#SmealWeeklyRecap featuring Kara McCollaum '16 MGMT
Here's to our first #SmealWeeklyRecap of 2021! Make sure and continue to #lifelonglearn with us and follow along as we showcase other featured alumni in 2021. All webinars are free and registrations can be found on the Smeal Alumni Events Calendar. For recordings of past webinars, visit our Smeal Lifelong Learning Webinar library. Additionally, here is the link to our Smeal Lifelong Learning Podcast episodes on our website. Don't forget you can also download them on Apple, Castbox, Spreaker or most podcast apps and become a subscriber to get updates on our releases!
Sign up for Smeal Alumni Career Services' bi-monthly e-newsletter at this link!
Featured Alumni: Kara McCollaum ('16 MGMT), Talent Acquisition Supervisor at Burlington Stores
Kara is currently a talent acquisition supervisor at Burlington Stores, leading a team of 20+ that supports hiring efforts for all Burlington store and distribution center locations nationwide. Burlington, an off-price retailer, is in a unique space in the retail industry where they are consistently opening new stores each year and seeing growth across business units. In Kara’s role, she creates hiring strategies for various areas of the business (including new store openings), develops tools to measure and analyze success, and manages vendor relations/budgets, all while maintaining an environment where her team is encouraged to reach their full potential. A misconception people may have with human resources or recruiting roles is that most of your time is spent talking to people and helping them. While that can be true and is definitely important, Kara is heavily involved with metrics and technology, and often leverages that knowledge to consult external and internal business partners. Burlington is also exploring the use of artificial intelligence to allow our recruiters to work smarter, not harder. In case you didn't know: Penn State is one of Burlington's partner schools for early career hiring! If you are interested in entry-level corporate opportunities please reach out to their Penn State Recruiter, Kayode Oduwaiye (also a PSU alum), at [email protected]!
Kara’s best piece of career advice is to be open and honest with yourself and others at all times (this is also applicable personally). Kara often reflects after each day/week to look back on what she’s focusing on at work, and thinks deeply about what’s exciting and challenging, what’s not so much, and tries to understand the reasons why. Once you understand the root of your interests, you can better imagine the potential for your ideal role within an organization. While less exciting and challenging things need to be done too, it’s helpful to have open dialogue with your leader so they can understand what motivates you, and ultimately how to better develop you. Be your own best advocate!
Resources for the week!
- Articles relating to Burlington , corporate social responsibility, success and trends: Click on the link to view recent articles in the news on these topics from publications like Business Insider, Harvard Business Review, Forbes, SCM Magazine, Vault, Fast Company, The Guardian, Gallup, Morning Brew, The Washington Post, New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Wired, The Economist, Entrepreneur Daily, Bloomberg and more! Did you know that Burlington Stores beat their 3Q earnings and revenue estimates? Do you think companies must go beyond random acts of humanitarianism? How can you measure your company's impact? What do most successful companies in America share? Do you know that Dr. Seuss made $33 million nearly 30 years after his death? #creativitymatters What are CFO's keeping an eye on in 2021? Visit the link to find out more.
- Several recent graduates have mentioned that their job offer was rescinded due to the current situation. Remember, Smeal Alumni Career Services is here to help! Find out how we can assist you as a alum in a job search and about all the resources we have to offer at this link. For those of you who are not Smeal alumni, but have graduated from Penn State, please make sure to check out the resources provided by Penn State Alumni Career Services. All Penn State alumni can create an account on Nittany Lion Careers to search for companies looking to hire Nittany Lions. Lastly, to engage with other alumni and students join LionLink.
- Virtual networking is crucial to your 2021 job search! For Smeal alumni, remember to join our groups:
Penn State Smeal College of Business Alumni (Official)
Smeal Alumni-to-Alumni Career Support
- Interested in staying engaged as a Smeal College of Business alum? Check out Alumni Relation's Ways to Get Involved page. You can attend an event, engage with Smeal students, build your network, advance your career, share you accomplishments, and more. #WeAre
Smeal #Lifelonglearning Webinars - Secure your spot today!
The webinars are LIVE on Wednesdays at Noon ET. Below is the start of our 2021 webinar season with top Smeal professors #backbypopulardemand and more on building an inclusive culture! Everyone is welcome!
Framing and Communicating Strategic Vision Across A Multi-Generational Workforce" featuring Duane "Andy" Gustafson ('96 PhD), Associate Professor of Leadership Communication at The Pennsylvania State University - January 20
Yearly Federal Tax Update for Smeal Alumni (Note: all are welcome!) featuring Edward Jenkins (’77 Economics, ’84 MBA), Smeal Professor of Practice in Accounting - February 3
What You Don’t Know, You Don’t Know: Disrupting Bias Through Understanding Neuroscience featuring Christine Ramsay ’05 MKTG, Global Sr. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Engagement Leader, Jazz Pharmaceuticals- February 17
Transfluence: Leading with Transformative Influence in Today’s Climates of Change featuring Walt Rakowich ’79 ACCT Author, Leadership Speaker and Former Executive of Prologis, a global real estate company that was near collapse when he took over as CEO in 2008 - May 5