Corporate Relations

The Office of Corporate Relations provides companies with a gateway to philanthropy through the University of Michigan. We maintain and establish strategic relationships with corporations. Our team focuses on identifying opportunities that advance the mission of both organizations.

We serve to provide a clear focus and ideal customer experience for our corporate partners, based on interest and opportunity, in areas such as:

• Student Talent
• Recruitment
• Corporate Education
• Strategic Giving

For Companies

Recruiting

Before getting started, it is important to know that the University of Michigan is a decentralized campus that offers employers access to a broad array of top U-M student talent. Recruiting organizations seeking candidates from a range of disciplines have the opportunity to work through the University Career Center. If your needs are more targeted to specific student populations, engaging in recruiting activity within our academic units may be the approach you wish to take. Based on your needs, it may benefit you to work with multiple offices. The career network on campus is highly collaborative, and we will work closely with you to ensure your goals are met through the opportunities and services we provide. You can also learn more about recruiting at Hire Blue.

Student Groups

U-M student groups are a great way for companies to engage with students who are interested in specific topics, such as blockchain or women in computing. To start searching for student groups, visit the University's Maize Pages, a central repository of more than 1,200 student organizations. Links to many student organizations can be found on Maize Pages, but others are easily accessed directly through their respective school or college.

IP & Commercialization

If your company is interested in learning more about what is available at Michigan, we can help connect you with our office of Innovation Partnerships.

Vendor Relationships

To learn more about becoming a vendor for the University of Michigan, please refer to our procurement office.

Entrepreneurship at Michigan

If you are interested in learning more about what is happening on campus with student innovation and entrepreneurship, please check out the Zell Lurie Institute at the Ross School of Business or the Center for Entrepreneurship at the College of Engineering.

Student Projects

While working with unit career centers is vital to successful recruiting, we also recommend partnering on student projects to build rapport with students and determine if they are a good fit for your organization. Course-based projects and programs across campus offer students the opportunity to engage in real-world applications of their academic experience. The same programs offer organizations the opportunity to leverage students to solve pressing issues, access U-M student talent, and find closer connections to the university. Whatever skill set you're interested in or project you have in mind, we have options to help you. Please see this Student Project Matrix here for a complete list of student projects.

Below are some highlighted programs:

• Multidisciplinary Design Program (MDP)—the MDP is a competitively selected program for students. Approximately 40 teams of five-to-seven talented students annually tackle engineering and/or data science projects for various corporate, start-up, nonprofit, and government organizations. All teams start in January and end in December and are jointly mentored by a dedicated U-M faculty member and a member of your organization.
• Multidisciplinary Action Project (MAP)—The Ross MAP course is one of the most intense, student-driven learning experiences in business education. Teams of students tackle pressing business challenges for sponsor organizations—major corporations, start-ups, and nonprofit—all over the world. At the heart of MAP is a mutually beneficial collaboration between students, faculty, and sponsor organizations.
• The Tauber Institute for Global Operations (Tauber)—Tauber unites top students and industries in a 14-week, multidisciplinary, collaborative project. Team projects are highly visible operations-related challenges with both engineering and business components. A successful project results in a significant return on a sponsoring company's investment.
• School of Information Projects—from user experience design to data/information analysis to library and archives consulting, Client Opportunities in the School of Information offer the opportunity to solve the pressing needs of an organization. In these courses, students deploy their developing knowledge and skills to address real information challenges in a variety of areas.
• UM-Dearborn Business Analytics Capstone Project—this program partners with Fortune 500 companies, startups, and nonprofits to provide capstone projects for our master's students. These projects give students the opportunity to apply their skills in quantitative design, modeling, and analysis while finding solutions to open-ended problems with large datasets. Students work with a UM-Dearborn faculty advisor and a mentor for a 14-15 week period.

Contact Information

We can assist you in creating a customized philanthropic program that aligns directly with your business objectives and boosts your company's visibility at all U-M schools, colleges, and campuses.

Umesh Patel
Sr. Director, Corporate Relations
ucpatel@umich.edu

The Office of Corporate Relations, Formerly part of the Business Engagement Center (BEC)

• The former Business Engagement Center, established in 2007, was jointly administered by the Office of Research and Office of University Development as the central U-M office for corporate engagement, including sponsored research, corporate philanthropy, talent, and recruitment.
• Today, the Office of Corporate Relations is located within the U-M Office of University Development, and the Corporate Research Alliances unit is aligned with the U-M Office of Tech Transfer, part of the U-M Office of Research. For sponsored research and licensing opportunities, please contact Bryce Pilz in the Corporate Research Alliances unit at bpilz@umich.edu.