One Day, One Job » events

Oriental Trading

Willy Franzen — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 14:25:58 +0000

It’s probably a little late to be planning a New Year’s Eve party, but I guess for a lot of people all it takes is a trip to the liquor store to prepare. But if you really want to do New Year’s Eve right, you need party hats, noisemakers, those popper thingies, and all kinds of other novelties. One of the best places to get those is Oriental Trading, an Omaha, NE based “direct merchant of value–priced party supplies, arts and crafts, toys and novelties, and a leading provider of school supplies and affordable home décor and giftware.” I remember getting their catalogs as a kid and thinking how awesome it would be to have not one stupid plastic toy, but a 1000-count tub of them. Oriental Trading has been around since 1932, and they’ve been able to stay competitive by quickly adapting to the changing ways people buy stuff.

A Favorable Trade

Oriental Trading may not sell high-end products like a lot of other long-lived mail order companies, but they’ve still “been recognized as one of the Top 50 Internet Retailers and one of the Top 50 Catalog Companies.” What I think is cooler is that The Omaha Chamber of Commerce named Oriental Trading as “one of Omaha’s Fastest Growing Companies three consecutive years.” I’m not sure how recently that was, but any time you can grow an already large, 80-year old company at an above average rate is impressive. If you’d like to help keep that growth going and you find that flipping through the Oriental Trading catalog is a good way to spend a few hours, then take a look at Oriental Trading’s Careers page. Right now they have some cool job opportunities for new or recent grads including Assistant Brand Merchant, Cost Analyst, Inventory Specialist, Payroll Specialist, Studio Sample Coordinator, and Senior Sales Assistant. Check out the job postings, and please forgive the HR people at Oriental Trading for using Comic Sans in their job postings.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever looked through the Oriental Trading catalog?

Flavorpill

Willy Franzen — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:30:54 +0000

It often seems that I don’t hear about cool events until after they’ve happened. I’ll spend a Friday night reorganizing my fishing closet, and on Saturday I’ll realize that there’s something really fun that I missed out on. I’m sure you’ve faced the same problem. But how do you keep up with what’s going on in your city? Flavorpill is one answer. They provide an online culture guide, and they will send you personalized e-mails that cover both events and news. I first heard about Flavorpill because one of their writers was interviewing me (the story ended up being published elsewhere), but I think they were a bit more news focused then. They say that they cover “cultural events, art, books, music, and world news,” though it seems that Flavorpill, which is headquartered in New York, NY, now leans very strongly towards the events side.

Flavorpill in Your Ear

Flavorpill currently has editions in New York, Brooklyn, San Francisco, Los Angeles, London, Miami, Las Vegas, Dallas, and Seattle. I don’t know if there are any new locations on the horizon, but you’d think that they’d continue to grow the brand by adding new editions. There isn’t much info on the business behind Flavorpill, but it’s pretty obviously ad-supported. The Flavorpill Media Kit is probably the best way to get an inside look at how the company makes money. If you consider yourself culturally literate and want to to help others be like you, then a job at Flavorpill might be worth considering. Right now they have two Jobs pages. One is linked to from their site and the other is the first Google result for “Flavorpill internships.” My guess is that the former is the one to go by, but it’s hard to say for sure. Flavorpill’s current postings on that page include Designer, Front-end Developer, Product Manager, and Web Developer, and on the other page they include Editorial Partner (Las Vegas) and Advertising Sales Manager. Take a look at the job postings and see which ones best suit you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read Flavorpill?

BeachMint

Willy Franzen — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:37:43 +0000

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Back in June we told you about Birchbox, a company that offers a subscription to customized beauty product samples for $10 a month. It’s an interesting model, and it seems to be working out extremely well for them. BeachMint is a “social commerce” startup with a similar subscription model, but a very different approach. They’re a Santa Monica, CA based company with four brands: JewelMint.com, BeautyMint.com, StyleMint.com, and ShoeMint.com. I think you can guess what each offers a subscription to. When you sign up they give you a quiz to get a sense of what you like and what you don’t like, and then they start making new recommendations for you every month. It’s a little weird in that it’s structured like a subscription, but you don’t have to buy every month (but it sounds like it’s more of a monthly opt-out than opt-in). I kind of wish they stayed true to their name and would send me to a different beach every month.

Making a Mint

BeachMint is still a very young company, but they’ve raised a ton of money (nearly $40 million) and had some great early successes (apparently BeautyMint got 500,000 visitors in its first day). A big part of BeachMint’s strategy and a likely reason for their rapid growth is that they’ve aligned with some big name celebrities like Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Jessica Simpson, Rachel Bilson, and Kate Bosworth. I’m sure they had to spend a lot of their funding on getting those names to sign, but it seems to be paying off with huge growth now. I’ll admit that I find BeachMint’s model a little confusing, but that doesn’t seem to be stopping people from signing up.

If you’re intrigued by what BeachMint is doing, then you should take a look at their Jobs page. There are a ton of jobs posted though most of them are either tech (Web/Software/Mobile Development) or Mint Brand Ambassador Manager / Independent Sales and Promotions Coordinator positions. The latter are available all across the country, and seem to be heavily commission based. The job best suited for our readership is probably the Merchandising / Design Assistant, which unfortunately is only part-time right now. Additionally, there’s the option to apply for future opportunities, and I also found a Customer Care Associate position and an Executive Assistant/Office Manager position on Startuply. I also found a Content Department Coordinator posting from a couple of months ago. It seems that BeachMint might be a bit disjointed in posting jobs, so don’t be afraid to apply for future opportunities.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you tried any of BeachMint’s offerings?

Time Out

Willy Franzen — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 18:15:42 +0000

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One of my favorite things about living in Chicago is the restaurants. There are so many great places to eat, and there are new ones opening constantly. It’s a lot of fun, but it can be overwhelming if you try to keep up with it. That’s why I rely on Time Out Chicago to keep me up to date with what’s going on in Chi-town, whether it’s restaurant openings, cultural events, or things to do. I guess I’m lucky that Time Out chose to cover Chicago, considering that the London, UK based publishing company typically focuses on major international destinations like Bangkok, Barcelona, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, and Venice for their guides and magazines. As far as I can tell, Boston, MA; Chicago, IL, and New York, NY are the only U.S. cities to get weekly magazines, though a few other like Las Vegas and San Francisco do get their own travel guides. I must say that Time Out’s online presence is quite disjointed, so there’s a chance that there are locations in the U.S. where they might be hiring and I just missed them.

