For many college students, thinking about life after graduation can be quite daunting. If and when students get a job in the corporate world, they want to know there will be a strong support system in place. Students want to know that they will be shown the ropes and won’t be just fed to the wolves. On September 25th, 2019, Federated Insurance’s Senior Marketing Manager Bob Butkus ensured Marist College students that his company can provide just that.
Federated Insurance is a billion-dollar company with over six-hundred locations in the United States, and according to Butkus, the company excels at grooming young employees.
Butkus, in an attempt to interest a group of eager Marist College students in the company, outlined how Federated Insurance puts all of their new hires through a six-month training period where they are taught how to network and hire new clients. It’s a rational fear for many students to think they aren’t prepared to be thrust immediately into the workforce after college, and Federated Insurance’s six-month program works almost as a transition period designed to put that fear at ease.
Butkus tried to relate to students and their worries by explaining how he knows exactly what it’s like to be in their shoes. “When I graduated I had like $800 in the bank,” said Butkus. “…but they [the company] helped me from A to B and from soup to nuts.
In addition to the six-month program, Butkus discussed the other perks that the company has, like earned vacation, flexible work weeks, and paid travel to different company locations. Butkus also discussed the company’s salary in an attempt to attract students.
“The base salary starts at $50,000 plus commission, which can end up being upwards of a total salary of $100,000 if you work hard,” said Butkus. “You [pave] your own path and with all the support and information given to the new employees, you should be willing and able to produce results.”
Butkus wanted to make it clear that while Federated Insurance will provide new hires with a support system, they are not going to “baby” young employees. Success will come to those employees who put in the work, and if employees want to be promoted, they must prove their worth, which explains their pay structure
Butkus said that he was at Marist College talking because of the esteem the institute has, and because of the success alumni have had after graduation in the workforce. He credited that success to the investment that Marist College makes in their students and likens that investment to the investment Federal Insurance makes in their employees. By highlighting this similarity, Butkus tried to give students sense of comfort in hopes they will apply for the company when he returns on October 9th for the College Career fair.
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