Alumni stories

Reynaldo Yamin

Year graduated: 2015
Degree type: Bachelor’s degree
Degree: Bachelor of Business (Marketing)
Current position: Consultant at The Lab Insight & Strategy
Childhood dream: Red Power Ranger (pre-Year 1), Secret Intelligence Agent (Years 1 – 4) & CEO of a Multinational (Years 4 – 6)
Adult reality: Monash Marketing Graduate, now Consultant at The Lab Insight & Strategy
Clients serviced: Some examples include 7-Eleven, Simplot, AFL, YMCA & Channel Nine
Pivotal career moment (to-date): Marketing Internship Unit with Jane Carroll
Current lifestyle: Surrounding myself with open-minded people, travel, music, barbering and building my career.

Is University even worth it anymore? (Spoiler Alert: It’s a ‘Yes’ from me)

By Reynaldo Yamin

We’re constantly reminded that we live in a fast-changing world, where reliance on technology has resulted in a breed of time-poor human beings with shortened attention spans. Consequently, we have arrived at an age where entertainment is consumed on-demand, news is watched in video snippets, and articles are skimmed for either quick tips, easily-consumed iconography or attention-grabbing headlines (I hope I’ve done you proud, Buzzfeed!). As unfortunate as it is, I’ll be the first to admit that I’m guilty of all the above, so in developing this article it also provided me an introspective exercise.

If you’ve stayed on beyond my first paragraph, this is where I’ll share my opinions on my own uni experience.

I appreciate the argument that certain course components can feel out-dated, and it’s clear that the education sector does too. Hence, the strong shift towards building job-ready graduates…

But, what exactly do job-ready graduates look like?

University set the foundation for my curiosity. I am an advocate for the units that focus on real-life business challenges and scenarios. These units allow students to develop practical business skills such as in analytical research, negotiation, planning and strategy-development; all which have been useful in my career.

Although I do believe that the university and its curriculum play an important role in this, I believe the greatest onus is on the student. Your education is the pre-stage of your career. That means the responsibility is on you to take advantage of the brains and resources available through the university.  I challenge you to explore your areas of passion, the perspectives of fellow students and the generosity of faculty members, as all the above have been influential on where I am today.

What do I mean by ‘a generous faculty member’? And how can they help?

This is someone who is committed to understanding you as a person, identifies your strengths and weaknesses, and will often go above and beyond to see you succeed.  For me, this commitment was evident when I was helpfully nudged towards the Marketing Internship unit with Jane Carroll in my third, and final year, of my degree.

Admittedly, I was never the brightest or most-driven student in class but when you have another person demonstrate genuine care in your development, it motivates you to take your education and career seriously. It was not until I demonstrated this commitment, that Jane Carroll connected me with The Lab – a brand strategy and qualitative market research agency, with whom I completed my three-month internship. Fast forward three months and I found myself landing a role as a Consultant at The Lab.

The generosity and commitment shown to me by Jane Carroll is a rather specific example but this could be anyone who opens up your mind and challenges you to take the next step.

So where am I today? And how much of this is due to my uni experience?

Over the past two years with The Lab, I’ve had the opportunity to work on projects across brand positioning, innovation and product development, consumer usage and attitude, customer segmentation, customer journey mapping and communications. The diversity of my role is not limited to the areas of work, as I’ve been exposed to clients from a range of industries including FMCG, finance, education, retail, sports & entertainment. This has allowed me to gain a wider understanding of business objectives, challenges and the strategies that tie it all together. With all this being said, this is only the beginning!

Beyond my acknowledgement of Jane Carroll’s commitment to fuelling my passion and introducing me to The Lab, my university experience has:

• Enabled me to develop practical business skills that can be applied in the industry
• Connected me to real people with real goals (you never know who the person sitting next to you might end up being – a future colleague, boss, business partner, life-partner)
• Inspired me to open my mind to perspectives far beyond my own.

Education is far more involved than it once was, and you’ll only achieve what you’re willing to put in. I leave you with the challenge to be brave, and make the most out of your opportunities.