MBA Recruiter Interview: Symantec

Perhaps best known as the maker of Norton consumer security software, Symantec is one of the biggest companies in the cybersecurity space. Founded in 1982, Symantec’s workforce now numbers approximately 11,000 employees in 35 countries, including MBAs. In this interview, Symantec’s senior manager of global staffing, Tina Randhawa, outline’s Symantec’s MBA recruitment process as well as what the company looks for in its MBA hires.

Why do you think so many MBAs want to work for Symantec?

We are headquartered in Silicon Valley where so much innovation is taking place. Plus, there are many different roles inside the organization – from product management to strategy or finance – which provide candidates with a variety of positions that will be suited to their background and interests.

Could you please give an overview of the MBA recruitment process at Symantec?

We conduct on-campus informational sessions and networking opportunities at campuses to help us drive interest in jobs that we post on a school’s career site. Students are directed to apply by a specific deadline in order to be selected for an on-campus interview (OCI) for the first round. Once first-round interviews are completed, we have traditionally invited strong candidates to one of our office locations (usually Mountain View or Culver City, California) for an on-site interview. Once the on-site interviews are completed, we work with our hiring and interviewing teams to select those to whom we extend offers.

What are the most common MBA job roles at Symantec?

Product managers on the technical side; finance on the non-technical side.

What do you look for when evaluating a candidate’s résumé and experience?

We look for knowledge about our company and aptitude for the roles we’re looking to fill. We look for candidates who can be flexible during organizational changes. And, of course, we look for the more traditional things, like cultural fit and previous applicable experience.

What technical skills do MBAs need to have in order to work for Symantec?

The skills we look for are dependent on the roles - some roles require a technical and/or engineering background, some require previous finance or consulting experience.

What should MBAs do in order to make a good first impression on recruiters? Conversely, what should they avoid doing?

Take part in the process, ask questions and be flexible (and patient) as we work with internal stakeholders to finalize decisions. Most importantly, be excited and genuine about the opportunity we’re presenting to you!

How many students do you typically recruit each year from the US? What about overseas?

We have a range of between 15 and 20 MBAs for internships each summer; we do not recruit students from schools outside of the US for US-based roles.

Which business schools and MBA conferences do you usually recruit from and why?

We recruit at many business schools; we also look to hire MBA talent from a variety of national and local diversity conferences that we attend throughout the year.

What are some common misconceptions that MBAs have about Symantec and the cybersecurity industry?

A common misconception is that you have to have all the technical skills in order to be considered; we are looking to match a candidate’s interest just as much as experience. We are not expecting our candidates to know everything, but we do ask them to be open to learning.