At the beginning of February, the Donald R. Tapia School of Business hosted its yearly Business week from Feb. 6 to 9. The goal of Business week is to inform students about new career paths, help them to improve their interview skills and update their resume and get them engaged in activities throughout the week.
The first day started out with an essential skill for getting a good job; writing a good resume and cover letter. In the morning, there was a workshop on how to effectively write a resume that will catch an employer’s attention and make potential employees stand out from the crowd. Many students often make the common mistake that they do not put important information on their resume because they think that it is not important.
Things like community service, volunteering at a local charity organization, being active in clubs on campus, or being part of an athletic team set people apart and show admirable qualities. Nowadays, many companies hire for soft skills like attitude or character. Doing charitable things or team sports show that people can work in teams.
“I really enjoyed the workshop, since I learned many things about how to write an effective resume and cover letter. I am a senior, and this was something that we barely learned in class. Having someone teach me the do’s and don’ts really helped me to improve my application to potential employers,” said Colett Rampf, who is a senior majoring in economics.
In the second presentation after the workshop, Mrs. Jesse Husted from GTE Financial talked about how these key factors can make a student stand out and help them get the job they desire.
The other days continued with presentations about job searching and the use of social media. Employers look through social media and even hire companies that do background checks on potential employees using social media. Everything is publicly available, and students need to put thought into what they are posting on the various social media networks.
At the end of the week came the grand finale: The business plan competition. There were two competitions; one for current businesses in Pasco County and another for Saint Leo students. The students had to apply with a complete business plan back in December, and the judges picked the four best ones that would get the chance to present.
“Before the presentation, it was just nerve-wracking. The situation was totally different than from the classroom because I knew I had to present in front of real investors and compete for real money. I thought that it was going to be a close race and I had to stick to what I’m good at and be passionate about my product,” said Britton Janning, who is a junior marketing major.
The judges were local entrepreneurs, investors, and people from the Pasco Economic Development Council (PEDC) that served as a co-host and put together the competition for the
existing businesses. In both competitions, the participants were competing for prize money and a membership to the incubator program of the PEDC.
The Saint Leo students presented their inventions and ideas that they came up with. The ideas ranged from glasses for sports fans that have the ability to zoom in, over a repair facility for drones, to Janning’s application that can help children with a disorder of movement, muscle tone, or posture.
“My Cousin is an engineer, and together we created an application that can help kids with Cerebral Palsy. The application is called a freedom of movement abductor and looks like a plastic bar with a cushioning on both sides. Currently, hospitals are using a metal bar that is uncomfortable for the kid. Our application gives the kid more comfort and flexibility while being more cost effective,” Janning added.
In the end, it was a close call between the four competitors that all had ideas that appealed to the judges. However, Janning was able to stand out with his prototype and his passionate presentation on how he can solve a common problem that affects around two hundred thousand children yearly in the United States alone.
“After I found out that I won I felt absolutely awesome. I am blessed and happy that I can move forward with it. The money that I won will help me to create prototypes and bring the product to market to help many kids,” Janning continued.
There was also one Saint Leo student that participated in the competition for existing businesses. Rafal Matuszczak participated for Entangle Media, where he is currently doing an internship. Matuszczak and his boss presented MadeInPasco.com, which is a platform that is encouraging people to shop at local businesses. In the end, they placed fourth in the very competitive field of established entrepreneurs.
Overall, the Saint Leo business week was a success. Many students took part in the speaker events, workshops, and activities that the week had to offer. The School of Business regularly offers events and career fairs to help students in their future career paths. Keep an eye out for other events that are on the way.
