008, CASFUMAL
2009 & 2010, Corporate Grooming 2008 & 2009, International Campus
Exposure Programme (ICEP,Indonesia 2009) and many more. I just
realised, actually, why I kept on saying "Just Go & Try" because there
is already well-establised skills that resides in mysefl that always
embedded strong and solid even though I no need to practise them
frequently which are "event management + soft skills". I strongly
believe, these skills I acquired from my highly involvement in events.
I cant deny, during managing CASFUMAL 2009 & 2010, I learned a lot
from you. You taught me a lot indirectly. The way you speak, they way
you see things, the way you influence people and the way you inspire
people. I learned a lot from you. However, I am not going to say that
lectures and learning modules in UTP are not helpful or not making any
contribution to my success. They had. But, softskills can be aqcuired
through event participation. Which is totally outside lecture and
theories. So, both study and events are important. I am extremely
disagreed if UTP students only focus on study and being passive in
event. Because by having both, the UTP students can make different in
industries apart of other universities students.

Now, as Corporate Sales Executive of marcus evans I am so happy and
eager to start work because of the remuneration structure is so
lucrative, almost RM20k per month and it can exceed if I perform well.
For this month, I already rent condominium and I want to invite my
family from Kelantan to stay with me. I worked so hard to reach this
stage only for them. Lastly, I would like to advise my UTP junior,
please be good at time management in order to spend a little of your
precious study time to be involved in UTP events. Be part of them and
you will be  a distinguished employee in industry one day. InsyaAllah.

Thank you Abe. You helped and inspired me a lot in my event
involvement. Do let me know if you and Abg Jai come to KL, I will buy
you guys a lunch =]

--

Regards,
Muhammad Faiz Bin Mohd Azani
Business Information Systems,
Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS,
0179166923 / 0194303298