­Written by: Noe Moreno
November 11^th, 2024

On Monday, November 4^th, the Marketing Department Ad Club hosted the “Marketing Career Paths: Discovering Your Next Steps” panel. The panel consisted of local community members in the marketing industry who discussed their journey into marketing.

Panelists included:

• • Kesha Alexander – Supper Co.
  • Anna Larriu – Forvis Mazars
  • Andrew Lovell – Camp Ape
  • Jonathan Bell – That GenZ Agency 

    
    
    

         Johnathan Bell speaks as the other panelists and moderator listen attentively

Due to the panel being divided into three sections – Student Life, Career Now and Career Future – a variety of topics were discussed.

In the Student Life section, the three topics covered were – preparation in college, college lessons or regrets, and networking. Panelists were asked to speak on their college experiences and provide advice to our current college students to help them succeed based on their takeaways when they were students too.

The Career Now sections highlighted – career beginnings, a typical day, community engagement, work-life balance and what their favorite project has been thus far. This section allowed students to ask questions about their current positions and what the market is like at the moment. Getting advice from these panelists on how they got to where they are now and what it’s like currently for them allows our students different perspectives on how they can achieve their goals. Each panelist has a different story and a different journey, and all provided helpful information to students – showing them the variety of ways that they can find and build their own success stories.

The Career Future section covered AI in marketing, ethical dilemmas, how to stay on top of trends and the future of the industry as a whole. Covering these topics gives insights into what students can expect from the marketing industry in the coming years – as students go through their college careers and start working in the industry within the next few years. Furthermore, it’s crucial for our students to be informed on the latest technological advancements and developments – such as AI – and how they might impact their careers.

Finally, the panel came to a close with an open Q&A to provide students the opportunity to ask any questions, dive deeper into topics and learn more, or clarify anything.

Students listening to Andrew Lovell speak

Emily Parham, president of Ad Club, was the moderator for the panel and shared her experience and takeaways.

“I really enjoyed hearing about the different areas of marketing and how they compare and contrast, like corporate vs agency. I learned a lot about the client-facing side of marketing and challenges that are associated with it.” – Emily

We thank the panelists for taking the time out of their day to come speak to our students. Their advice and insights are truly appreciated and help prepare our students for success – in their college careers but also as some of them begin to start their careers as they graduate; discovering their next steps.

As always, Go Bears!