John Brownrigg, MBA ’84, is searching for work during challenging economic times. After chronicling his experiences for the last few months on the McCombs Alumni Network News blog, the Wall Street Journal has taken interest in his story and now features John on their blog. 

From The Wall Street Journal

John was a senior manager at Corporex Companies LLC, a real-estate development company. Mr. Brownrigg, 54, was laid off in August 2008 after almost two years with the company. Previously, he worked on commercial real estate and construction projects for General Electric, Ericsson and the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. He earned an M.B.A. from University of Texas Austin in 1984. He lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife and two children.

 I’ve lost out on a couple of good jobs recently when I was perceived as being overqualified, overpaid and maybe overage or overconfident — who knows what. Career pages on company Web sites call out for “great talent,” “passionate team players” and “champions striving to be No. 1” I’m thinking of Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter, Peyton and Eli Manning — were any of these athletes perceived to be overqualified, and therefore not considered for employment? The concept is absurd in the sports world, where teams are truly competing to be champions. Click here to continue reading from The Wall Street Journal.