Representatives from E & J Gallo Winery recently hosted Appalachian State University's Women of Walker for a Zoom session covering the importance of networking.
With the help of the Walker College of Business Career Services Office, students are finding ways to set themselves apart from the competition even when social distancing measures have limited the recruitment process. The message was tailored to provide tips and recommendations of how to maximize networking techniques during the pandemic.
Three of the representatives who joined the session are alumnae of Appalachian; they shared their positive experiences while a student, their failures and successes throughout their careers at E & J Gallo Winery. The panelists were Jenny Ayers '09 COM, Charis Nunez- '09 COM and Morgan Coleman '17 MKT. Kim Grice also joined the panel.
E & J Gallo was started in 1933 and is the largest wine manufacturer by global volume share. Gallo is stepping up to the plate during the crisis to give back to the community in many ways. Gallo has partnered with Jimmy Kimmel to donate $300,000 to CORE (Children of Restaurant Employees), donated over $150,000 in the first week to the US Bartenders Guild Foundation in partnership with Barstool Sports and $100,000 to GuildSomm. Many spirit producers for E & J have converted some manufacturing means to make hand sanitizer as well as many E & J Gallo employees are making thousands of masks to donate.
According to Amy Odom, advisor for the Women of Walker, some takeaways from the session about networking:
- Treat networking like a mining experience- bring your value to the event and walk away from the interaction with value.
- When you post on social media are you asking " look at me? or learn from me?"
- Your presence is powerful- showing up is half the battle.
- Robust LinkedIn profiles are more powerful and necessary than ever since recruiters can't meet you in person.
"We concluded the session with elevator pitch presentations by the Women of Walker," said Odom. "Our members were asked to complete an exercise prior to the session to craft their own elevator pitch that they could use at a networking event in the future."
About Women of Walker
The mission of the Women of Walker is to accelerate professional development, personal growth, and leadership abilities for female business majors at Appalachian State University through networking, career exploration, travel, and professional development workshops and seminars. Learn more: businesscareers.appstate.edu/career-coaching/women-walker.
Women of Walker experience distance networking opportunities with potential employers
Zoom session