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T. Rowe Price, USF Partner for Jobs, Student Success Focus

September 14, 2016
by Alyssa Clementi

Since 2007, T. Rowe Price and the USF Muma College of Business have helped connect business students to one of the most prominent asset management firms in the world.

This relationship began when John Townsend, who serves as vice president of T. Rowe Price and general manager of the Tampa branch, was invited to meet with students who lived in the Bulls Business Community. After being impressed with the work ethic of the business students, Townsend readily accepted an invitation to serve as a mentor in the college's Corporate Mentor Program.

Students who are the first in their families to attend college often need help transitioning into a professional career. For more than 25 years, the  program has helped students explore career opportunities and develop strategies for their professional, academic, and social success. Mentors provide access to opportunities where students learn about interviewing, corporate culture, networking, and how to become leaders in the corporate world.They find that the workshops, seminars, dinners, and other opportunities help them develop professionally, as well as build the underlying skills that allow them to become tomorrow's leaders.

Townsend decided to get personally involved, mentoring a student and meeting with him regularly. Townsend knew becoming a mentor would be a unique opportunity to network with fresh talent.

As the leader of Tampa's executive site, it was important to Townsend to find the most capable and hardworking students.

"One of the things I assessed within my job is what would help our talent pipeline, our recruiting. We weren't doing a great job," Townsend said. "I signed up to be a mentor and the more I engaged with the students, the more they became engaged with the company."

Since then, T. Rowe Price has also sponsored the "25 Under 25" program, which recognizes excelling business students, hosted several all-expense paid trips to the T. Rowe Price home office in Baltimore, and encouraged students to pursue internships with T. Rowe Price that could lead to full-time positions post graduation.

"We are looking for students who are self-motivated and self-driven, life-long learners: students who are intellectually curious, who collaborate and partner well, who embrace diverse views, and who entertain a broad spectrum of ideas," said Townsend. "That to me is a homerun."

Townsend says he has seen that at USF. So much so, in fact, that he spearheaded a special info session for USF students at T. Rowe Price's Baltimore offices in 2012. Julio Novo, who graduated from the USF Muma College of Business in 2014 with a bachelor's degree in finance, was one of the undergraduate students who joined Townsend on that trip.

"Traveling to Baltimore really solidified my interest in T. Rowe Price. We were able to meet more executives and see what an average day for the employees looked like," said Novo. "What really hooked me was the culture and the great reputation."

Novo was offered an interview for a global business solutions and technology internship, which he ultimately received. From there, Novo participated in several other internships with the firm, covering everything from retail account management to equity research.

"I developed a relationship with the office head of the Tampa office, and he eventually introduced me to their investment internship recruiters, who gave me the equity research internship," said Novo. "I had solid work experience to put on my résumé, which led to other internships directly in finance, which led to a few awards and honors."

After graduation, Novo was offered a full-time position as a junior analyst at T. Rowe Price's headquarters. He credits his internship history and USF experiences with helping him land the job. He accepted, in part, because of the focus the company put on nurturing talent.

"They invest heavily in their junior talent and that's incredibly important in investing, since this is very much an apprenticeship role in the first couple of years," said Novo.

The connections between T. Rowe Price and the Muma College of Business have only strengthened since 2007. Townsend has helped bring national leaders from T. Rowe Price to Tampa to serve as guest speakers, and more executives have signed up to be mentors in the Cooperate Mentor Program. Townsend has also accepted an invitation to serve as chair of the Executive Advisory Council at USF. Additionally, Muma College of Business students are competing for national internships that were previously filled exclusively with Ivy League students.

Townsend was so impressed by the curriculum at the Muma College of Business, that he decided to return to school himself: He is a member of the inaugural class of the Doctor of Business Administration program.

"I think of T. Rowe Price as a world class company, and of the Muma College of Business as a world class academic institution. As both organizations grow, we need to stay connected, engaged, and involved," said Townsend. "Everybody wins when we do this."