STANFORD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS—Student members of the Career Management Center Committee created the Recruiter Excellence Award this year to honor companies that have shown a high degree of professionalism, creativity, and responsiveness in recruiting Stanford MBAs. Any company that recruited Stanford MBA students, on or off campus, was eligible to receive the honor, which will be awarded annually.

Three companies—Boston Consulting Group, Eli Lilly and Company, and PepsiCo, Inc.,—have been presented the 2004 Recruiter Career Excellence Award based on nominations from current MBA students.

The honorees were selected from among 16 companies nominated by current students. The award was presented at the June 1 CMC Recruiter Conference on campus by the student committee that works with the MBA Career Management Center to improve the recruiting experience of Stanford MBAs.

Below are a few testimonials provided by the students about each firm:

The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) process is considered one of the clearest, most thorough, and responsive by Stanford MBA students. Recruiters followed deadlines, provided feedback throughout the process, and made each interaction pleasant. They were incredibly responsive to every request, communicated clearly at all times, and were open to negotiation. BCG is praised for its outreach to minority students and for having seamless communication between San Francisco and their satellite offices.

Eli Lilly and Company sponsored numerous events on campus and has shown a genuine, long-term interest in recruiting Stanford students. The interview process is relaxed yet professional. The company sends its best speakers to school, holds informational sessions, and sponsors conferences organized by the Hispanic Business Students Association and the Health Care/Biotechnology and Women in Management clubs. Lilly participates in all activities organized by the CMC, including Meet the Company presentations, career panels, and alumni events, and took the initiative to organize a workshop on behavioral interviews. Lilly also is appreciated for its friendly, accommodating, and highly available staff.

PepsiCo, Inc., goes to very few schools to recruit for the Leadership Development Program (LDP), and Stanford is one of them. Senior leadership involvement is striking—CEO Steve Reinemund, along with the CEOs and top leaders from subsidiaries Quaker, Frito-Lay, and Pepsi-Cola, spearheaded the final round interviews. Communication was prompt and clear, including letting students know if they advanced to final rounds within one to two days after the initial interview, informing them if an offer had been extended, and getting offer letters in their hands quickly. A special touch to the final round was a hotel room stocked with PepsiCo products.