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Nashville, TN - July 31, 2009 - The Brand Group, a new endeavor of the Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management, successfully executed their virtual marketing agency pilot with the assistance of Equinox Information Systems based in Madison, TN. The Brand Group was created in to enhance Marketing MBA candidates' education through real-world experience and to supply Nashville-area companies with executable marketing strategies.
Equinox Information Systems is a successful small business in the telecommunications industry and touts such clients as PAETEC, Consolidated Communications, and CenturyLink. Started in 1986 with a focus on life-work balance, Equinox emphasized a commitment to both their clients and their employees. Equinox offered to partner with The Brand Group for the pilot. Their objective was to create a more powerful impact through marketing communications which better reflected their established stature in the telecom industry.
Yvonne Martin-Kidd, Director of Marketing for Vanderbilt's Owen Graduate School of Management, brought to life the concept of this virtual marketing agency for Owen MBA students in the spring of 2009. With the assistance of Jim Quiggins, VP of Sales and Marketing at Equinox, the project-based class provided Owen MBA students the opportunity to gain marketing experience and earn credit while serving as adjunct brand managers for Equinox. The five members of The Brand Group utilized their individual areas of expertise in order to create a comprehensive and actionable set of recommendations for Equinox. The eight-week engagement culminated in a presentation to the Equinox Executive Team, which was well received. Byron Middendorf, Equinox founder and CEO, described the work as "highly professional and insightful." He further indicated "We (Equinox) felt that the group quickly understood our niche market and our solutions and honed in on the values we want to promote to clients and employees."
The success of The Brand Group's pilot has prompted the Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management to look into officially rolling out this program in the upcoming school year. Further impressed with the high-caliber work done by the Owen students, Equinox continued their relationship with the school and hired a first year Marketing MBA student to execute on some of The Brand Group's recommendations.
About Equinox
Founded in 1986, with hundreds of customers worldwide, Equinox Information Systems is a global provider of software solutions for the telecommunications industry. Providing a full range of software applications, which are backed by exceptional customer support, the company offers solutions in areas critical to profitability and network efficiency, including revenue assurance, fraud management, mediation, network analysis, and custom application development. For more information, visit Equinox at www.equinoxis.com.