Take a Time Out from Your Job Search

It seems as though the U.S. based Time Outs operate somewhat independently from the parent company. You’ll probably want to bounce around TimeOut.com, NewYork.TimeOut.com, TimeOutChicago.com, and TimeOutBoston.com to get a sense of all of the different sub-brands. You may also want to take a look at Time Out’s Wikipedia entry to get a fuller sense of the business. But really you should focus on digging into Time Out’s content (a lot of which they publish online) and getting a feel for how they cover different locales. Then you’ll want to read up on the specific Time Out that catches your interest and take a look at their jobs (all of the Time Outs seem to hire independently from each other). In the Worldwide office based in London they have a few job openings and also offer what they call work experience. You can use the links below to find the Jobs pages for Boston, Chicago, and New York, and you’ll see that they have a number of interesting opportunities including:

SEO Master (New York, NY)
Copy Editor (New York, NY)
Ad Operations Specialist (New York, NY)
PHP Symfony Web Application Developer (New York, NY)
Account Manager (Chicago, IL)

They’re also big on internships, so if you want to get a position on the editorial side it would probably benefit you to start as an intern. (I have a friend who did exactly that at Time Out Chicago). Here’s a list of all of the internships that they offer:

Photo Intern (Boston, MA)
Editorial Intern Intern (Boston, MA)
Art & Design Intern (Chicago, IL)
Editorial Intern (Chicago, IL)
Online Photography Intern (Chicago, IL)
Online Production Intern (Chicago, IL)
Photography Intern (Chicago, IL)
Web Intern (Chicago, IL)
Admin/Human Resources Intern (New York, NY)
Advertising Intern (New York, NY)
Art – Magazine Design Intern (New York, NY)
Audience Development Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial – Visual Arts Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial – Food & Drink Intern (New York, NY)
Public Relations Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial – Music Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial – Online Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial – Shopping & Style Intern (New York, NY)
Marketing & Events Intern (New York, NY)
Online Production Intern (New York, NY)
Photo Intern (New York, NY)
Editorial – Film Intern (New York, NY)
Special Projects Intern (New York, NY)
TONY Kids Intern (New York, NY)
TONY Kids Photo Intern (New York, NY)

They’re all unpaid, but they could be a good way to get a foot in the door.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you own any Time Out guides or subscribe to any of their magazines?

French Institute Alliance Française

Willy Franzen — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 16:38:45 +0000

During high school I was inducted into The Société Honoraire de Français. Though I don’t remember it, I apparently recited, “L’homme qui sait deux langues en vaut deux” (The man who knows two languages is worth two men). I guess that means I’m worth just barely more than a single man, because I never took a French class after the ceremony (mostly to avoid crazy French teachers). Since then I’ve traveled to places like Paris and Montreal, and a small part of me wishes I had kept up with the language so that I could better appreciate the culture. If I lived in New York, NY, I could use the resources provided by the French Institute Alliance Française. They’re a non-profit organization that aims “to create and offer New Yorkers innovative and unique programs in education and the arts that explore the evolving diversity and richness of French cultures.”

Parlez Français

The French Institute and Alliance Française were actually two separate organizations until they merged in 1971. Together they teach more than 6,000 language students, maintain “the most comprehensive private French library in the United States,” and put on all kinds of cultural events. There’s also a big emphasis on art at FIAF. If you’re a lover of French culture, then you should definitely check out the FIAF and maybe consider joining. You may even want to consider working for them. Right now their jobs page shows that they’re looking for Lighting and Sound Technicians and Deck Hands. While on Idealist, it shows that they’re looking for Early Childhood French Teachers and a Marketing Coordinator. Just make sure that you don’t “parler le français comme une vache espagnole.”

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite thing about French culture?

TicketLeap

Willy Franzen — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:58:44 +0000

Last week we told you about Blue Chip Career, so here’s another reminder to check them out. They offer personalized guidance from seasoned executives to help you overcome your biggest job search challenges. Get paired with one of their experts and receive the inside scoop on how to land the job of your dreams.

Last September I went to see Seth Godin. I bought a ticket online and was pleasantly surprised a few days before the event to learn that it allowed me to bring a friend. The event was great–just what I would expect from Seth. Every detail went smoothly, even the ticketing process, which was done through TicketLeap. I barely noticed them when I originally registered for the event (which what you want from a ticketing provider), but when a reader e-mailed a few months ago to tell me that she landed an internship with TicketLeap I decided to take another look. They’re a Philadelphia, PA based company that was started in 2003 “to bring professional-grade ticketing to events too small to get the attention of the big ticketing companies.” They offer a great user experience, and their cost is pretty much unbeatable–$1 per ticket for events $10 and under, $2 per ticket for events over $10, and free for all free events.

Take a Leap

While I often like to tout a company’s client list, I’m not going to do that with TicketLeap. They’re not about serving the big names, they’re about serving the little guys with a product that would be suitable for many of the big guys. While I’ve been able to enjoy the TicketLeap from the attendee side, I haven’t tried it from the event organizer side, but it sounds great. TicketLeap thinks their product stands out for 7 reasons that range from great design to dedicated customer support to awesome analytics. What I think is most interesting about TicketLeap is that they have built a marketing platform into their ticketing solutions. It’s exactly what event organizers need if they want to sell out. If you’re digging what TicketLeap is doing, then you’ll want to head over to their Careers page. Right now they’re looking for Inside Sales Reps. I did a little more digging using our job search engine and also found positions for a User Interface Designer and an Energetic Assistant.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever used TicketLeap?

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

Willy Franzen — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 17:59:17 +0000

We’ve been having e-mail deliverability issues over the past couple of days. I’m working with our provider to figure out what’s going on. Hopefully this message will come through without a hitch and make this note irrelevant.

Yesterday we looked at a non-profit that is devoted to a unique sector of performing arts. Today we’re going to look at one that is more traditional. Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts is based in New York, NY, and they’re the organization that runs “the world’s leading performing arts center.” Lincoln Center is located on 16.3 acres, and it has 11 resident organizations that use their space but are run independently. Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts “serves three primary roles: presenter of artistic programming, an international leader in arts and education and community relations, and manager of the Lincoln Center campus.” They seem to be doing a good job considering that Lincoln Center hosts more than 5 million visitors every year.

Put on a Good Performance

To really get a feel for what the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts does, you need to read up on the other 10 Resident Organizations. Here are the links to each of their websites (each of these organizations has its own job and internship opportunities):

In addition to these organizations, Lincoln Center also is home to quite a few programs. These include American Songbook, White Light Festival, Fashion Lincoln Center, and lots more. There’s a ton of other relevant information about the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on their website, so you should really dive in if you like what they’re all about. Eventually you’ll land on their Jobs page, where you’ll see that they’re hiring a Receptionist, a Grants Writer, a Special Event Sales and Client Services Associate, a Lead Telephone Agent, a Part-time Telephone Agent, and a Part-Time Visitor Services Representative. There are a number of options, so hopefully one of them will be a good fit for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever been to Lincoln Center?

Cvent

Willy Franzen — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:30:27 +0000

Yesterday we told you about Blue Chip Career, so here’s another reminder to check them out. They offer personalized guidance from seasoned executives to help you overcome your biggest job search challenges. Get paired with one of their experts and receive the inside scoop on how to land the job of your dreams.

