Accountants play an important role in every type of organization, large and small, profit and non-profit. Accountants often perform a range of activities from creating and analyzing balance sheets to evaluating a company’s efficiency and profitability. Accountants often initially pursue one of two career paths: auditing or tax. Those in the auditing field work with a team to perform audits for both publicly and privately held companies. Those in the tax industry may be preparing tax forms for individuals, estates, trusts, corporations, and partnerships. A major aspect of accounting that has received a lot of attention in the past decade is understanding the compliance requirements enforced by the government. The use of accounting information systems has also become a vital part of the career in recent years.

Typical careers for Accounting majors

• Public accounting
  • Audit
  • Tax
  • Consulting
  • Personal Financial Planning
• Government accounting
• Corporate accounting
  • Controller
  • Treasurer
  • Internal Audit
  • Chief Financial Officer
  • Tax

Examples of companies that hire Accounting majors

• KPMG
• PricewaterhouseCoopers
• Deloitte
• Ernst & Young
• Grant Thornton
• Most companies have an accounting division

Entrepreneurs must understand first and foremost what it takes to manage and run a successful business. Entrepreneurs often wear many hats in their company and must accept leadership and responsibility for all activities that take place. It’s their job to develop a business plan and course of action for the company, and to be familiar with the industry. They often work directly with their customers on a day-to-day basis.

Typical careers for Entrepreneurial Management majors

While a small number of students start their own businesses directly upon graduating from the Carlson School of Management, the majority choose to gain experience first by working for an organization. Positions such as consulting or account management provide multi-faceted, strategic experience. Participation in the CSOM course, Entre in Action, provides students with real-life experience starting a business, and has resulted in sustainable businesses.

Examples of businesses founded by Carlson undergraduates

• Tai Kwan Do studio
• Fitness studio
• Software application for iPhone
• Students Today–Leaders Forever, a non-profit organization

Beginning a career in finance-based field requires a good understanding of the present economy and the stock market. Financial analysts will frequently work with complex computer programs to project financial data into the future and analyze trends. Making substantial investment decisions is a key characteristic of a financial-related position and career. Most people in a finance career will eventually specialize in a distinct area of finance, such as investment analysis, corporate finance, or real estate. Others will lean towards careers that involve advising clients on financial matters.

Typical careers for Finance majors

• Financial analyst
• Financial consultant
• Commercial banker
• Corporate finance
• Money managers
• Financial planners
• Financial real estate

Examples of companies that hire Finance majors

• Target
• Cargill
• General Mills
• Ameriprise
• Wells Fargo
• IBM
• Piper Jaffray
• UBS

Individuals who enter the combined field of Finance & Risk Management often find themselves analyzing the risk of accidents, incidents, and catastrophes. They are also responsible for monitoring large scale issues and their impact on the economy. Once these risks have been identified, they look for ways to reduce the probability of occurrence. This career will regularly involve working with complex statistical and financial models to design and price insurance policies.

Typical careers for Finance & Risk Management Insurance majors

• Corporate risk manager
• Employee benefits specialist
• Risk management and insurance consultant
• Insurance company underwriter
• Claims adjuster
• Loss control specialist
• Insurance agent
• Chief risk officer

Examples of companies that hire Finance & Risk Management Insurance majors

• Travelers
• State Farm Insurance
• Ameriprise Financial
• Allianz
• Insurance Companies
• Most banks, including Wells Fargo and TCF

Human Resource professionals work with employment issues such as recruiting, staffing, training, compensation and benefit packages, and health and safety in the workplace. HR professionals must have a solid understanding of the field of psychology as they are often called to explore sources of workplace tension and motivation, and practice techniques for resolving conflict. A major component of the job is learning labor and employment law as well as understanding and working with labor unions.

Typical careers for HRIR majors

• HR generalists
• HR management
• Compensation manager
• Employee benefits manager
• Recruiters
• Trainers
• HR consultants
• Outplacement specialist

Examples of companies that hire HRIR majors

• United Health Group
• Target
• Travelers
• Most companies have an HR department that hires graduates of this major

A career in international business involves thinking globally about the business environment. Professionals usually need to understand international economics and be sensitive to cultural differences when going about their day to day work. International business primarily deals with managing multinational business and turning local and national companies into international success stories.

Typical careers for International Business majors

• Customs broker
• Export sales representative
• Foreign affairs specialist
• Global sourcing specialist
• International account representative
• International buyer
• Financial analyst
• International consultant
• Product manager
• International trader/broker
• Bilingual educator

Types of companies that hire International Business majors

There are many different types of companies that hire international business majors. Typical companies include most multinational companies, U.S. companies with an international presence, or companies that do business outside of the United States.

