Students network with marketing executives at Thursday’s inaugural Marketing Symposium.
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Ohio University’s College of Business held its inaugural Marketing Symposium Thursday, bringing students and representatives from top companies together under one roof at Walter Hall.
John Schnatter, CEO and founder of Papa John’s Pizza, gave the keynote speech.
“This gives students access to hearing advice from real life executives,” said Annabelle Lamy, lead coordinator for the symposium. “A lot of faculty say they can tell students something a hundred times, but as soon as Papa John is saying it, it’s the truth.”
Students were able to rub elbows with companies such as: AT&T, Microsoft, LinkedIn and JPMorgan Chase during the exclusive networking lunch.
“I’m here for the experience,” said Thea Cassudakis, a marketing senior. “There are a lot of cool people here, it’s a really good opportunity.”
Raj Agnihotri, chair of the OU marketing department, said that he hopes for the symposium to be an annual tradition.
“The goal is to bring everyone under one roof to work together and make Ohio University’s marketing department the best in the nation,” he said in his opening remarks.
The symposium invited students to a personal branding and marketing session lead by Jeff Cogan, the director of Talent Solutions Enterprise and Relationship Management at LinkedIn.
Afternoon sessions were open to all students. These sessions included a content marketing and social media session lead by Nate Riggs, founder and president of NR Media, and a consumer research panel that included Dan Dahlen, writer of the “Where’s the Beef?” line for Wendy’s and discoverer of Subway’s “Jared”.
Chloe Thompson, a sophomore marketing major, said she wasn’t required by her professors to attend, but they were strongly recommended.
“This is a good opportunity and my professor really encouraged us to come,” Thompson said.
Agnihotri said that the symposium is meant to make students more aware of current marketing trends and give them the opportunity to successfully make connections.
“If you are not networking, you are not working,” he said.
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