My girlfriend and I are having a housewarming/birthday party this weekend. We invited people by e-mail, and we’re keeping of track of who is coming through a Google doc. That’s about as simple as it gets in terms of using software for event management. I don’t think our solution would cut it for companies like Verizon, Yahoo!, Walmart, and Oracle. They need something a little more… industrial strength. That’s what Cvent offers. They’re a McLean, VA based company that offers comprehensive event, survey, and eMarketing software solutions–exactly what large companies need to make sure that every little detail is taken care of when they put on an event.

Have a Cventful Job Search

The best way to get a feel for the scale that Cvent operates on, you need to look at some of their key statistics. They were founded in 1999, and since then their software has managed more than 275,000 events, sent 850 million e-mail invitations, and managed 30 million event registrations and survey responses. You can learn more about what those solutions look like here. You may also want to dig into some of the Resources that they provide–it’ll give you a better sense of the kinds of problems that they solve for their clients. If you like what you see, then you’ll want to check out Cvent’s Careers page. You’ll see some great openings that seem suitable for new or recent grads including Blogger/Social Media Associate, Business Development Associate, Information Security Analyst, Mobile Application Developer, Product Consultant, Quality Engineer, Sales Associate, Software Engineer, Systems Analyst, Systems Programmer, Systems Support Engineer, and Technical Support Engineer. There are lots of options, so hopefully at least one will intrigue you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Cvent?

Net Impact

Willy Franzen — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 17:03:22 +0000

I’m consistently impressed by how many new grads say they want a socially conscious career. It’s a good sign that so many young people are willing to commit to making the world a better place; however, I think a lot of them overlook how much of a positive impact you can have working in the business world. Just think about how many positive developments over the course of human history were driven by businesses. Net Impact is a San Francisco, CA based non-profit that aims “to inspire, educate, and equip individuals to use the power of business to create a more socially and environmentally sustainable world.” It’s a membership organization that has more than 20,000 members across 280 worldwide chapters.

What Will Your Net Impact Be?

At first I wasn’t completely sure what Net Impact does, but as I dug a little deeper and looked at their At a Glance PDF, I started to understand. They have three main focuses: educating students and professionals, connecting changemakers, and supporting real-world impact. This is done mostly through a large annual conference and smaller local chapter events. Approximately 60% of the chapters are focused on students (undergrad and MBA), while the other 40% are targeted towards people in the business world. If you’re convinced of the power of business to make the world a better place but still want to work at a non-profit, then check out Careers at Net Impact. Right now they are looking for a Temporary Website & CMS Contractor and a Conference Marketing Fellow. They also have Fellowships in Chapters Programs and Design, but those positions look more like internships.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Net Impact?

Attack!

Willy Franzen — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 16:23:54 +0000

If you’re going to plan an effective attack, you often need boots on the ground. This is obviously true in military endeavors, but it can also be true in marketing. Believe it or not, having actual people doing face to face marketing can still be remarkably effective–I’m sure you’ve even seen it on your college’s campus. When companies need temporary staff for event based or experiential marketing, they often go to San Francisco, CA based Attack! (which also has offices in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York). They’re yet another Inc. 5000 company, and they’ve seen 180% three-year growth to $7.9 million in annual revenue. If you’re wondering how it all works, you’ll see that it’s mostly based on skydiving sumos.

Attack!

The best way to get a better feel for what Attack! does for their clients is to look through their laundry list of Services. The biggest focus is on Nationwide Event Staffing, but they also offer Experiential Services and Field Support. If you want to see what these services actually look like in practice, then you’ll want to check out the Attack! Case Studies. You can see the work that they’ve done for brands like Nickelodeon, VISA, Jamba Juice, and Canadian Club. If you like how different Attack!’s approach to marketing is from other firms, then you’ll want to take a look at their Careers page. You’ll see that they have a few job openings right now including Producer/Project Manager (Los Angeles, CA) and Account Manager (Los Angeles, CA and San Francisco, CA). Give them a look, you might like the experience.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Attack!?

New America Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 16:01:46 +0000

There’s no question that America’s future is filled with challenges, and we’re going to be the ones who have to rise to them. It’s a huge opportunity, but it’s also a bit daunting. The New America Foundation is a non-profit organization that “emphasizes work that is responsive to the changing conditions and problems of our 21st Century information-age economy — an era shaped by transforming innovation and wealth creation, but also by shortened job tenures, longer life spans, mobile capital, financial imbalances and rising inequality.” They’re based in Washington, DC (and Sacramento, CA), and they’re working to ensure that every American generation is able to live better than the one that came before it.

Are You Part of a New America?

The New America Foundation has ideals that pretty much everyone can get behind, but how do they actually go about achieving their goals? They have a wide range of Programs and Initiatives that cover a number of areas including College Savings, National Security, Open Technology, Economic Growth, and lots more. These programs “combine ongoing research and publications with working groups, conferences and public events” to “bring innovative, cutting-edge policy solutions to the fore of the national debate.” The New America Foundation’s approach is broad, but if you think that you could help them build a better America, then take a look at their Jobs page. They have a number of positions available that look suitable for new or recent grads including A/V Multimedia Producer, Innovation Policy Research Associate, Program Associate – Global Assets Project, Research Associate – Global Assets Project, Schmidt Family Foundation Fellow, Events Associate, Field Analyst – Open Technology Initiative, and Research Associate. There are lots of options, so hopefully one of them will be a good fit for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your vision for a New America?

Ludus Tours

Willy Franzen — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 15:10:52 +0000

A few weeks ago I told you about a company called Sixthman that gets together groups of music fans and puts them on a cruise ship with their favorite artists. It’s a pretty cool idea that is making a bunch of money (even if it doesn’t sound like my kind of fun). Ludus Tours is another company that organizes group vacations, but they are focus on taking people to specific destinations for specific events. Their main focus is on sporting events like The Olympics, The World Cup, The Master’s, The Super Bowl, and other big events that are preceded with a “The.” However, they have branched out to do other types of trips like Oktoberfest in Munich, Carnaval in Rio, and The Running of the Bulls. They cover all the bases including travel, accommodations, tickets, and all of the other logistics involved with trips like these. San Diego, CA based Ludus Tours serves both individuals and groups, so you can book a tour for yourself or organize a group excursion. They must do a good job considering they’ve seen 1,253% three-year growth to $2.5 million in revenue.

Take a Tour

Part of what has made Ludus Tours successful is that they’ve developed partnerships with a ton of athletic governing bodies including USA Volleyball, USRowing, USA Wrestling, and lots more. Ludus Tours has also worked with some big name clients including Pepsi, Mercedes-Benz, ABC, IMG, and Octagon. Those last three should stand out, since they’re big names in sports–and they’re trusting Ludus Tours to make sure that their trips go on without a hitch. The best way to get a feel for the type of experience Ludus Tours offers is to go on one of their trips, but since you probably can’t do that right now, you should read through some of their testimonials. It should give you a better sense of how the business operates. If you like what you see, then head over to the Ludus Tours Jobs page. They have a number of positions posted. The best fit for a new grad is probably the PR Coordinator position (the linked job description is wrong), but they’re also looking for a Volleyball Account Manager, a Marketing Operations Manager, an Events Manager, and a Technology/IT Guru. Ludus Tours is also hiring London Tour Guides/London Event Staff for the 2012 Olympics, so that could be a cool opportunity as well.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

If money were no object, which big name sporting event would you go to?

