Living by the two m’s: Marketing and mentorship

Azim Akhtar likes to win, and he doesn’t mind saying so. 

On May 19, 2022, Akhtar (Marketing Management ‘13) received the G. Raymond Chang Outstanding Volunteer Award recognizing his continued contributions to Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) as a mentor to students at the Ted Rogers School of Management. Nearly a decade after graduating, he remains active with the school through speaking engagements, judging case competitions and helping develop content for the Brand Marketing Bootcamp students can access through the Business Career Hub. 

“I provided insight to real life scenarios,” says Akhtar, “how branding contributes to growth and what your career looks like as a marketer. Practicality is key because it is difficult to translate what you are learning to the ‘real world.’ By sharing examples from my previous jobs, I can connect school with industry.” 

Akhtar points out that being in the downtown core is a competitive advantage for marketing students. Just by stepping outside, they are surrounded by advertisements and other marketing executions in the field. The fundamentals and group work emphasized in Marketing Management built the necessary foundation for a career in marketing, but Akhtar credits more recent additions, like the Ted Rogers School’s co-op program and Bootcamp, as further incentives for students to get involved and upskill. 

“When I interview interns, the ones who have work experience or exposure to other professionals — their level of knowledge is greater than those who have not participated. That's why it is important to set yourself up for success in the future and accelerate your journey.”

The G. Raymond Chang Outstanding Volunteer Award caps off a long list of accomplishments as a marketer and brand manager, including his new role as Director, Marketing at KFC Canada. KFC’s parent company, Yum! Brands, has seen healthy growth (opens in new window)  over the last few years; Akhtar will be working to “transform and modernize” the iconic KFC brand in Canada and eagerly anticipates working directly with in-store and customer experience teams to elevate in-store sales. Having cut his teeth in the food and beverage industry, including a three year stint at Obsidian Group and over five years at Hershey, Akhtar is familiar with the creativity and strategic thinking it takes to lead successful brands. 

Like any good data-driven marketer, Akhtar fires off his performance stats when asked about key moments that have shaped his career, including the 27% growth he delivered in just two years for Hershey’s Oh Henry brand —  he’s also quick to credit past mentors in his corner. “I’ve had the chance to be surrounded by incredible leaders in my career who have helped advocate on my behalf.”

Akhtar believes that paying it forward to early-career professionals helps you as much as it helps them. “It keeps you hungry. Giving advice on how to lead only reminds me to follow my own advice.” 

Working two jobs to pay his way through school, Akhtar didn’t have time to take full advantage of university resources; this only pushed him to further his involvement as an alumnus, years later. “It comes down to the fact that I didn’t have any help when I was growing up,” explains Akhtar. “My parents are immigrants and I lived in government housing for over 20 years. As soon as I landed my first job and started being successful, I really wanted to make sure that if there was someone who wanted help, they got it.”

“The questions I get are the same ones I had when I [was a student]. Questions like,‘how do I land my first job?’ ‘How do I build connections?’”

This passion for both marketing and mentorship led to his co-founding of BrandCast (external link, opens in new window) , which offers networking events, coaching and resources for people to broaden their scope in marketing. Akhtar is also on the Board of Directors of Open. (external link, opens in new window)  connecting early-career creative professionals with mentors in arts and entrepreneurship. In one interview (external link, opens in new window) , Akhtar estimated that he’s provided some form of mentorship to over 100 people. 

Ean van Staalduinen (Marketing Management ‘19) is one of those 100 people. Currently a New Business Manager at Bayview Flowers, van Staalduinen reached out after hearing Akhtar speak at a panel in 2017. “After my summer marketing internship at Smuckers,” he explains, “I had some difficulty finding a full-time role. I was chatting to other [consumer packaged goods] professionals, but it was Azim who gave me the best help.” 

Having landed a role as an Associate Brand Manager at Hershey in 2020, van Staalduinen credits Akhtar with getting him in front of senior marketing management who “expedited” the interview.

“I was on a panel one year after I graduated,” Akhtar answers when asked about what he says to students who come to him looking for guidance, “and there was a CEO who said to only work at a company you love. But it's less about finding what you love right out of university and more about finding the discipline. University is meant to help you understand what you are gravitating towards, getting your foot in the door and then finding what is perfect.” 

Accomplished as a seasoned marketer but true to form as an engaged mentor, Akhtar looks to the new generation of students entering the field as early-career professionals.“Students have all the opportunities in the world. There are jobs being created that did not exist when I was in university.”