Metamorphosis: Learning to spread my wings

Hands up if you’re a young professional; half of the women responded. Hands up if you’re a junior or a senior; another half complied. And hands up if you’re… the only freshman?

That was me.

On May 10, 2007, I found myself in midtown Manhattan at the New York Press Club, attending NYWICI’s “Making the Most of Your Internship or New Job.” I was the caterpillar among my chrysalis and butterfly peers. Heavens, was I blessed!

Easily commanding the room’s attention, our host, Carolyn Kepcher, took the stand. While many recognized her as Donald Trump’s right hand on “The Apprentice,” she introduced herself as the CEO and co-founder of Carolyn & Co., a company dedicated to helping career women achieve professional success and balance in their personal lives. She began the company to remind women “Not to forget high priorities and to understand the life balance,” Kepcher said.

Kepcher introduced us to the panel of three women responsible for the hiring of interns and employees to their respective companies. First on the panel was Caroline Cenzina-Levine, head of CL Search Services and former associate director of staffing for Time, Inc. Next sat Katherine Crawford, director of Academic Programs & Communications at the International Radio & Television Society Foundation (IRTS). Also speaking on the panel was Lisa Fuhrman, vice president and executive recruiter at Ketchum PR.

Kepcher asked the panelists “What are some things that automatically catch your eye when looking at a résumé?” Crawford appreciates a good format. “One page, neat and simple!” said the head of the IRTS educational and diversity programs.

Everyone laughed when the panelists advised against “funky” usernames for e-mail addresses, like “HotLegs14,” and inappropriate voicemails that go: “Hello? Oh hi, how are you? … I’m sorry! I can’t come to the phone right now!” Crawford even suggested to “Clean up your MySpace or Facebook, because companies Google you.” As we came to discover, Crawford is an avid Googler.

For interviews, Fuhrman is most impressed by “Passion. Make them realize that you love what you do and that you’re enthusiastic about learning.” And besides punctuality, another important tip was to “Do your homework!” Each panelist stressed the need to explain your resume, to learn about the company and to articulate well what you want to learn from the company. Kepcher told us of countless applicants she has interviewed who said “I want to work for Donald Trump,” but couldn’t even answer why.

Now, what do you do if your job or internship is not challenging? Crawford said that you need to “Get into the rhythm,” and show a strong work ethic by mastering administrative tasks, and understanding the purpose of paperwork and phone calls. Then, finish your work early and ask for more responsibility. “Nobody turns down an energetic person,” Kepcher said.

While panelists agreed starting salaries for entry level positions were usually in the range of $20,000 to $30,000, what’s the best way to ask for a raise? “Put in your full year and take what you can get. Raises come when raises come. You have to know enough about your landscape,” Cenzina-Levine of CL Search Services said. Meaning, be ready to justify why you deserve a raise, find the best time to ask during the fiscal year and propose a reasonable increment relative to the salary of other employees.

The most important lessons I learned during the Q&A session: Cleavage is still taboo in interviews and the office, even Katie Couric paid her dues serving coffee during her internship, and Vault.com lists insider’s salary information for each company. Refer to the site so you can increase your income accordingly.

Ah, now this “caterpillar” is on her way, to an internship, a career and, somewhere down the road, a raise!

~Jane Razon
ijrazon@hotmail.com
Fordham University ‘10
Communications and Media Studies