National Hot Rod Association

Willy Franzen — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 15:46:56 +0000

I suffer from Labor Day cognitive dissonance. I love the idea of a long weekend dedicated to celebrating our productivity (even if it does mean the end of summer), but I feel that in a lot of ways that we’ve missed the mark. After spending four years studying Labor Relations in college and another four years devoted to helping college students make the most of their productive capacity, I’ve come to realize that we are going to have to radically change the way we look at work if we’re going to continue to succeed individually and as a nation. But that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t appreciate Labor Day for what it has become, an awesome day off. In past years we’ve looked at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Department of Labor, and Stetson (read the post if you want to know what they have to do with Labor Day). Today we’re going to look at the National Hot Rod Association, which is “the world’s largest motorsports sanctioning body with 80,000 members, 140 member tracks, more than 35,000 licensed competitors, and more than 5,000 member-track events.” The Glendora, CA based NHRA has been around for 60 years now, and their races seem to keep getting faster.

Hot Roddin’

You’re probably wondering what the heck the National Hot Rod Association has to do with Labor Day. Well, I learned from the Wikipedia article on Labor day that the NHRA annually holds “their finals to the U.S. Nationals drag race” at Indy on Labor Day. I also think that cars that can go up to 330 MPH are a great way to showcase how productive labor can be. If you think that hot rods are awesome and would consider working for the NHRA, check out their Jobs page. While they mention openings in areas including Accounting and Finance, Administration/General Management, Communications/Community Relations, Competition/Officiating, Event Management, Facility Operations/Event Staff, Human Resources, Information Technology/Web Services, Legal, Sales & Marketing, and Technical Services, the only active posting they have is for Notification of Future Opportunities. It looks like you can apply for this “position,” so maybe they’ll contact you if they like what they see.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you watch the NHRA finals?

Phenomenon

Willy Franzen — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 16:35:14 +0000

When I look at creative, marketing, or design agencies, I usually like to check out their client lists and their work. I’m no expert, but it gives me a much better feel for the company. That’s why I was a bit surprised when I came across Phenomenon on the Inc. 5000–they don’t disclose their work or their clients. In fact, they promise anonymity to their sixteen clients (one of which is a country), and they mostly take on new clients who are referred to them by current or past clients. Phenomenon is based in Los Angeles, CA, and their approach is definitely different, but it does seem to be working. They’re growing like crazy with 1,274% three-year revenue growth to $15 million.

Are You a Phenomenon?

Phenomenon focuses on four key areas: Marketing Innovation, UX Innovation, Digital Innovation, and Cultural Innovation. I haven’t seen their work, but their model of anonymity is innovative, so I’ll trust that their work is too. If you do want to learn more about Phenomenon, you’ll probably want to read their Who We Are and What We Do pages, but it’s more important to read their Hiring Us page. It explains how they’re different and why they’re different. If you’re digging it, then you can just e-mail BecomeA@phenomenon.com and apply for a job (love that e-mail address). Or if you’re looking to apply for an actual position, you can check out Phenomenon’s Careers on LinkedIn. They’re looking for an Events Marketing Specialist and a Freelance Copywriter/Proofreader (Chicago, IL). I have no idea why they don’t also post these jobs on their site.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Phenomenon?

Sixthman

Willy Franzen — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:19:01 +0000

As much as I love the Inc. 5000, there is one thing that bugs me. It seems that the large majority of companies on the list don’t even have Jobs pages. These are companies that are growing rapidly in terms of revenue and number of employees, yet they often lack even a single recruiting message on their own websites. If you follow these companies, you’ll see that they eventually get the picture and put up a Jobs page, but why wait? Sometimes you just need to find cool companies and pitch them on why you’d be a great addition to their team. Speaking of great additions to teams, let’s take a look at at a company called Sixthman. They’re an Atlanta, GA based company that “creates theme cruises with an emphasis on celebrating music and fan communities.” Neither cruises nor concerts are my thing, but if you like both, Sixthman is your dream come true.

Can You Be a Sixthman?

Sixthman was founded in 2001, so they are certainly a pioneer in the “music theme cruise movement.” Being a first mover is great, but what really makes Sixthman stand out is that they have worked “with entertainers such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, John Mayer, Kid Rock, KISS, Jillian Michaels, Barenaked Ladies, Sister Hazel, Lyle Lovett, Sarah McLachlan, Patty Griffin, Zac Brown Band, and 311, and brands such as VH1, TCM and Graceland.” Those are huge names–the kind that people might actually want to be trapped on a boat with. So far Sixthman has done more than 30 full-ship charters, and 60% of their guests return for another cruise. That’s unbelievable considering that a cruise is typically a high-ticket item. Who would have thought that combining to seemingly unrelated leisure industries would be so successful? If you like what Sixthman is doing, then you should think about a job with them. Despite their lack of a Jobs page (maybe it has something to do with outsourcing HR), they were “named one of Atlanta’s Best Places to Work in 2008 by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.” There is no guarantee that they’re hiring right now, but if you’re passionate about what they’re doing, you should definitely reach out to them and tell them why you think you should be part of their team.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you go on a Sixthman cruise?

Author Solutions

Willy Franzen — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 10:55:10 +0000

It amazes me how many people dream of writing a book. I never had that dream, yet when a publisher came to me and pitched a book idea on career development, I jumped at the opportunity. I had no idea how hard it would be, and I ended up backing out because it was sucking up time that I should have been spending on my business. Most people aren’t anywhere near as lucky as I was. Getting a publisher to work with you on a first project is nearly impossible–though I watched a good friend of mine totally hack the process and get a deal for his book. Luckily, you don’t need a book deal to publish a book these days. If you’re willing to take all of the risk, self-publishing can be a great alternative. Author Solutions is the parent to a number of companies that serve this market. They’re located in Bloomington, IN, and they own both the largest and second-largets print on demand companies in the U.S.

A Solution for Your Job Search

When I started doing research on Author Solutions, I came across a lot of negative blog posts and comments. It seems that the self-publishing industry can be extremely controversial, and Author Solutions is a big target because of their size. The term vanity press gets thrown around a lot, as it seems that some people don’t think it’s fair to charge an author to publish his or her book. Others are more direct with their criticism of Author Solutions’ services. It’s hard to say how much of this is accurate and how much is sour grapes from authors who paid a lot of money to publish a book that would never sell no matter who published it. I still think that Author Solutions has built a business that is worth at least taking a look at.

