Category Archives: Career Advice
Career Advice From The Creative Director at The Indiana Chamber of Commerce
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Tony Spataro is the Creative Director for the Indiana Chamber. He told us about his internship experience as well as his professional career development. He provided us with very insightful information of how things have changed in the creative sector, and how to prepare for a career similar to his.
Indiana INTERNnet: What is your current position and what are your day to day tasks?
Tony Spataro: Iām the creative director for the Indiana Chamber. I handle the designs and layouts for the Chamber and its subsidiaries. The majority of my design work includes layouts, marketing, print, email and some web materials. Recently, we started a podcast for the Chamber called EchoChamber, which I’m the producer for. I also shoot videos and photography for the various departments at …
Emily Miles: Making an IMPACT
Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on February 26, 2019 at the 13th Annual IMPACT Awards Luncheon. Though the event is over, and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nomineesā successes.
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These are their stories.
Emily Miles plans to graduate from Indiana University-Bloomington in May 2019 with a bachelorās degree in journalism and specialization in audio. She currently works as the Audio and Special Projects Specialist at the IU-Bloomington Office of the Provost & Executive Vice President and helps run the student podcast American Student Radio.
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Indiana INTERNnet: You are a graduate of Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelorās degree in journalism, correct? What made you interested in pursuing that?
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Emily Miles: I graduate from Indiana University-Bloomington in May with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism, which is my major. My specialization within my major is audio, so that means production, broadcast and …
Career Advice from the Communications and PR Manager at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Charlee Beasor is the Communications and PR Manager for the Chamber. We asked her about her internship experience and whatās important in the early stages of professional development.
Indiana INTERNnet: What is your current position and what do you do?
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Charlee Beasor: Iām the Communications and PR manager of the Chamber. I perform a wide range of tasks, from handling social media accounts to writing for BizVoice(R) magazine, as well as Indiana Chamber press releases. Also, I talk with members of the Chamber and see what visibility and communications resources we can offer them. I also work with the media and our spokespeople in my current role.
IIN: When did you decide to start applying for internships and why?
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CB: I started searching …
Career Advice from the Manager of Membership and Customer Services at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Nick Luchtefeld is Manager of Membership and Customer Services for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Nick has been with the chamber since 2012. We asked him about his previous internship experiences and how it helped him prepare for his career. He provided us with career advice as well as what to look for in an internship to gain the most experience and exposure.
Indiana INTERNnet: How many internships did you have?
Nick Luchtefeld: One of the requirements for Butler business majors is that you must complete two internships. I was able to land two internships before starting my career search. My first internship was with Wolverine Worldwide who is a shoe manufacturer, and I worked in work boot department. At Wolverine I worked with a mix of marketing …
Career Advice from the Human Resources Director at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Michelle Kavanaugh is the Director of Human Resources for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. She has been with the company since 2011. We asked her about her career experience and what HR departments look for when selecting candidates. She provided us with tips about resumes, interviewing, and what to do (and not do) when applying for jobs!
Indiana INTERNnet: What is the screening process like when people apply for positions?
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Michelle Kavanaugh: First I have to sort applicants out and see if they meet the minimum qualifications. This helps me find out which applicants are worth talking to based on their background. After that I sort them by skill sets and whether they fit the position. Once they are categorized into yesās and noās then I phone …
Career Advice from the Manager of Membership Development at the Indiana Chamber
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Matt Ottinger is a Manager of Membership Development for the Chamber. Heās been with the organization since 2007. We asked him about his career experience and whatās important in the early stages of professional development.
Indiana INTERNnet:Ā What is your current position and what do you do?
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Matt Ottinger:Ā Iām currently the Manager of Membership Development and Iām in charge of finding new members that we can offer our service to. I find and research potential companies to contact through various methods such as events and conferences, Chamber programs and news. I have been with the Chamber since 2007 and started out in communications and publications.
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IIN:Ā When did you decide to start searching for …
Career Advice from the Director of Membership Strategy for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Brett Hulse is the Director of Membership Strategy for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. He has been with the organization since 2012. He started out as a Membership Development Manager, and became the Director of Membership Strategy recently. We asked him about his career experience and what is important in the early stages of professional development.
Indiana INTERNnet: Can you gives a brief background about your early career development?
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Brett Hulse: I grew up as the son of a golf professional and spent most of my early years at the golf course. From an early age, I was confident that I would follow in my fatherās shoes. For 5 years I worked in this capacity, but eventually the lack of work-life balance made this career undesirable. I …
Career Advice from the BizVoice Advertising Sales Director at the Indiana Chamber
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Tim Brewer is the BizVoiceĀ® Advertising Sales Director for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. He has been with the organization since 2000, and first started in the Membership department as a representative. Then he worked his way up to become the Vice President of Membership. We asked him a series of questions about his career experience and what is important in the early stages of professional development.
Indiana INTERNnet: What did you look for when applying for full-time jobs?
