By Noelle Rotte, MBA student and VP of Communications and Outreach for the Kellstadt Collective
As a first-year student at the Kellstadt Graduate School for Business (KGSB), navigating the endless opportunities and organizations on campus is both exhilarating and overwhelming. However, amidst all the options available, one organization that stands out as a beacon of inclusivity, collaboration, and professional growth is the Kellstadt Collective.
My introduction to the Kellstadt Collective began with the opportunity to revamp the organization through my position as a graduate assistant. I have been able to work with four other MBA students to relaunch a group open to all of KGSB. Little did I know that the Kellstadt Collective was destined to become a cornerstone of my experience at DePaul.
A Successful First Event
Our first event, a study break/happy hour in the Fall Quarter, exceeded all expectations with nearly 70 students in attendance. Our event was located at 2Twenty2 Tavern, just a block away from DePaul’s Loop Campus. We brought together students from all Kellstadt programs, including the MBA and M.S. degrees in marketing, business analytics, hospitality leadership, finance, economics, accounting, supply chain management and many more. This event allowed KGSB students to meet new people outside of their program while grabbing a bite to eat and drinking a cocktail or two.
The success of this event is a testament to Kellstadt students’ desire for more in-person events tied with the ability to make meaningful connections in the KGSB community.
Looking ahead, we plan to hold a professional development event in the winter quarter and have other events, both professional and informal, in the pipeline. Kellstadt students — stay tuned!
From “Partners” to “Collective”
The Kellstadt Collective stemmed from the organization previously known as Kellstadt Partners. While the mission of the revamped organization is aligned closely with the original group’s mission, the leadership of the 2023-24 academic year felt compelled to redefine the group’s essence.
In particular: We felt that the term “partners” suggested a space for spouses or significant others, veering away from the essence of inclusion that truly defined the organization. The name Kellstadt Collective emerged because we wanted to embody a community built on the inclusion of all KGSB students.
We then decided to create a mission centered around the growth and inclusion of KGSB students. Our mission aims to:
- Foster an inclusive environment of collaboration, professional growth, and shared success by leveraging the diverse talents and backgrounds of our members.
- Build a dynamic community of forward-thinkers, innovators, and business leaders.
- Provide robust networking opportunities, enriching professional development experiences, and harnessing the collective spirit of DePaul University’s Kellstadt Graduate School of Business.
Our Leadership Team
Driving the mission of the Kellstadt Collective is a dynamic leadership team, spearheaded by Noah Wallin as President, Noelle Rotte (myself) as VP of Communications and Outreach, Ashlee Bakunowicz as VP of Professional Development and Treasurer, Claude Mueller as VP of Event Coordination, and Niara Tomlinson as VP of Digital Marketing (featured below from left to right).
Each of us has a different background, with some born and raised in the Chicago area, while others are new to this city. Our leadership team was brought together through a Kellstadt Career Managment Center Graduate Assistantship, and we are committed to revitalizing the Kellstadt Collective and enhancing the KGSB experience.
Inclusive Engagement: How to Get Involved
Getting involved in the Kellstadt Collective is easy! The best ways to stay up to date are by following us on online platforms such as LinkedIn, Instagram, and DeHub. Our events are open to every Kellstadt Graduate Business student, so we welcome you to join our community.
As I head into my second quarter of my MBA, I reflect on how the leadership team came together to re-energize the Kellstadt Collective community. I am looking forward to the many networking events and growth opportunities that will come from the Kellstadt Collective. I hope you are too.
By Lauren Somers
This spring, the Kellstadt Marketing Group (KMG), a graduate student organization at DePaul’s business school, organized its annual KMG Marketing Symposium. The one-day event included an impressive lineup of speakers who provided a range of marketing advice. This year’s theme was “Igniting the Future, Making Your Mark” with a focus on entrepreneurship, recruitment and digital transformation. Speakers from a variety of different businesses, experience levels and walks of life joined us to share their perspectives on how to ignite the future of marketing – with DePaul students leading the charge.
Rejuvenated by seeing my peers’ faces in person, the symposium was full of insights. Below are three top takeaways that are still ringing in my marketing ears:
1. The future of marketing is female.
Joined by the extremely talented and enlightening keynote speaker Bridget Brennan, CEO and founder of the Female Factor, we heard and discussed the rising economic and buying power of women. More than 40% of households with kids have a mom who is the primary or only caregiver; 51% of wealth is held by women in today’s market; and 52% of managers are women. The female buyer was once a secondary market, but today, women’s buying power must be valued and captured in every advertising campaign – and this doesn’t just mean making products pink.
2. Becoming a successful entrepreneur has many pathways. Your path can be unique too.
Next, we heard from a panel of DePaul entrepreneurs with businesses ranging from Indian pizza restaurants to Latin American-focused beauty brands. Although the panelists came from different backgrounds and had different reasons for becoming self-employed entrepreneurs, they all shared a similar set of tools for success.
