Hosted by the GS Alumni Relations Team, this Alumni in Conversation panel focused on four GS Alumni with careers in public relations, marketing, and communications. Goodfuse Communications Account Director Michael Rovner ‘18GS moderated the discussion which featured Aggie Burnett '10GS, Yoav Guttman ‘10GS, and Lori Paulson ‘21GS. They shared hard-earned advice, key skills, and personal experiences that may aid an interested student in earning a successful marketing position.
Getting Started Now
One resounding agreement during the panel was that writing skills and the ability to accept constructive feedback are the most important qualities in a potential communications employee. To develop these skills, they recommend starting right here at GS. Paulson, who is Strategic Initiatives Manager at University Life here at Columbia University, urged students to work for on-campus communications departments, whether that be GS, University Life or beyond. Paulson and her co-panelists also encouraged pursuing student group marketing experience while at Columbia.
Guttman, the Founder & Managing Director at Guttman Marketing Advisory Collective, said that the easiest place to start developing your skills as a marketing professional is in student organizations. “Student organizations are a microcosm of a professional workplace…especially marketing.” Positions within these student organizations could be the difference between you or another student landing a coveted internship or future job position.
Taking Advantage of Every Opportunity
One thing these PR panelists valued is a sense of resourcefulness. As Burnett, Beauty Brand Strategist & Publicist at AB Creative NY, put it, being in communications means being able to “build the plane while it’s taking off.” In other words, someone in this broad industry needs to be comfortable figuring things out on the go, often searching for answers in their own resources first. She strongly encouraged students to take initiative outside of their assigned role. Burnett cited her first internship with Glamour, describing that she spent her lunch breaks helping the beauty department, not the department she was assigned. This landed her a part-time position with this Condé Nast affiliate after the internship was over. Burnett emphasized asking, “How can I squeeze the absolute juice out of this opportunity?”
The panelists went so far as to say that the best way to apply to jobs is to reach out to companies you’re interested in before positions are even posted. This way you have one foot in the door and demonstrate invested interest in the company. Paulson recommended reaching out after an interview, whether or not the interview results were positive for feedback. In fact, that’s how she landed her current position.
Marketing Yourself
The trick to becoming a marketing professional is learning to market yourself. It’s a creative industry and so it is best, as Guttman argued, to “Lean into your creativity and create or write a lot.” And of course, to be active on Linkedin. Turning yourself into a valuable asset for a business was a recurring discussion during the panel. Take your skillset and make them tangible for a business. After all, companies want to know what makes you unique and what you will contribute.
Overall, the panelists emphasized being an effective communicator. Paulson said it’s important to demonstrate your value as a contributor to the company. She asked, “Can you do the day-to-day job or do you want to do the day-to-day work?” That want to do the day-to-day work could separate a good future employee from a truly great one.