Author Solutions has published more than 140,000 titles, and I’m sure that number will continue to grow. They operate a bunch of businesses, and those include AuthorHouse, AuthorHouse UK, iUniverse, Trafford, Xlibris, AuthorHive, WordClay, lnkubook, Palibrio, and Author Learning Center. Through these different businesses Author Solutions is able to offer a wide range of author services including Editorial Services, Illustrations, Book & Cover Design, Publicity, Promotion, Distribution, Online Sales, and Bookstore Sales. If working in any of these areas sounds interesting to you, then you should take a look at Jobs at Author Solutions. Right now they have a ton of openings that might interest new or recent grads including:

Lots of options here, so give them all a good look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you ever self-publish a book?

C3 Presents

Willy Franzen — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 15:54:32 +0000

Today marks the beginning of the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago. Musical festivals definitely aren’t my thing, but it seems that everyone in the city is talking about Lolla. If you don’t know what Lollapalooza is, you can get the full story at Lollapalooza.com or on the Lollapalooza Wikipedia page. I was most interested in figuring out what company puts on the festival, because there’s a good chance that they might have some interesting job opportunities. It turns out that Lollapalooza is “presented” by C3 Presents, an Austin, TX based (I hear they also have locations in Los Angeles, CA and Chicago, IL) company that “creates, books, markets, and produces live experiences, concerts, events, and just about anything that makes people stand up and cheer.” They were formerly known as Capital Sports Entertainment, and in addition all of the live events that they do, they also offer artist/talent management services.

What Will You Present?

Beyond Lollapalooza C3 Presents puts on The Austin City Limits Music Festival and Wanderlust, has a publicity and marketing firm called Fresh and Clean Media, and manages a bunch of venues. You can check out all of their concerts at C3Concerts.com. Unfortunately, C3 Presents doesn’t offer much information about themselves on their website. They don’t even mention which artists they manage. You can get a few additional tidbits from their Wikipedia page, which mentions that they’re the third largest concert promoter in the United States behind Live Nation and AEG. C3 Presents does have a Careers page, but all it says is that “C3 Presents is not currently hiring.” So why am I writing about them? Companies in this industry are notoriously hard to get jobs with. If you think that waiting until they post a job on their Careers page is a good strategy, then you have a lot to learn. You’re going to have to find a way to contact them, and pitch yourself. LinkedIn tells me that their recent hires include a Festival Marketing Coordinator, a Talent Assistant, and a couple of interns. I also imagine that C3 Presents does a lot of event staff hiring, but I’m not sure how they do it (they probably contract it out).

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you been to any concerts put on by C3 Presents?

Atlantic Council

Willy Franzen — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 16:45:49 +0000

Our country’s relationship with Europe started off pretty rocky. There were all kinds of conflicts including the French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Spanish American War, and plenty of others. It wasn’t really until after World Wars I and II that U.S-Europe relations really began to stabilize. That’s why in 1961 The Atlantic Council was founded. They are a Washington, DC based think tank that “promotes constructive U.S. leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the central role of the Atlantic community in meeting the international challenges of the 21st century.” Over the organization’s 50 years its mission and programs have evolved, but they remain focused on maintaining a constructive trans-Atlantic dialogue.

Join the Council

I realize that it’s kind of hard to grasp what think tanks actually do–especially when their mission is something as nebulous as promoting “constructive U.S. leadership and engagement in international affairs.” Here are some things that the Atlantic Council is working on that will give you a better idea of what they actually do:

identifying and shaping responses to major issues facing the Atlantic Alliance and transatlantic relations;
building consensus on U.S. policy towards Russia, China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan;
promoting balanced responses to growing energy needs and environmental protection;
drafting roadmaps for U.S. policy towards the Balkans, Africa, Cuba, Iraq, Iran, and Libya;
engaging students from across the Euro-Atlantic area in the processes of NATO transformation and enlargement

To really get to know more about the Atlantic Council, you can take a look at the Atlantic Council’s Programs and Publications. If you’re interested in getting involved, then head over to The Atlantic Council’s Jobs page. Right now they’re looking for an Outreach and Public Events Assistant – Office of Development and External Relations. Give it a look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about the Atlantic Council?

Active Network

Willy Franzen — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:52:23 +0000

Lately I’ve been making it a habit to look for interesting companies in cities I visit–it’s just another way to generate new ideas. Since I’m in San Diego, CA for the weekend, I did a little searching and came across Active Network. They’re a company that is all about enabling active lifestyles, so their location is quite fitting. They are “a technology and media company powering the largest network of organizations, activities, and people.” I know that sounds like marketing speak, but Active Network actually serves more than 47,000 customers and handles over 70 million event registrations annually. If you’ve ever run in a race, played in a sports league, or stayed at a campground, there’s a good chance that you in someway interacted with Active Network software.

Be Active About Your Job Search

To really get a feel for Active Network, you need to browse their website. Be sure to take a look at the Industries They Serve, the Technology Solutions They Offer, and the Media Properties they own. Active Network’s customers include a ton of big names ranging from IBM to Notre Dame to the State of California. The business continues to expand, but the common theme of supporting active lifestyles remains. So if you’re into being active, you’ll want to check out Jobs at Active Network–there are more than 100 positions open at Active Network right now. Since there are so many, I’m going to leave you to browse through the positions. There are options in Sales/Account Management, Marketing, Software Development, and lots of other areas. Additionally, the jobs are kind of all over the place geographically.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

How active are you?

Curbed Network

Willy Franzen — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:43:46 +0000

There’s a lot more to getting a job than being able to provide for essential needs like food, clothing, and shelter, but that’s a pretty big part of it–especially when you’re just starting out. It won’t take a lot in terms of wages to be able to pay for your basic expenses, but chances are that you’ll want to enjoy what you eat, what you wear, and where you live. If you’re all about that, then you should be reading the blogs from Curbed Network. They provide essential reads on how to get maximum enjoyment out of your essential needs. They’re based in New York, NY, and they run the blogs Curbed (real estate), Eater (food), Racked (clothes, style, and fashion), and the completely non-essential Gridskipper (travel). They don’t have a blog about air yet, but I hear that’s coming. The Curbed Network properties are very clearly built for yuppies with disposable incomes (what we all aspire to be, right?). 87% of the Curbed Network audience has a college degree, and 46% of them have a household income over $100k. Those are great stats for selling ads, which is what a business like Curbed Network is built on.

Kick Yourself to the Curbed

The best way to get a better feel for Curbed Network is pretty obvious–start reading their blogs. You’ll also want to check out the About pages for Curbed, Eater, Racked, and Gridskipper. You’ll get a rundown of how their audiences differ, who their advertisers are, what’s being said about them, and more. If you really want to dig into the stats on the Curbed Network audience, take a look at the Curbed Network Media Kit. It’s intended for potential advertisers, but you should learn a ton about them. Two stats that really stood out to me were that they get over 2 million monthly unique visitors and have over 170,000 e-mail subscribers. That’s quite a reach. If you’re digging what Curbed Network is all about, visit their Jobs page, which is centralized for all of the properties. They have a bunch of cool positions posted right now including Account Executive, Marketing & Events Coordinator, Designer, and a number of Editorial positions. Remember that a lot of Curbed Network’s properties are focused on locales, so there are job opportunities in these locales in addition to the ones located in NYC.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read any of the Curbed Network blogs?