The first tool is your gut. The clear consensus from the entrepreneurship panel was to trust your gut and follow your business instincts. You paid for a DePaul degree for a reason!
The second tool is your unique background and experiences. For Jay Patel, founder of Moti Café and Masala Pizza Company, he found success through his targeted experiences working at different cafes and restaurants, such as Starbucks and Chipotle. Jay used his experiences to differentiate himself from his competitors by learning from workers on the frontlines to build a business model that starts with the customer.
Finally, the panel said that you cannot be a successful entrepreneur without outside help. Entrepreneurs, by nature, want to do it all and do the best. You must accept help from those who offer, and seek it from mentors and peers who can provide gaps in your knowledge. Just like any other job or industry, entrepreneurs must network to be successful.
3. Breaking into the marketing world is tough, but once you know the tricks, you’ll land the gig.
As a former career coach, I found the recruitment panel to be the most interesting. The panel consisted of professional career coaches, like our very own Martin McGovern (BUS ’10), founder of Career Therapy, as well as industry recruiters, such as LinkedIn Senior Recruiter MaryAnn Gibney. From both sides of the career wall, the message was clear: don’t lose yourself in the hiring process. DePaul students offer a unique set of skills and experiences that make us the perfect fit for the right company – you just have to find your fit.
Some good news about the ever-changing career world? Companies are just as clueless as candidates. If two to three years of required experience is holding you back from applying to a job, consider your experience from internships and student organization leadership roles. Does the job description seem the same as the last four you applied to? It probably is, so worry less about checking off every one of those preferred qualification bullets. Just because companies are looking for a unicorn, doesn’t mean they won’t happily train a zebra.
Most importantly, use the resources DePaul provides. Use Vmock, which is available to all Kellstadt students, to edit and tailor your résumé; take advantage of the Alumni Sharing Knowledge Network to connect with the DePaul community; and check Handshake for career fairs and job opportunities. The best way to succeed at finding a marketing job is to use all the tools you have at your disposal to represent yourself clearly to the world.
With another great annual KMG Symposium behind us, I look forward to what is to come for next year’s event and the DePaul students who are igniting the future of marketing.
Lauren Somers graduated from Denison University in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in political science, concentrating in data analytics. She is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Marketing at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, and plans to focus on digital marketing. She enjoys living in the Logan Square neighborhood in Chicago with her significant other and her golden retriever, Kai.
By Kelly Rao
We are all looking for that magic formula, one that helps us stand out to recruiters and makes us look good in front of colleagues on LinkedIn. Truth be told, there isn’t just one but many different templates for success when it comes to managing your online professional presence.
LinkedIn is often the centerpiece of your online professional persona and the first point of reference for employers to verify your credibility. It is also a tool that can help you build relationships and create new opportunities for yourself. At a recent event held by Kellstadt Business Analytics Organization (KBAO), we brought in experts from the Kellstadt Career Management Center to help students fine-tune their LinkedIn presence and provide students with the opportunity to take a professional LinkedIn headshot. Our key takeaways from the event included developing your brand, leveraging LinkedIn’s ecosystem and being proactive about building relationships.
KBAO faculty advisors and student board members at the LinkedIn event that KBAO hosted in the fall (left to right): Don Patchell, instructor and director of the MS in Business Analytics Program; Kelly Rao, president; Rudhra Seetharam, vice president of public relations; Shoeb Ahmed, vice president of strategy; Sina Ansari, assistant professor of management and entrepreneurship; Chris Lai, treasurer.
Create a Profile that Reflects Your Brand
Building a brand can be difficult, especially when you aren’t sure of what exactly you want to do. A brand isn’t necessarily your job title or function but a snippet of what you hope to accomplish. Your photo and headline in LinkedIn are the most important aspects of your profile that can help build your brand. If you think of yourself as a business, these would be your company name, logo and mission statement. This information often determines whether a recruiter who finds you through LinkedIn will click on your profile.
To create a great first impression, your headline should include what you currently do, as well as keywords related to your industry or professional aspirations. Also consider including a unique accomplishment you feel is valuable.
When it comes to the “About” section, tell the audience your unique story. Instead of making generic and cliché statements like “I am a critical thinker,” try to provide an instance where you developed that skill. For example, “When working at X, I had to dig deep and develop my critical thinking skills to solve XYZ.” Being specific in this section and creating a well-crafted narrative will make your profile engaging and memorable. The “About” section is where you describe only you and not anyone else.
The idea of crafting a narrative extends to other sections of your LinkedIn profile, such as your experience section. The most common assumption about this section is that you include all your work experience and simply state your job descriptions in each one of them. For more experienced professionals, this can lead to information overload on their profiles. And for those with not much experience, this can be limiting.
