{"id":27850,"date":"2017-02-16T09:25:29","date_gmt":"2017-02-16T14:25:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/?p=27850"},"modified":"2017-06-19T12:29:15","modified_gmt":"2017-06-19T16:29:15","slug":"prominent-fiu-alums-shared-lessons-learned-insights-and-successes-with-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/2017\/02\/prominent-fiu-alums-shared-lessons-learned-insights-and-successes-with-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Prominent FIU alums shared lessons learned, insights and successes with students."},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Michael
Michael Kappitt<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Two high-profile College of Business graduates returned to FIU, sharing the importance of passion, determination and emotional intelligence–must-haves to stay ahead of the curve in the business world–with sales and marketing students.<\/p>\n

Michael Kappitt (BAAC \u201992), president of Carrabba\u2019s Italian Grill, and Eric Maldonado (BBA \u201986), managing director of sales at information and analysis firm IHS Markit, hosted informal sessions with students on January 26, 2017, offering details of their early challenges and rise to success.<\/p>\n

Their common message: if you don\u2019t have passion, do something else.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was able to find things that I had a lot of passion for and excelled there,\u201d Kappitt, who became president of Carrabba\u2019s in 2016, told a group of students from the American Marketing Association\u2019s FIU Collegiate Chapter, AMA@FIU<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A marketing veteran who originally majored in accounting at FIU, Kappitt is the first marketer to run one of Bloomin\u2019 Brands\u2019 restaurant chains, which also includes Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, and Fleming\u2019s Prime Steakhouse.<\/p>\n

Kappitt was quick to respond to a student\u2019s question: what is marketing?<\/p>\n

\"Michael<\/p>\n

\u201cMarketing is an area where you can touch a lot of things,\u201d said Kappitt, who spent nine years at Burger King and eventually became North American CMO. \u201cAt Burger King, I ran global business intelligence. You can be a finance guy and there\u2019s a place for you in marketing; you can be a creative and be in marketing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kappitt joined Bloomin\u2019 Brands in 2011 as chief marketing officer for Outback Steakhouse and in 2013 was named global CMO of the full company. He started his career at Alamo Rent a Car, and spent 13 years there working in a variety of leadership positions.<\/p>\n

At Carrabba\u2019s, success depends on listening to consumers, knowing what makes them tick and responding quickly. Kappitt pointed out that his marketing background allows him to be more \u201crisk tolerant\u201d and look beyond the ROI.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot everything is black or white. I deal with gray all the time,\u201d he added. \u201cThat makes me willing to try new things, to let marketers have more creative opportunities and to be more insight driven.\u201d<\/p>\n

Determination trumps challenges.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Maldonado,
Eric Maldonado<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Maldonado, an FIU Business Hall of Fame<\/a> inductee, and his wife Sandi (BS \u201989), fund the Global Scholars Program<\/a>, which takes College of Business students to New York for company visits and tours.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy primary strategy was to look at the macro picture; you have to get ahead of the curve,\u201d Maldonado told FIU Sales Society members. \u201cThere\u2019s so much to do. Look around, see what\u2019s happening and capitalize on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

He told students of his days as a new FIU graduate who started \u201cdriving around Miami in a minivan for three-and-a-half years selling copiers to local businesses\u201d and how it became a stepping stone to his successful New York career path.<\/p>\n

Drive and intellectual curiosity, he noted, are key.<\/p>\n

\"Eric<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I graduated, I had no idea what I wanted to do,\u201d said Maldonado. \u201cLater it clicked that sales is a very open profession because everything in this world is bought and sold. If you\u2019re in a revenue generating position at a company, you\u2019re very important.\u201d<\/p>\n

At IHS Markit, Maldonado\u2019s division builds, designs and hosts front-end interfaces for global financial companies. During his chat with FIU students, Maldonado highlighted the importance of FinTech, the intersection of finance and technology that will drive a huge sector of the economy going forward.<\/p>\n

How do you face challenges? Head on.<\/p>\n

\u201cEarly in your career it\u2019s tough. When I first started, it took me months to make my first sale,\u201d Maldonado said. \u201cYou have to stay the course and don\u2019t doubt yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sales is all about conversation, Maldonado noted, and listening lays groundwork for that dialogue.<\/p>\n

\u201cCold-calling isn\u2019t dead and word of mouth today has gone viral through electronic and online messaging,\u201d said Maldonado. \u201cThe access to information that you have today is incredible; you can accelerate the conversation before you meet the person or walk in the door.\u201d<\/p>\n