Arthritis Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 15:02:30 +0000

While I was fishing yesterday (in a winter hat during the month of June I might add), I was tying knots, casting, wading through the river, and catching and releasing lots of fish. Though I wouldn’t by any means call it a strenuous workout, I was certainly putting all of my joints to use–from my fingers to my ankles. Most young people take for granted that their bodies work like they were built to, but it’s not so easy for some people. We often associate arthritis with aging, and it’s definitely linked to that, but it’s a group of disorders that can affect people of all ages (2/3 of people with arthritis are under the age of 65 according to the CDC). There are more than 100 types of arthritis and related conditions, which is why theArthritis Foundation was founded in 1948. They’re an Atlanta, GA based non-profit organization that “helps people take control of arthritis by providing public health education; pursuing public policy and legislation; and conducting evidence-based programs to improve the quality of life for those living with arthritis.” Considering how debilitating arthritis can be for the more than 50 million people who suffer from it, it’s a good thing that the Arthritis Foundation is doing what they do.

Joint Their Team

In just over 60 years of existence, the Arthritis Foundation has invested more than $400 million through grants to researchers which has resulted “in major treatment advances for most arthritis diseases.” They continue to fund research at an extremely high level, and they’ll keep doing it as long as arthritis is a problem. In addition to the research, the Arthritis Foundation offers community-based services like self-help courses, water and land-based exercise classes, instructional videotapes, and more, while also advocating “to local and national governments on behalf of the 46 million Americans with arthritis and chronic joint symptoms.” They seem to be doing great work that really helps to make the lives of millions of people better. If you’d like to be a part of what the Arthritis Foundation is doing, check out their Jobs page. At their National Office they’re looking for a Community Outreach Coordinator, a Consumer Health Marketing Coordinator, and a Web Marketing Specialist. They also have positions with local chapter available like Special Events Coordinator (Cedar Rapids, IA). Take a look and see what appeals to you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you have arthritis?

Museum of Food and Drink

Willy Franzen — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 14:20:07 +0000

As someone who has been a part of both a startup company (this one) and a startup non-profit (board member), I think that starting a non-profit is the more difficult of the two. It’s not all that hard to start a small organization that does good work, but to be able to fund it on a sustainable basis feels nearly impossible in the early stages. You actually need to get people to have enough faith in you and your team to give you money to achieve your mission. If you can do that, you can probably succeed. That’s why I’m excited about the Museum of Food and Drink in New York, NY. In March they held a Get-the-Ball-Rolling Fundraiser that included cooking by David Chang, Wylie Dufresne, Nils Noren, and some other big names. To get these chefs behind a cause and to get enough product donated for a $250 a plate lunch is a big accomplishment. It sounds like the dinner was a big success, which hopefully means that the Museum of Food and Drink ball is officially rolling.

Hungry Yet?

The Museum of Food and Drink is still a long way away, but the dream is big. They aim to be “nothing short of the Smithsonian of food.” I’m not sure I’d call myself a foodie, but I definitely love the art, science, and culture behind food. This museum sounds like it would be a must-visit for me–especially because “above all, when visitors come to the museum, they will eat.” There are three main goals of the Museum:

To educate everyone-from picky and apathetic eaters to gastronomes and food lovers-about the importance of culinary history and anthropology. Visitors will not only see exhibits, they will taste them.
To connect people to what they eat by explaining food production and distribution.
To encourage a widespread appreciation and understanding of lost and endangered culinary arts: recipes, techniques and regional ingredients.

It’s a massive project that is just getting started, but maybe you can be a part of it. Their website is barely anything, and there’s not much info out there about them beyond the coverage of their initial fundraiser, but they seem to have gotten a great start. Their Idealist page shows an Internship posting, but no jobs. That’s ok. Sometimes you need to “volunteer” your way in with an early stage non-profit. If you love the culture of food, a job with the Museum of Food and Drink would be a dream come true.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

MOFAD.org
Jobs at the Museum of Food and Drink (Idealist)

Would you visit the Museum of Food and Drink?

Metromix

Willy Franzen — Fri, 13 May 2011 11:22:43 +0000

My two biggest problems in life are figuring out what to wear and where to go. Since we covered the former yesterday, today it’s time to cover the latter. Ok, those aren’t really my two biggest problems in life, but I sometimes get frustrated that I live in a city the size of Chicago and feel like I can’t come up with a good idea of what I should do on a given weekend. There are a million opportunities out there, but figuring out what’s worth your time is difficult. That’s why Metromix was started as a joint-venture between newspaper behemoths Tribune Co. and Gannett Co. Metromix covers 60 different geographic areas (each individually) and offers a “guide to local restaurants, bars and clubs, events, concerts and movies.” While sites like Yelp have been built off the backs of their users, Metromix has an editorial staff generating content for each of their sites along with some user-generated content; however, smaller cities seem to get less original content. I must admit that Metromix isn’t my go to for what’s happening in Chicago, IL (which is where Metromix is located), but they seem to generate a ton of traffic and they have the resources of two major publishing/ad sales businesses behind them.

Get in the Mix

It’s kind of tough to get a full read on Metromix as a company. Once you’ve gone to one of their local sites, like the Austin, TX one you get redirected there whenever you try to go to Metromix.com. I guess this makes sense for a normal use case, but it means that you can’t really find any general information about Metromix beyond their Wikipedia page. The world of local publishing can often be a bit decentralized, and that certainly seems to be the case with Metromix. They don’t even make it easy to find where they’re headquartered (I had to check their LinkedIn company profile). If you start looking through their staff on LinkedIn, you see a lot of Chicago, but you also see a lot of other cities. My guess is that they hire a lot of freelancers to hone in on local markets. Metromix directs job seekers to their Careerbuilder page, which shows an even more decentralized approach to hiring. Most of the jobs that appear are posted from local tv stations or newspapers. I guess Metromix farms out some work like ad sales and marketing to other affiliated businesses. I don’t quite get it, but the opportunities are worth checking out, especially the Metromix Marketing & Promotion Coordinator position in Denver, CO and a couple of Account Management positions in Cincinnati, OH. If you’re looking for something else, you might find it difficult to track down the right person to contact, but it could be worth it.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you use Metromix?

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

Willy Franzen — Wed, 04 May 2011 16:41:43 +0000

Ever consider a career in teaching? Here’s some info on how to get started.

There’s a long history of poking fun at Martha Stewart, and it started well before she went to prison. There’s just something funny about someone who takes perfection in domesticity as seriously as she does. My family even played an integral role in the satire of Martha with my little sister’s appearance in the parody magazine Martha Stuart’s Better Than You at Entertaining, which was a follow up to Is Martha Stuart Living? (here’s a picture my sister as young Martha Stewart in the parody). We can keep laughing at Martha Stewart, but she’ll always get the last laugh. She has an amazing track record of reaching the top in nearly everything that she has done–from babysitting for Mickey Mantle’s kids to starting a successful catering company in her basement to building a New York, NY based media empire in Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Martha Stewart is apparently now worth well over half a billion dollars, and has used her personal brand to build amazing print, television, online, and merchandise properties.

