School outreach and scholarship program
The BrandLab has been growing steadily since its inception in 2007, and this year, the organization is kicking off its summer season with a whole new offering: a work-ready training week.
Started by
OLSON and expanded to include other agencies, The BrandLab creates opportunities in the marketing industry for students with diverse cultural and economic backgrounds (see The Line's previous coverage
here).
This year, executive director Ellen Walthour was chatting with a 3M executive about wanting to broaden the initial training that's done when the students arrive. Since the participants range in age from 17 to 20, most haven't had a professional job and sometimes have trouble adjusting to a business environment.
3M offered to pay for a week of training, and that kicked off a flurry of networking and workshop development, with a range of topics planned. Students will learn about how to act at a business lunch, what to wear, how to write in a professional manner, what to expect in an informational interview, and how to brand themselves.
"It's been amazing to see how this has all come together," says Walthour. "People are so eager to help, and we have workshop leaders from several agencies in town."
The main goal, she adds, is to give the students confidence when they're walking into their 7-week internship. From there, they can learn about how to eventually stand out in a competitive job marketplace and compete against a large pool of talented professionals.
If all goes well, it's likely that The BrandLab will implement the week-long workshop again next year, and keep the business insights buzzing for its fortunate interns.
Source: Ellen Walthour, The BrandLab
Writer: Elizabeth Millard