UIC Business AMA Visits Facebook Chicago HQ
Our organization, the American Marketing Association - UIC Chapter, organizes site visits every semester for our members. We believe site visits are great opportunities for students to gain insight into how a company operates and what the culture is like. Additionally, students are able to network with recruiters and professionals at the companies, potentially leading to internship or job opportunities. This spring 2020 semester, thanks to a connection within the company, a group of members from our organization visited Facebook’s Chicago office.
Let’s see what a few of those members had to say about their experience: Heading link
Evan Duffy, the treasurer of AMA-UIC says, “Visiting Facebook was something I had been looking forward to doing for months. Being able to see the inner workings of the world’s largest social media company was an overwhelming experience in the best possible way. I enjoyed walking through their modern, detailed building and getting to feel how it would be working there. Their office layout was extremely unique. Everyone sat in teams of 15-20 people, creating a very cohesive workspace. They had plenty of office rooms for anyone to work in or hold a meeting during the day to get away from the normal chaos that each workday brings.
My favorite part of the site visit was getting the opportunity to ask questions to their account managers. One of them was Nigel Hammett, a very personable guy in the office. He had great character and was very knowledgeable in the space of sales and client work, two things that I am highly involved in with my personal company, Horizon Line Lawn Care LLC. The question I had for them was, “What are new updates Facebook will be making in the future to help small businesses promote their products.” Although they weren’t able to give me a specific answer due to their privacy policies, they did share new things the app has been bringing to the forefront for business owners. This helped me to gain a greater understanding of how Facebook aims to help its users and provide a service for small businesses to help them excel.” Nigel also visited campus and joined one of our chapter meetings.
Vice President, Anela Hanic recalled her experience, “I really enjoyed the Facebook site visit and learning about how the company functions as well as the corporate culture in the office. I am very interested in the social media field of marketing and gaining insight into how Facebook helps companies with advertising through social media was educating. It was an experience where there was something I can take away and can put towards my future and daily routine. I love what Facebook has to offer and I hope I can work with a company like Facebook one day. “
Nelya Vasylyk, Director of Programming said this, “My favorite part of the Facebook office in Chicago was the Facebook “What’s on Your Mind?” wall where each of us had a chance to write down our thoughts reminding me of how we write on people’s ‘walls’ on Facebook. I also enjoyed hearing about the celebration of different cultural and other diversity events including Black History Month, which was happening at the time of our visit.”
Lastly, our Director of Creative Content, Sheryl Cabading shared her experience, “My favorite aspect of our site visit to Facebook’s Chicago headquarters was seeing all of the artworks on the walls made by local Chicago artists. I love it when companies support local artists because it just says a lot about their culture. The artworks were really rich, beautiful and give their office so much personality to it. I also loved the fact that their Facebook deeply embraces diversity, and they had support groups within their company that celebrates the differences of each individual.”
Guest Speaker Event Heading link
In addition to the site visit, we hosted a guest speaker on campus from Facebook, an Account Manager, Nigel Hammett. Hammett discussed his unordinary path to landing a job at the tech company. Networking was his number one asset. He advised our members to prepare an elevator pitch for recruiters at career fairs, to connect with them on LinkedIn, and reach out to professionals who are in similar roles to our desired positions or work at a company we are hoping to join.
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On the side, Hammett runs a successful resume building business. The business was his focal point for his presentation. He offered numerous pieces of advice to our members regarding what recruiters look for in resumes, proper formatting, and quantifying every duty possible. Hammett also recommended creating multiple versions of our resume, tailoring each for the specific position or job type we are applying for. AMA member Daniel Montalvo said this about his experience, “After the presentation, I went home and completely revamped my resume using the tips and tricks that Nigel told us about. The next day I had my advisor look it over and got his stamp of approval. I’ve since made multiple versions of my resume by following the advice we got during the presentation!” As someone who has worked on 100s of resumes, Hammett knows exactly what recruiters are looking for.
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Furthermore, Hammett expressed the importance of self-branding and building your network. Everything a person puts on the internet is available to recruiters or anyone else so exuding a positive image and being cautious with what you post is necessary. As college students, developing a strong network is beneficial in the present and the future. By building relationships with other students or professionals, we increase our chance for opportunities in the future and are able to offer our own advice or assistance to those within our network.