Are You Living?

Whether or not you’re a Martha Stewart fan, you have to be impressed by what she’s done throughout her career. She’s had an amazing ability to stay relevant, and a lot of that has to do with her media strategy. She easily could have settled with a successful catering business, or a popular magazine, or having her own television show, but she didn’t. It seems that she is obsessed with using every channel possible to reach people with her “unique lifestyle content.” That’s what Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia is all about. If you enjoy the Martha Stewart brand and want to work on the media or merchandise side, then you definitely need to take a look at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia’s Careers page. There are some great opportunities posted in their job listings, and a few seem suitable for new or recent grads including: Assistant Food Editor, PHP Application Developer – Internet Content Management Systems, Front-End Web Developer, Decorative Pillow and Bedding Accessory Designer, Executive Assistant, Freelance Recipe Taster, Retail Merchandising Assistant, Apparel Designer – Martha Stewart Pets and Quilt Designer. You can also apply for an unlisted position if you don’t see something that suits you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Are you a Martha Stewart fan?

ASPCA

Willy Franzen — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 15:19:37 +0000

Sponsored Jobs: Love restaurants and looking for an entry level job? SinglePlatform has a ton of positions that are perfect for you. They’re our sponsor this week, and you can check out all of their positions here.

As I mentioned on Friday in our post on Russell Stover, I get pretty excited about Easter candy. There’s nothing better than a basket full of jelly beans, peanut butter eggs, marshmallow eggs, and chocolate bunnies. Some people prefer a little more reality in their Easter baskets though. In the past it wasn’t uncommon for people to give real bunnies, chicks, ducklings, and even lambs to their kids as Easter gifts, and I’m sure there are still some people doing it. It’s really cute, but it’s not a good idea unless the family is actually prepared to care for the properly as they grow up. That means most people should leave their bunnies chocolate, their chicks marshmallow, and their lambs… well we’re having lamb for dinner tonight. The The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals typically agrees (maybe not with the lamb part)–they even have a page on Rabbits as Easter Gifts that links to a site called MakeMineChocolate.org. The ASPCA is a New York, NY based non-profit that has aimed “to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States” since it was founded in 1866.

Calling All Animal Lovers

While the ASPCA may deal with the occasional chick, duckling, or bunny, the majority of their work centers around dogs and cats. These are obviously the most popular and most broadly loved types of pets, but they also are extremely likely to end up as victims of cruelty. The ASPCA not only works to protect these animals in a variety of ways, but they were actually the “first humane organization to be granted legal authority to investigate and make arrests for crimes against animals.” The range of services offered by the ASPCA is quite broad, and your best bet for getting to know them is to browse around their site. Once you get a better feel for the ASPCA, you can check out their Jobs page. They have a number of positions available including Administrative Assistant – Anti-Cruetly Group, Graphic Designer, Humane Law Enforcement, Marketing Assistant, Part Time Animal Care Technician, Part Time Data Verification Assistant, Veterinary Assistant, and Special Event Assistant. It’s like an Easter Egg Hunt! Go find something good.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about the ASPCA?

StarChefs

Willy Franzen — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 14:28:48 +0000

One of my favorite things about living in Chicago is that I am surrounded by some of the best restaurants in the world. Not only does that mean that I can treat myself to the occasional delicious meal, but I also have more celebrity chef sightings than the average person. Since most of you aren’t as cool as I am, you’ll need another way to get “a backstage pass to the celebrity chef world.” Luckily, there’s StarChefs, a magazine “for food and wine-savvy consumers and an essential information resource for aspiring professional chefs.” The New York, NY based publication has been around since 1995 and claims “monthly traffic of over 14.6 million hits” (or 30 million on another page). My analytics tell me that’s an overstatement (hits is an outdated measure that doesn’t really tell you anything), but they do have a sizable community that is extremely well targeted for advertising.

Are You a Star?

What impressed me most about StarChefs was the list of names on their Chef Advisory Board. There are a few that I can’t pronounce, but also a bunch that I recognized like Daniel Boulud, Marcus Samuelsson, Bobby Flay, and Todd English. Much of the content that StarChefs generates “is driven by in-person tastings and interviews across the world,” so they’re really focused on building a community resource where chefs and others in the food industry can learn from each other. Additionally, StarChefs runs StarChefs JobFinder, which is a job board in the food and hospitality space. This makes a ton of sense considering their position in the culinary community. There’s a ton of content on StarChefs.com, so you should really dig into it to get a better feel for the company. Once you do that, you can check out the StarChefs Jobs page. Right now they’re looking for a Print Designer and a Marketing Associate. Both jobs look like they could be good fits for new or recent grads, so give them a good look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read StarChefs?

Octagon

Willy Franzen — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 16:19:11 +0000

Usually when readers recommend companies, I put them on my list and cover them soon after if they look interesting and have relevant opportunities. Lately I’ve had two readers mention that they applied to Octagon, but I somehow overlooked the company. My only excuse is that I’m often skeptical of sports and entertainment marketing companies because there are so many sports marketing hiring scams. But that’s very clearly not the case with Octagon, they’ve been around since 1983 and they have offices all across the world. As they put it, they’re “the recognized, global thought leader in passion-based, sports & entertainment marketing.” Some of people they represent are Chris Paul, Michael Phelps, Randy Johnson, John Elway, Elena Dementieva, Landry Fields, Michael Johnson, Anna Kournikova, Apolo Anton Ohno, and many more huge names.

Can You Compete Inside the Octagon?

From what I can tell, Octagon separates their business into four divisions. On their Octagon’s What We Do page, you’ll see links to: Marketing, Marketing North America, Athletes & Personalities, and Events. Within the Athletes & Personalities section you’ll find links to specific verticals like OctagoOly.com, OctagonHockey.com, OctagonBasketball.com. Additionally, there are separate sites for Octagon’s international businesses like OctagonBrazil.com, and Octagon-UK.com. It’s all a bit overwhelming, but it’s indicative of how big Octagon’s presence is in the field of sports and entertainment marketing. In fact, the best overview of what Octagon’s businesses actually do is on their Careers page. Once you read through that, then you can take a look at their current job postings. Right now they have a few positions that seem right for a new or recent grad including Account Executive – Telecom (Kansas City, KS), Non-Profit & Media Relations Coordinator (Portland, ME), Account Executive – Sales Assistant (Norwalk, CT), Associate Producer – Digital (Norwalk, CT), and Account Executive – Multicultural – Home Improvement (Atlanta, GA).