Tim Brewer: There are many things to look for when applying for full-time jobs. But you must ask yourself, āwhat is most important to me?ā When applying for jobs it all depends on the individual. What I was looking for was flexibility, stability, balance, and it being enjoyable. You must …
Career / Internship Advice From The Communications Manager at The Indiana Chamber
Earlier this week we had the opportunity to interview a current employee of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. Symone Skrzycki is the communications manager for the Indiana Chamber and a writer for BizVoiceĀ® Magazine. This summer, she Ā will celebrate 19 years of employment at the Chamber. Previously, Symone interned at the Johnson County Museum of History (then known as the Johnson County Historical Society) and WB4 Indiana. We asked her a series of questions about her internship experiences and how they helped her transition into a professional career.
Indiana INTERNnet: When and why did you decide to start searching for an internship?
Symone Skrzycki: The summer after my junior year. I wanted to get Ā professional experience and at the same time, gain a competitive edge over the competition. I completed my museum internship that fall, and the one at WB4 Indiana the following spring.
IIN: What would you say …
Internship Advice From a Student/Intern
One of the biggest goals in the early stages of our careers is to land an internship, but there are some steps you must take before you apply. There are several things to do when applying for internships such as: researching companies, preparing for interviews, resume updates, etc. In the early stages of my search for an internship I thought I had mastered everything. In fact, I thought my resume and interview skills were excellent. Later, I learned that wasnāt the case and that it needed improvement.
Career services
Career services can help you with your resume, career advice and internship help. When I used to apply for internships early on, I hardly received interviews, so I had a career advisor help me restructure my resume. The advisor provided me with advice on how to improve my resume, and then I started receiving more interviews. Next, the career center helped …
Why It’s Okay to be Overdressed at Your Internship
I was never a fan of being overdressed, but it was a problem I consistently encountered growing up. I remember when I was in elementary school, my mother would never let me pick my own clothes for special occasions. While my peers were wearing jeans and t-shirts, I was dressed to the nines, fully coordinated and accessorized. I hated the feeling of sticking out, and I remember being embarrassed. But looking back from where I am now, I’m grateful. When I see pictures from family gatherings and school events, I always look well put-together. It makes the memories nicer, and easier to look at. I didn’t think dressing up mattered at the time, but now I understand.
This attitude is the same one I have when I look back on my internships. I almost always overdressed! I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb, but overdressing served a …
Work Event Dos and Don’ts
At some point in your career, you’re going to attend a work event that’s outside of normal business hours. They actually happen more often than you think! This week, I had both a luncheon and a cocktail hour/dinner on the same day. I never thought I would have a job where I have to attend these events, let alone two in one day! Even if you don’t think you’ll be encountering work events in your career, you need to be prepared anyway. Here are some do’s and don’ts of attending a work event.
Do: Be Polite to Waitstaff
I worked in retail and the service industry for years. Waitstaff have to put up with a lot. Their job is stressful, fast-paced, and exhausting. Keep this in mind the next time your food isn’t the greatest, or you don’t get your drink as fast as you want. In the dating world, …
How to Handle Allergy, Cold and Flu Season
āWinter is coming.ā A phrase that strikes fear into the hearts of many. Not just because it means something major is impending on Game of Thrones, but because it means the time for getting sick is upon us. Whether itās just getting a common cold, or something major like the flu, ātis the season of sickness. Hereās how to navigate life during whatās sure to be a tiring time!
Utilize preventative measures.
The easiest way to handle getting sick is using preventative tactics. Get your flu shot, not just for your sake, but for everyone elseās! If you skipped your shot, it doesn’t mean you didn’t get someone else sick. Donāt want to stop by your doctor to get the flu shot? Go to Target. It sounds weird, but the MinuteClinics inside Target stores are doing free flu shots AND they give you a $5 Target coupon! In addition to …
How to Handle Politics in the Workplace
Since today is election day, what better topic to address than handling politics in the workplace? The level of chaos and tension in the current political landscape feels like it is at an all time high. Sometimes it seems like itās all anyone can talk about. But hereās how to handle politics being brought up at work.
Donāt ever make assumptions.
Whether itās you or someone else steering the conversation in a political direction, never make assumptions. Donāt assume that anyone will have the same view as you. Some people are uncomfortable at the thought of voicing their political opinions, and logically so. People often clash when they have different beliefs, and you want to avoid negatively affecting someoneās opinion of you. If you have a negative view of someone because of their political beliefs, maybe that conversation should have been avoided in the first place!
Never use derogatory language. …
How to Ace a Phone Interview
As I searched for a job after I graduated college, I was navigating a new kind of hiring process. In my previous experiences, I would receive a request for a face-to-face interview, and they either hired me or they didnāt. I became used to excelling in those types of interviews, and thought my job search would be easy. It wasnāt. For the first time in my life, employers were requesting a phone interview instead of in-person. This meant all my face-to-face skills were worthless, as my interviewer couldnāt see my body language or facial expressions. A phone interview is structured differently from an in-person interview. So hereās what you need to know to ace one.
Set up the ideal environment.
If youāve never had a phone interview, itās exactly what it sounds like. You schedule a specific time for a phone call, and the interviewer asks you questions over the …