Voices: the CMB Blog

By the CMB Light the Night Team

Thursday, October 10th, CMBers will gather for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Light the Night walk. The annual walk raises money to support a cure for the millions of people around the world who suffer from blood cancers. This is the 6th year CMB has had the honor of participating in this event and our dedicated team members have hosted a bbq and silent auction, a paint night, happy hours, bake sales (CMBers do love to cook!) and other creative fundraising events. Now it's just two days until the walk, and we're thrilled to announce that CMB is a  top 3 fundraiser for the LLS Boston Chapter!

As many of you know, the walk has a special place in our hearts because Catherine Shannon, our Director of Finance (and our inspiration to start walking in the first place) has been in remission from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma for 3+ years.  We couldn't be more thankful for the research that led to the treatment that has helped Catherine, and so many others, get healthy.

Thank you so much to everyone who has donated so far, and if you're in town this Thursday please join us as we walk for a cure.

 If you'd like to donate click on The CMB Light the Night Team Page.

You might call me a CMB “success story” (seriously, go ahead it has a nice ring to it), in a few short years I’ve made the journey from intern to Project Manager. Because I know my way around these parts, I’m often asked to interview Associate Researcher candidates. I like to think I’ve worked here long enough, and in enough roles, to vet whether a candidate is the “right fit for CMB." Through numerous interviews I’ve come up with a few questions I ask all candidates regardless of position. One of my favorites: what is it about you specifically, that would make you an excellent fit for this position?The Associate Research position is quite technical, requiring a strict attention to detail and programming skills in various platforms, so of course, the first thing I listen for is an attention to detail and strong problem solving skills. However, what I am really looking for is the desire and ability to work “in the weeds” as we call it and then surface for air and impart value to the project strategically; someone who is as enthusiastic and engaged in how our work is used by our clients as they are in the work itself. To me, the difference between a good associate and a great associate is one who is not just a worker bee but a thinker bee.  Not only is this beneficial to projects, but the daily work becomes more satisfying when associates are as invested in the meaning of the data as they are in the accuracy of the data.

Recently, I was discussing the Business Decision Worksheet (one of the tools we use to stay focused on how our clients will use their data) when a senior level colleague mentioned that he encourages all levels of employees to take on the work of the level above them. That is exactly the sentiment I want to hear from candidates interviewing at CMB, and it’s exactly why I am not the only “success story” around here.  Encouraging employees to work to the next level, with the support and guidance of the most senior staff, prepares them for the next level, ensuring smooth transitions and a capable project team.

Given that several candidates I’ve interviewed are currently employed at CMB, I would like to think that they were wooed as much by my rousing speech on engaging project work and growth opportunities as they were by the promise of free beer on Friday afternoons.

We're hiring! Take a look at all our Career Opportunities here.

Check out this short video to learn more about why we love working at CMB:

Elizabeth is a Project Manager at CMB. In addition to 4+ years of experience at CMB, she has honed her interviewing skills during her work with the Moving Ahead Program at St. Francis House, a 14-week life skills and job readiness program for unemployed ex-offenders and other individuals with histories of substance abuse, homelessness, or mental illness, participating in mock interviews and resume reviews.

From the CMB Light the Night Team:

Last Thursday, CMB employees, friends, and family gathered for our annual Light the Night BBQ and silent auction to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). While the LLS supports research for millions of people around the world who suffer from blood cancer, we started participating in Light the Night for reasons a lot closer to home. In 2008, Catherine Shannon, our Director of Finance, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. And when Catherine began what was to become two years of grueling treatment, CMB got walking.We went looking for creative ways to sponsor our team, and as luck would have it, CMBers aren’t just talented market researchers. Our Field Services Manager Jared Huizenga is President of the New England Barbecue Society, and for the past 5 years, he’s catered a full lunch including some seriously delicious pulled pork, corn bread, and macaroni and cheese, for over 60 enthusiastic ticketholders. This year, Jared started cooking at 4pm the afternoon before, eking out three hours of sleep, and showing us why he’s a champion competitive griller.