Octagon has offices in the following locations, so you may want to watch out for new postings in any of these places:

Atlanta, GA
Cary, NC
Charlotte, NC
Chicago, IL
Los Angels, CA
McLean, VA
Minneapolis, MN
Naples, FL
New York, NY
Norwalk, CT
Ormond Beach, FL
Portland, ME
Richmond, VA
Rogers, AR
San Diego, CA
San Francisco, CA
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Sao Paulo, Brazil
Ottawa, Ontario
Waterlool, Ontario
Adelaide, South Australia
Hobart, Tasmania
Melbourne, Australia
Sydney, Australia
Beijing, China
Mumbai, India
Tokyo Japan
Singapore, Malaysia
Paris, France
Frankfurt, Germany
Doha, Qatar
Moscow, Russia
Cape Town, South Africa
Johannesburg, South Africa
Barcelona, Spain
Sevilla, Spain
Stockholm, Sweden
Istanbul, Turkey
London, United Kingdom

That’s a lot of locations, so keep an eye on Octagon’s job postings for opportunities closer to home (or further away if that’s what you’re looking for).

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about Octagon?

Shecky’s

Willy Franzen — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 16:30:35 +0000

I like writing about companies that I find interesting, which isn’t hard because I have very broad interests. However, I occasionally come across a company that I know is interesting, but it just doesn’t resonate with me. That’s definitely the case with Shecky’s. They’re a New York, NY based company that makes it their “mission to create social experiences that empower and reward women to discover and socialize with their girlfriends.” I think you can understand why that doesn’t resonate with me, but you’ll impressed to learn that Shecky’s was actually founded in 1998 by a Wall Street executive named Chris Hoffman. Despite the potentially ambiguous first name, Chris is a man who is apparently very in touch with “what women want.” He started by publishing the 1st Shecky’s Bar, Club & Lounge Guide in 1998, and then moved on to hosting hosts the “1st Girls Night Out” in New York City in 2001. In 2002 Chris found Claudia Chan and made her president after merging her company into Shecky’s. The business has continued to grow with a focus on improving the interactions that women have with their girlfriends, and I’m sure having a woman at the helm who understands the market better than any man ever could is a big reason for that.

Who’s Shecky?

One of the biggest pieces of the Shecky’s business is Girls Night Out. They hold these events in cities across the country, and they provide an opportunity for women to “discover unique designers, sip our delectable drinks, and cap your night with some pretty pampering and glorious Goodie Bags.” It appears that Shecky’s has finally moved away from the guidebook business, and has instead decided to put far more focus on their digital properties. I’ll bet that is turning out to be a really smart move. With the events and the website, Shecky’s is a marketer’s dream. It should be no surprise that advertising and sponsorships are big parts of Shecky’s business. If Shecky’s resonates with you and you know the importance of having a strong group of girlfriends, then take a look at jobs at Shecky’s. Right now they’re looking for a Sales Account Executive and a Customer Service Rep. Additionally, they often hire freelancers for their events in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Hamptons, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, St. Louis, and Washington, DC. These positions include Photography, Event Staff, Writing/Reporting, and Administrative Assistant opportunities.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Are you familiar with Shecky’s?

StubHub

Willy Franzen — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 15:52:08 +0000

It’s Opening Day! (Check out all of our baseball related jobs.) For me it’s like Christmas in April…or late March (it just doesn’t feel right when the season starts in March).I try to watch as many Yankees games as I possibly can, so my daily routine will have to change for the next 7 months. When I first moved to Chicago, I religiously used the MLB At Bat app on my iPhone to listen to games. Then I got DirecTV with MLB Extra Innings so that I could watch all of the games in HD. Now I’m using MLB.tv for viewing games on my phone, laptop, and television through an AppleTV (I’ve already watched quite a few spring training games). However, none of these compare to actually catching a game in person. Unfortunately, when the Yankees come to Chicago to play the Cubs at Wrigley this year, I’m going to be out of town. But last year when they came to play the White Sox, I was able to easily get tickets through StubHub. They’re a San Francisco, CA based company that is owned by eBay and enables people to buy and sell tickets to all sorts of events.

Your Ticket to a New Job

Buying tickets on the secondary market is scary for a lot of people. I had a surprisingly good experience with a drugged out scalper in Denver (for $10 I ended up in the 3rd row, but I figured there was at least a 50% chance the ticket was counterfeit) and a terrible experience with a seemingly reputable ticket broker (my Dad bought me playoff tickets for my 13th birthday and when we showed up at the stadium the broker didn’t have them). StubHub eliminates all of the uncertainty with their FanProtect Guarantee. Even better, you can often get your tickets delivered electronically. I’ve also found that if you wait until about 3 hours before a game, you can often get tickets for well below face value (but don’t wait too long because they close ticket sales 2 hours before the game). This means that if a friend bails at the last minute, you can e-mail or text another friend the ticket. StubHub has really helped push ticketing into the 21st century. StubHub is a “middleman” that provides a ton of extra value, which is why you might want to take a look at their Careers page.

StubHub’s Jobs page dumps you into the eBay Careers site, which is a little annoying. It’s unclear whether eBay’s Campus Recruiting also covers StubHub, but you can just run a search with StubHub as the “subsidiary” to see all of the job postings at StubHub. Right now there are a few positions that seem suitable for new or recent grads including Seller Experience Associate and Sourcing Representative. (I can’t link directly to the postings because eBay uses BrassRing, which is another terrible Applicant Tracking System made by Kenexa.) The eBay Campus Recruiting page also mentions job opportunities in Information Security Engineering, Project Management, QA Engineering, Research, Software Engineering, Business Process Analysis, Business Development, and Trust and Marketing Management, but I don’t know how many (if any) of those titles would apply at StubHub.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

If you like what you see at StubHub, you may also want to check out jobs at SeatGeek.

Rock the Earth

Willy Franzen — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 14:48:31 +0000

Music has always been connected with social change. There’s just something about it that gets people motivated to take action. But often the music can also be a distraction. It takes a delicate balance to combine the power of music with a specific cause to elicit a positive response. That’s what Rock the Earth is all about. They’re a Denver, CO based non-profit organization that is “dedicated to protecting and defending America’s natural resources through partnerships with the music industry and the world-wide environmental community.” They were founded in 2002, and since then they’ve been “defending the planet one beat at a time.”

What Are You Rocking?

Rock the Earth identifies specific projects and works tirelessly to increase awareness about a variety of environmental threats. Some of their past projects include protecting wilderness from drilling on Colorado’s Roan Plateau, protecting marine ecosystem off the coast of the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, and targeting cruise ships for their discharges and emissions. They’ll often tie in their music partners to help with specific causes. There are some big names on their partner list including Alanis Morissette, Allman Brothers Band, Barenaked Ladies, Dave Matthews Band, Guster, Incubus, Ozzy Osbourne, Phish, Tom Petty & the Heatbreakers, and lots more. If these artists aren’t tied to specific causes, then they’re participating in the Rock the Earth Tours. If you’re digging what Rock the Earth is all about, then you should check out their jobs on Idealist. Right now they’re looking for an Office Administrator. It’s not totally an entry level job, but I’m pretty sure that the right new grad could be a great fit for this position.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Are you rockin’ the Earth?