I’ve only purchased a car once in my life. It was in 2001, and it was my first car–a ’97 Ford Explorer. I definitely did some online research, but most of my time was spent going to dealers and actually looking at cars. It seems that more than a decade later, the car buying process hasn’t changed all that much, even though so many other business models have been upended by the Internet. That’s not to say technology isn’t becoming a tremendous asset in the automotive retail business. Managing dealer networks and marketing cars can get extremely complicated for auto manufacturers, and that’s where Urban Science steps in. Though they may sound like a non-profit that teaches inner-city kids science, they’re actually a Detroit, MI based “consulting and software solutions” provider that helps “automotive clients increase market share and boost profitability through high performing retail networks.” It all started in 1977 with a Wayne State University professor named Jim Anderson, who was disappointed to hear that Cadillac was told one of their marketing problems “couldn’t be solved.”

Are You an Urban Scientist?

Since its founding Urban Science has grown from one guy to 750+ employees, and they serve all of the biggest names in the auto world. Just look at their Client Showcase. Every name you could ever want to see on there is: Audi, Bentley, Ford, GM, Land Rover, Toyota, Volkswagen, Mercedes, Chrysler, Honda, and it keeps on going. It’s hard to understand what it is that Urban Science does if you’re not in the automotive industry, but you can start to understand by looking at their four step process for clients:

1. Develop Dealer Network
2. Improve Dealer Performance
3. Manage Leads
4. Optimize Marketing

I highly recommend that you read through those pages, as they dig into the exact value that Urban Science provides to clients (and understanding that will help you understand how you can offer value to Urban Science). After you do that, check out Urban Science’s Careers page. They have quite a few jobs posted, and a bunch are “Recent College Graduate,” and they include:

• Client Services Associate
• QA Associate
• Analytical Services Associate
• Associate Developer
• Information Technology Operations Associate
• Analytical Services Associate (Long Beach, CA)
• IT Associate (Long Beach, CA)
• Client Team Associate (Long Beach, CA)
• Associate (Herndon, VA)

Urban Science looks like a fascinating company, so look over these positions and see if any of them make sense for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• UrbanScience.com
• Jobs at Urban Science
• About Urban Science
• People at Urban Science
• Urban Science’s Clients
• Urban Science News

When was the last time that you bought a car?

We've identified Urban Science as having career opportunities in the following categories:

• all employers
• analyst
• automotive
• California
• cars
• consulting
• information technology
• marketing
• Michigan
• quality assurance
• software development
• Virginia
• web development

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