Marketing professionals may work in sales careers where they build relationships with customers and clients, understand how to price products, research competitors, and present information to customers to persuade them to buy. Other marketing professionals may specialize in brand management where they create, manage, and promote a specific brand or product line. They must know why consumers buy the things they do, what types of advertising is effective, and who the target market is. Another category of marketing professionals focuses on market research where conducting surveys, researching buying trends, and studying the effectiveness of advertising campaigns is typical.

Typical careers for Marketing majors

• Sales representative
• Retail buyer/merchant
• Market researcher
• Advertising account representative
• Brand coordinator/manager
• Product planner
• Business analyst
• Customer relationship manager
• Public relations associate
• Event planner
• Promotions manager
• Real estate agent

Types of companies that hire Marketing majors

• Almost every organization (corporate, non-profit, and government) that produces either goods or services employs marketing majors to provide market research, strategy, and sales
• Pharmaceutical manufacturers such as Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Glaxo SmithKline, and AstraZeneca hire sales representative/account managers
• Consumer packaged goods (CPG) manufacturers such as General Mills, Nestle, and PepsiCo hire for account management positions and limited marketing analyst and event/promotions management positions
• Advertising firms such as Campbell-Mithun, Carmichael Lynch, and Colle-McVoy hire marketing majors for account management and media planning

MIS professionals are often the problem-solvers of an organization’s IT issues. MIS professionals must have an interest in technology, though positions range from being very technical such as data base development to a much more people-oriented role as a business analyst. A typical role as a business analyst involves working within an organization to establish or improve processes, acting as an intermediary between the user and the programmer. MIS professional also work with ethical and social issues related to the internet as well as computer security.

Typical careers for MIS majors

• Programmer systems analyst or business analyst
• IT consultant
• IT manager/director
• Chief information officer
• Database specialist
• Applications developer
• Information security manager
• End-user support analyst

Types of companies that hire MIS majors

• Virtually every organization of any size in the corporate, non-profit, or government sectors hires MIS professionals
• Technology-based organizations such as Google, IBM, Microsoft, Intel, Sony, Amazon.com, Travelocity, Lawson Software, etc.
• Banks such as Goldman Sachs, Piper Jaffray, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Barclays, US Bank, TCF, and Wells Fargo
• Consulting firms such as Accenture, Bain, BCG, Deloitte, IBM Global Services, and McKinsey

A career in public and nonprofit management focuses on learning how to manage business concerns of nonprofits including board development, facility administration, grant writing, personnel administration, program planning, service delivery, volunteer utilization, and public relations for not-for-profit organizations. Unique challenges include finding creative ways to generate operating finances, attracting high caliber professionals and volunteers without the lure of big money, maintaining goodwill, and finding meaningful evaluation tools with which to measure success and indicate areas for improvement.

Typical careers for Public/Nonprofit Management majors

• Volunteer coordinator
• Grant writer
• Strategic planner
• Financial analyst/budgeting specialist
• Fundraising coordinator
• Programming coordinator
• Director of development
• Director of marketing and communications
• Human resources director
• Executive manager

Types of companies that hire Public/Nonprofit majors

• City, county, state, and federal government organizations
• Social non-profits such as St. Paul Children's Hospital Foundation, Second Harvest/Heartland, Lutheran Social Services, American Red Cross, National Marrow Donor Program, and United Way
• Cultural non-profits such as Minnesota Film & TV, Hennepin Theatre Trust, Walker Art Center, and MPR/The Current
• Environmental non-profits such as the Sierra Club and Nature Conservancy
• Private Foundations such as McKight Foundation, Bush Foundation, and Carl & Eloise Pohlad Foundation
• Corporate philanthropic foundations such as Travelers, Target, Best Buy, Children's, and many others

A career in supply chain and operations management involves managing and coordinating the day-to-day movement of raw materials and other resources throughout a business or an organization and on to the end customer. Supply Chain professionals must be effective problem solvers as they are called to establish business processes that provide efficiency in areas such as purchasing and shipping, budgeting, inventory and quality control, and sourcing. The field of supply chain and operations requires that individuals develop relationships with suppliers, logistics coordinators, wholesalers, retailers, and customers.

Typical careers for Supply Chain and Operations majors

• Forecasting specialist
• Supply/demand planner
• Procurement and purchasing manager
• Inventory control manager
• Operations analyst
• Materials requirements planner
• Order fulfillment coordinator
• Buyer/purchasing agent
• Traffic manager
• Quality analyst
• Six Sigma Green Belt/Black Belt
• Transportation coordinator
• Warehouse manager
• Logistics management analyst

Examples of companies that hire Supply Chain and Operations majors

• General Mills
• Deluxe Corporation
• Target
• Best Buy
• Delta Airlines
• Manufacturing companies
• Most companies that have supply chain, or operations and logistics as part of their business