Broadcasting Degree Takes Patrick Whittam ’93 From Multimedia Production to Corporate Communications

Patrick Whittam ’93 did not anticipate a career in corporate communications; it was not even in his plan to study broadcasting. You might even say that his Montclair journey began at another college entirely. “I had enrolled in the elementary education program at a university in Philadelphia, but it wasn’t the best fit for me,” he says. “But while I was there, I got involved with a group reviving the on-campus radio station. That’s when I started thinking about switching my major to broadcasting.”

Whittam’s sister, at the time a dance major at Montclair, told him about the new broadcasting facilities being built at the University. He decided to come home to New Jersey to finish his college education. “I fell in love with television broadcasting,” he says.

He found additional inspiration – and gained valuable experience – through the University’s theater department. “I had an on-campus job as a stagehand at Memorial Auditorium working on Theatre Department shows as well as external productions. I made a lot of friends in the theater department and got involved with the student performance group Players. I even got to play a role in their production of Pippin.”

After graduation, Whittam launched a New Jersey-based multimedia production company. “We did a lot of corporate work and local cable broadcasts,” he says. “We also produced documentaries, including one about a ship that went down during World War II.”

Newly married with his first child on the way, Whittam took a role as a senior communications specialist, and later as manager of Internal Communications with the business unit then known as Prudential Investments. After a brief stint at JPMorgan Chase & Co., he rejoined Prudential’s captive distribution channel, then known as Agency Distribution, as a director of Internal Communications. Along the way, he earned a master’s degree in media studies from The New School, and in 2018, was named director of communications for Prudential’s International Businesses.

“I partner with the communications teams across our international markets to make sure they have the information they need to tell Prudential’s story in the markets,” Whittam explains, “and I make sure their unique stories are amplified throughout the rest of the Organization.”

More than ever, Whittam appreciates the universal skills his Montclair professors emphasized. “No matter what you do, relationship building, clear communication and project management are important,” he says. “When I started at Prudential, I ran a multimedia production team. Now that my role is client-facing, I am often required to communicate between the client and the production side. The skills I learned at Montclair, along with my production experience, have allowed me to be a more effective leader in this role.”

With a demanding career and a growing family, Whittam hadn’t considered becoming involved in alumni activities at Montclair – until he connected with Michele Ansbacher ’80, former corporate vice president at Prudential, who is the executive-in-residence at the Feliciano School of Business and current chair of its advisory board. The two have been instrumental in developing MSU + Pru, an alumni affinity group at the company.

“We have about 125 members, and we are working to connect with more,” Whittam says. “Since 2019 we have hosted an annual site visit for Montclair MBA and undergraduate students. For some, it is their first experience in a corporate setting. We organize a half day of activities including tours and presentations from Montclair alumni who work at Prudential.”

Planning for the site visits can sometimes start months in advance. Whittam helps coordinate with Montclair faculty teaching consulting classes to create fictional case studies based on Prudential for students to develop as part of the curriculum.

“The students meet with Prudential leaders a couple times over the course of the semester to ask questions and get feedback on their progress,” he says. “During their visit to Prudential, the teams present their findings to the alumni, leaders and faculty in attendance where they are asked some really challenging questions. Not only do they get real-world experience, they also get credit toward their degree.”

Whittam has since joined, and now chairs, the Feliciano School of Business’s MBA Advisory Board. His mission for MSU + Pru and the MBA Advisory Board is twofold: to increase Montclair graduates’ visibility within the corporation, and to help students appreciate the range of career opportunities available at Prudential.

“I have gotten more out of my alumni involvement at Montclair than I could ever have expected,” Whittam says. “There are so many wonderful opportunities to engage with students – and they are more impressive than you can imagine. In addition, I get to think about long term value of a Montclair MBA and how we can help influence the curriculum, as well as how alumni like me can use our corporate roles to spread the word about the program.”

“The side benefit is that I also enjoy networking through my involvement,” he continues. “Recently I met Oscar Munoz, retired chairman and CEO of United Airlines, who was part of the MBA program’s fall 2025 executive lecture series. It was an exciting opportunity that I would not have had otherwise.”

“I still have a lot of friends from my student days,” Whittam adds. “And now I am making new ones as an alumnus.”