Corporate Partnerships
To be successful in business, you need to learn more than core business concepts – you need to learn how to put your knowledge to work. At Bentley, we help you do this by partnering with top management at leading corporations, who bring their current, real-world business problems into the classroom.
Our corporate partners are public and private, large and small, for-profit and not-for-profit, national and international, offering a broad array of products and services. In every case, our corporate partners have members of their management team attend classes. Corporate partners and Bentley students work together, equally committed to finding and implementing the optimal solution to our partners’ current business problems, as well as to discovering new opportunities.
In some cases, these classroom connections can help students land internships or jobs after graduation. Networking is a large part of finding work and by bringing the businesses to class; we help make that step easier for students.
Take a glimpse at some recent student projects and corporate partnerships:
Donut Wars: Is it Really About the Coffee?
Students contemplated a question they could really sink their teeth into: What impact would the introduction of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts into the Boston market have on the Dunkin’ Donuts chain? Does franchise expansion affect revenue and earnings? Are all donuts equally nutritious? Bentley students examined these questions, conducted research and completed product analysis using the Center for Marketing Technology and the chemistry lab as their classrooms.
Digital Entertainment and the Campus Network
With a tradition of embracing business ethics, students partnered with Ruckus Network, a local start-up company focused on providing a legal alternative to delivering online music, video, and local entertainment to higher education. Students learned about the challenges of new business development, actively participated in new market research, and examined pricing strategy and the fundamentals of competitive advantage for emerging companies in the Internet age. Using the Center for Marketing Technology (CMT), students conducted focus groups and web surveys, analyzed company research, and explored databases.
Redefining the Au Bon Pain Experience
At the time of this project, Au Bon Pain was in the early stages of a re-launch to dramatically differentiate itself from its competitors. As the company was celebrating its 25th anniversary, many of its cafés were renovating décor and color scheme to add contemporary lighting and an enhanced menu reflective of its French bakery roots and heritage. Our students worked with Au Bon Pain’s management team to investigate whether the redesigned cafés met the needs of shoppers at malls across the country, including the Natick Mall, located just 20 minutes from Bentley.
Getting a Kick out of Marketing
Bentley students spent a semester delving into the youth soccer market in New England by developing and presenting a comprehensive marketing plan for a new soccer company. Working with top-level management on a weekly basis, students determined the skill set needed to compete at an elite level and created the framework for an ideal soccer camp. Event planning and promotion of a “Futbol Festival” was also part of the syllabus, using current Bentley students as a sample population.
Recasting “The Taste of Boston”
Teaming up with Entercom Communications Corporation, the fifth-largest broadcasting entity in the United States, students worked to reformulate and re-launch a currently underperforming event, “The Taste of Boston.” Students evaluated its existing venue, timing and participants, and made recommendations to recast the citywide tradition. They developed marketing strategies for Entercom’s four Boston radio stations and aimed to increase The Taste of Boston’s gross earnings to more than $1 million.
Students have also worked with other companies, including: Feld Entertainment and Disney, Suzuki Cars, Blitz Media, Sunset Marina, Yankee Holidays, Ford, and SAGA.