There is no single template for success; how you arrange your experiences will depend on the narrative you want to craft. If you have too many experiences, think about omitting those that are less relevant to your narrative. The same way you would for a résumé, select your experiences for the job you want. If you are facing the opposite problem, and your profile looks sparse, consider including volunteer experience and other non-professional experience. If you’re a student, don’t be afraid to include your relevant classes if you need to fill the section out. Classes are valuable experience and if you can articulate what you did in a class, you can sell yourself to a recruiter who decided to look you up.
Being intentional about what you choose to include in your profile could be the difference between landing an opportunity or getting a rejection email. While your profile may reflect your goals at this point, it is good practice to review it every few months to make sure it still reflects your goals.
Leverage LinkedIn’s Tools and Features
Many of us know LinkedIn as the platform to display our professional record and build our network, but few explore what it can do beyond this. There are countless ways to maximize your presence on LinkedIn through features such as Interview Prep, Skill Assessments and LinkedIn Learning. These are just a few of the many tools on the platform.
LinkedIn Learning is one of my favorite features, but to call it a feature is a bit reductive. It is a distinct platform that competes with other educational sites such as Coursera, Udemy and edX. What separates it from its competitors is its tight integration with LinkedIn and its wide-range of practical course offerings, many of which require a minimal time commitment of just two hours. And, it is free for DePaul students when you link your depaul.edu account.
Completing courses and displaying them on your profile can be valuable, but another way to showcase your skills is by using the Skill Assessment feature, which allows you to take a short quiz and test your knowledge on software tools or business concepts. If you score in the top percentile, you are awarded with a skill badge you can put on your profile.
Lastly, LinkedIn Interview Prep can help you find templates for general interview questions and guide you on what works and why. If you frequently include LinkedIn jobs as part of your job search, consider using your free trial of LinkedIn Premium to get access to detailed interview prep questions and answers. Be aware, however, that this resource does not include job-specific technical questions; it is more of a higher-level view.
Engage and Connect
One of the best ways to advertise yourself on LinkedIn and build your network is by consistently engaging with content that’s relevant to your brand. But make sure to do this mindfully because LinkedIn displays posts your connections interact with, and this can be a pro or con depending on how frequently you engage.
Reaching out to people to make connections is another great way to gain exposure. Just make sure you explain why you are reaching out and what’s in it for them, especially when you’re doing cold outreach. Being vague will likely garner a poor response rate. Assume the person is busy and ask specific closed questions they are likely to know rather than open-ended questions that require some investigation. Questions that focus on the person go a long way and shows them you are interested in them as a professional beyond what they can offer you.
Whether it is building your brand, making the most of LinkedIn’s tools or connecting with people, keep in mind that managing your LinkedIn presence is a marathon, not a sprint. Start early, be consistent and results will follow. If you’ve done everything right but still can’t seem to gain traction, reach out for advice. The Kellstadt Career Management Center is a good place to start, but there are also many career coaches familiar with LinkedIn, and they are just a connection away.
Are you a graduate student at DePaul interested in analytics? Join KBAO, and follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn for upcoming events.
Kelly Rao is an MSBA candidate at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, president of Kellstadt Business Analytics Organization (KBAO) and proud blue demon with a BS in Management Information Systems from DePaul University. In addition to his involvement in student organizations, Kelly is a data visualization enthusiast and active volunteer in non-profit data projects. In his free time, you can find him at the bouldering gym, on the tennis court or at the Riverwalk listening to a podcast.
By Janaki Soni
Every student entering graduate school is often presented with the same opportunities to get involved on campus, but what makes a difference is whether you act on those opportunities to shape your experience into exactly what you need.
I knew coming into Kellstadt that I wouldn’t hesitate to apply for or try out different clubs because I wanted to be able to look back at this time knowing that I tried to fully utilize the graduate school experience. I also intended to get some leadership experience on my résumé because as a woman, a person of color, and someone young in my career, I knew that on paper I had everything working against me. So, I joined Kellstadt Marketing Group (KMG) to get actively involved in the DePaul community, enhance my graduate school experience, gain valuable leadership skills, and build my network.
KMG is a professional, graduate student-led organization specializing in knowledge-sharing events. The organization is in its 14th year with a strong community of more than 2,000 members. The group consists of students, faculty and industry professionals committed to driving the development of the marketing and business landscape. KMG serves as a hub for networking, ideation, career development and more.
As an aspiring leader, I was attracted to KMG because its mission aligned with my career goals. Being a part of the organization has helped me cultivate my people management skills and has pushed me to utilize my time management skills, as I manage multiple priorities at once, from work to courses to clubs to a social life. It’s given me a chance to look at things with a more strategic and high-level perspective across the different functions of the organization, and it has also allowed me to meet some amazing colleagues and friends, which would have been more difficult in the pandemic while we were all virtual.