The silent auction was another chance to show-off the secret, and not so secret skills of other CMB team members. There were dozens of things on offer, including two hours of landscaping from Jonah and Sean, tech help from technology gurus Abdullah and Marc, custom designed party invitations from Stephanie, and of course a whole range of foods—from full meals like Rich’s chicken Vindaloo dinners and Tomoko’s Japanese curry to delicacies like T.J.’s homemade cannoli and ravioli.  All this eating (tough work) and bidding got us $4,000 closer to this year’s goal of $18,000. 

In the five years the CMB team has participated in the walk, we’ve raised over $36,000 and while it’s one of our favorite times of the year at CMB, we never forget why we started walking. Due in no small part to the advances made in cancer research, Catherine has been in remission for 2+ years.  We want to help more families have happy outcomes.  The LLS funds research with the goal of curing blood cancer and at the same time provides support to patients and their families.

From the LLS website:  When LLS was founded in 1949, a blood cancer diagnosis was almost always fatal. Thanks in part to innovative research funded by LLS, survival rates have doubled, tripled and even quadrupled for blood cancer patients. Today, cancer research in one area helps across all types of cancers.  One example of this is the approval of the revolutionary drug Gleevac. The 10-year survival rate for certain blood cancer patients improved from 1 in 10 to nearly 9 in 10.  Gleevac is also approved for patients with rare skin and stomach tumors, and is showing promise in many other cancers.

Help in the fight against cancer by donating to our team. Please click on the link below and give what you can.  Every dollar helps.  We want to kick cancer’s butt!

The CMB Light the Night Team Page

Posted  by Senior PM Lynne Castronuovo, Director of Finance Catherine Shannon, Office Manager Adrianne Economu, and Senior Associate Sean Kearney, who are constantly thinking up new ways to help us Light the Night.

One of the things I love most about the culture of CMB is the passion of our people, inside and outside the office. It inspires me each and every day.   Last week our HR Manager, Marlo Manning was named a CNN Hero for the charity she founded called Fairy Dog Parents. In Marlo’s “spare” time she managed to turn the loss of her beloved dog into a nonprofit that has helped over 400 dogs get the care they need when their owners have fallen on hard times.

Let’s face it, times are still tough for people. When unemployment hits and they are faced figuring out how to care for their family, pay the rent or mortgage and put food on the table, many people are forced to give up their pets. This is where Fairy Dog Parents steps in, easing the financial burden of caring for a dog so they can stay in their loving homes by paying for everything from dog food to vet bills.

A lot of us have ideas on how to make an impact or causes that we are passionate about, but time, jobs, family and “life” sometimes gets in the way of acting on those ideas or causes.  But for some that passion runs deep and inspires them to push on, to make it happen, to follow through and not give up. Passionate people do amazing things which often becomes contagious and inspires others to act.

Another cause we are all very passionate about here at CMB is the Light the Night foundation that supports the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Six years ago when one of our own CMBer’s was diagnosed with this terrible disease, I was once again taken back by how the company rallied together and acted on their passion to make a difference and support Catherine.  Through the last 4 years as a team we have raised over $35,000 for Light the Night by participating in the Boston Walk. And Catherine has been cancer free for 3 years. This walk has become a CMB tradition, part of who we are as a company and an important way we put our passion to work. We are gearing up for this year’s walk taking place on October 11^th. The CMB team is working hard to raise funds through friends, family and a silent Auction and BBQ. We would love your support for our team, please donate here.

For me personally it’s this passion that runs deep in our culture both in the work we do for our clients and in our personal lives. It gives me inspiration, motivation and my own sense of passion to make a difference. When you are surrounded by people like that every day it becomes contagious and is part of our company’s DNA. It makes us better researchers, marketers, accountants, managers… it makes us all just a little bit more passionate about life.

Posted by Kristen Garvey. Kristen is CMB's VP of Marketing, a mom of two, and an adjunct professor at Boston College Carroll School of Management. You can follow Kristen on Twitter @KristenGarvey

You have a loyalty program, you offer discounts, special rewards, and you track your growth.

Well so does everyone else.

Judy Melanson shares tips for optimizing your loyalty program so you can break away from the pack, and make the most of your loyalty investment.

Read more about our work with loyalty programs here.