MIM on the Go: Columbia Sportswear Headquarters

PSU Master in International Management students (MIMers) are constantly on the go–juggling class, team meetings, networking events, social events, homework, family, etc, etc. They are a busy bunch but they still make time for meeting new people and learning about the ins and outs of anything related to international business. This afternoon a handful of MIMers took time out of their busy day to meet up with Steve Fenker, MIM alumni, at Columbia Sportswear Headquarters in Portland, Oregon.

Fenker is currently Columbia Sportswear’s Director of Sourcing and previously held the position of Strategic Operations Manager. The tour included a brief Q&A session in the cafe with questions related to Fenker’s current position, his recent business trip to Hong Kong, Columbia’s manufacturing overseas, and how best to position oneself to land a job with Columbia after graduation. Following the Q&A session, Fenker took the group on a tour of the office ranging from the accounting to design departments–complete with the “fabric sample library,” and then ended the tour with a stop at Columbia’s employee store.

Fenker graduated from PSU’s Master in International Management program in 2005. He is still very active in MIM activities and regularly participates in new student orientation panels. MIMers who attended today included three soon-to-be graduates as of this December: Will Sandman, Junyi Zhao, and Matt Snyder, and two December 2011 candidates: Lisa Stensby and Ali Mondragon.

Thank you, Steve Fenker, for taking the time to meet with MIM students!

Columbia Sportswear's "Mother Boyle."

Fenker (R) explains Columbia's new technology in its gear to PSU MIMers (L-R) Matt Snyder, Junyi Zhao, Will Sandman, and Lisa Stensby.

Sorry that the tour ended but the employee store is a nice way to say goodbye.