I understand that almost every student organization states “networking” as one of its benefits, but for Kellstadt Marketing Group it really is true and even goes beyond that. The community is tight-knit and genuinely wants to see you succeed. Besides networking opportunities, we host speakers who share expertise on different topics to cater to people with a variety of interests (branding and creativity, women in business, marketing and sustainability, sports marketing, etc.) The KMG alumni network is also phenomenal as the community keeps giving back to current students with speaker panels, job opportunities or thought-leader videos and articles. I have grown from many of the opportunities and connections that KMG provides.
If you are a graduate student at DePaul and interested in joining KMG, please visit: kellstadtmarketing.com and follow our Instagram page @KMGDePaul for upcoming events. Our biggest events include the Fall Kick-Off, Case Competition (winter quarter) and a Symposium (spring quarter) each year.
Janaki Soni works full-time and is an MBA candidate at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, and president of Kellstadt Marketing Group, previously holding the role of vice president of public relations and membership. Janaki is a double-demon and graduated in 2017 with a BS in business management information systems. She has always had a passion for the marketing space and enjoys taking on active leadership roles to increase community involvement and connect people with similar interests. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, reading and kayaking.
By Adam Krynski and Molly Ryanmiller
Throughout January 2021 we competed against nine other teams in a marketing case competition hosted by Barilla, the world’s largest pasta producer, and the Kellstadt Marketing Group, a student organization at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business. It was the perfect experiential learning opportunity we were looking for as MBA students: the chance to directly apply class concepts, work in teams with other students, and present a solution and receive feedback from Barilla representatives and Kellstadt faculty who served as judges.
Our mighty team of two, Pasta La Vista, came to the competition with diverse backgrounds and little marketing experience. We wanted to tackle a project outside of the classroom with the goals of learning new skill sets, meeting some new friends and gaining additional professional experiences. In the end, we ended up doing that and more—we took home the winning prize!
Below are six key takeaways from our experience. We hope these tips help set you up for success so you too can walk away with a win at your next case competition.
- Try something new and outside of your comfort zone
Case competitions are a great way to explore learning opportunities beyond the classroom, and this was an important goal of ours coming into graduate school. We were interested in pursuing a case competition that allowed us to develop a strategy for an industry that we were both unfamiliar with, so we ended up walking away with new skills as well as a stronger network within Kellstadt.
- Manage your time effectively
As most graduate students would agree, time management is a crucial key to success. When participating in a case competition, you need to set aside time outside of work, school and your personal life to be fair to your other teammates and deliver a product you’re proud of. We utilized a group chat for frequent communication and Zoom for solutioning. These regular touchpoints before deliverables were due worked very well for holding ourselves accountable.
- Don’t shy away from communicating with the company
Communicate with your team but also with the company whose business challenge you’re trying to solve. As with any life challenge you may be facing, there are some unknowns. In this case, Barilla provided us with certain facts and left out others. In case competitions, it’s an unspoken rule that the company expects teams to not only do their own research outside of what’s provided, but also circle back with them for clarifications. Ask questions, share ideas and ask more questions.
- Help the judges visualize your solution
Attention to detail is key when preparing how you will deliver your solution. In our executive summary, we approached the deliverable with a “less is more” attitude. While we made sure to answer all questions from our kickoff meeting and challenge guidelines, we didn’t provide too much detail or solutioning. In our presentation, however, we went a step further by providing additional research, actionable insight and visuals such as graphs and tables, so the judges could truly envision what our idea would look like throughout the entire lifecycle of our recommended strategy.
- Use a confident and natural presentation style
Be professional but also be yourself. If you’re too rehearsed, you’ll come across as if you’re reading directly from your notes. If not rehearsed enough, you’ll come across as unprepared. While you want to make sure you’ve outlined your speaking notes ahead of time, leave some room to be conversational.
- Have fun!
At the end of the day, this experience is meant to be fun. Get to know your teammates on a personal level and you’ll not only walk away with a great experience, but with some new friends too.
Adam Krynski is pursuing his MBA with a concentration in strategy, execution and valuation at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business while working full-time in corporate finance. He likes to take road trips and take his dogs to the Lake Michigan beach on sunny days. He is excited to cook a new meal with his new pasta prize pack.
Molly Ryanmiller is an MBA candidate at the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business and president of the DePaul Consulting Club. She graduated from Indiana University, Bloomington in 2014 with a BS in informatics, a concentration in public health and a minor in communication and culture. She currently works as a global data and analytics consultant at Deloitte. In her free time, you can find her facilitating mindfulness and meditation classes at Deloitte, riding in a spin class, learning about interior design and out on adventures with her dog Zoey.
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