Learn From Industry Leaders, Television Hosts, CEOs, And More (For Free) With WayUp’s Summer Series

The pandemic has put a pause on many things, but it shouldn’t be stopping your professional development.

For college students and recent grads, summer is usually a huge season for professional development. Whether you’re taking on an internship or applying for your first full-time job, networking events and speaker series are usually great ways to get an edge and gain the insight required to make big decisions about your future.

This year—internship or not—WayUp is bringing that experience safely to your computer. Our Lunch & Learn Summer Series runs from June 30th – August 6th and we’ll be hosting virtual Q&A sessions featuring world-renowned industry experts from media, technology, non-profit, finance, e-commerce, and many more field.

This is your chance to hear what industry leaders wish they knew when they were graduating, get unfiltered career advice, and ask questions and get answers live.

Here’s some of what we’ve learned in our past sessions—and a guide to the ones you can still register for.

Linda Findley Kozlowski, CEO @ Blue Apron

Interested in a career in e-commerce or retail? Watch Linda Kozlowski, CEO of Blue Apron, as she shares advice for the next generation of leaders. In addition to her role as CEO at Blue Apron, Linda sits on the Board of Ralph Lauren and Dress for Success. Prior to her current role, Linda was COO of Etsy, COO of Evernote, and a Director at Alibaba.

Here are three major takeaways from her session (which you can watch in full down below):

• How can you stand out? Proactivity and thoughtfulness are two important key traits
• Network and surround yourself with people who have complementary strengths
• Important foundational skills to develop: finance, analytics, and communications

Jim Cramer, Investment pro & Media Personality

For those interested in a career in finance, media, or journalism, you’ll definitely want to join this conversation with Jim Cramer. Jim is the co-host of CNBC’s Squawk on The Street and his own show, Mad Money with Jim Cramer. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College and later returned and earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School after a career as a newspaper reporter. But instead of practicing law, Cramer worked at Goldman Sachs until leaving in 1987 to start his own hedge fund. He retired from active money management in 2000 to embrace media full time and has authored seven books on investing.

Here are three major takeaways from her session (which you can watch in full down below):

• If you’re rejected from a job, don’t forget to follow up and thank the recruiter for their time! You never know how that could impact your candidacy in the future
• The best interview tips: dress to impress, avoid filler words (“um”, “like”, etc.), arrive on time, research the recruiter & find commonalities
• If you’re looking to break into the journalism industry – master the skills of writing, but also learn key aspects of business. This will set up apart and allow you to be more successful.

Peter Boyce, Partner @ General Catalyst

Peter Boyce is one of the youngest Partners at General Catalyst, a top VC fund. He sits on the board of companies like Outdoor Voices and has been involved in dozens of investments, including Giphy, Jet.com, and many more! 

Here are three major takeaways from her session (which you can watch in full down below):

• Take your background and passion and turn them into superpowers
• Never let your age, experience, or anything like that hold you back
• How to stand out during an internship or job in VC? Bring your personal network to the firm, be a team player, and get comfortable with an unpopular point of view
• How could a student stand out in your inbox? Push value before pulling value, find proxies for trust and be open to helping and offer value

Gerri Martin-Flickinger, CTO @ Starbucks

Gerri Martin-Flickinger is the Chief Technology Officer at Starbucks and has had an incredible career in technology and Information Security. She has spent time in leadership roles at Adobe, Verisign, McAfee, and Chevron. 

Here are three major takeaways from her session (which you can watch in full down below): 

• Communication matters – be able to tell a story and paint the picture
• Every time you take on a new role you have to give some things up and let go of responsibilities
• Starting your career at a large company is a great step because you’ll learn how to do things at scale

Eva Moskowitz, Founder, and CEO @ Success Academy

Eva Moskowitz is the Founder and CEO of Success Academy, the largest and highest-performing free, public charter school network in NYC. She’s spent her career in education and education policy, working for improved educational opportunities for New York City’s children.  Success Academy which started with 147 students in one Harlem location, now has over 40 locations in the New York City area and serves over 15,000 students. 

Here are three major takeaways from her session (which you can watch in full down below): 

• Don’t narrow yourself too quickly when picking a profession. It’s important to get a variety of exposure.
• If you’re looking to be a teacher, learn about the art and science of teaching. You should be self-reflective and have the desire to be a people manager.
• Key traits for a teacher: Entrepreneurial spirit and have the ability to be a strategic problem solver.

Zach Sims, CEO @ Codecademy

Zach Sims is the Founder & CEO of Codecademy, the easiest way to learn to code. Since the company started in August of 2011, millions of people have begun learning to program using the site. In this Lunch & Learn, Zach shares his advice for others that may be thinking about taking the risky-yet-rewarding path of entrepreneurship. Check out the key takeaways, as well as watch the full recap below:

• If you’re looking to start a company identify an issue and who the customers would be
• Surround yourself with smart people who are on the same path as you and will make you better
• Coding languages to pick up are JavaScript and Python

Cathy Polinsky, CTO @ Stitch Fix

As the technology leader of the data science–driven personal style business Stitch Fix, Cathy Polinsky’s career is at the intersection of some of the most exciting areas of business: retail disruption, ecommerce, and “unicorn startups.”

Here are three major takeaways from her session (which you can watch in full down below):

• Don’t ignore the “soft skills” like collaboration and communication—they’re the keys to a successful STEM career
• Before you decide if you want to be a manager or an individual contributor, consider whether you’re invested in
• If you’re considering grad school for computer science, it helps to have a specific knowledge- or skill-based goal in mind rather than a vague desire for advancement

Dan Rosensweig, CEO @ Chegg

Dan Rosensweig has an incredible story. Actually, he has quite a few of them. But as a former Yahoo! executive, former CEO of Guitar Hero (yes, you read that right), and current CEO of education technology company Chegg, he’s got advice on how to navigate the worlds of business, technology, and finding your first job out of college.

Here’s some of his best insights (and a chance to watch the full session below):

• Don’t just choose the right job—look for managers who will develop your talents (and don’t forget to make the connections last by staying in touch)
• You won’t see the best opportunities coming—but you have to be ready to take them (like working in an industry that was just invented)
• If you can’t get the exact job you want, try to find the right company where you can grow your career

Reshma Saujani, Founder & CEO @ Girls Who Code

Reshma Saujani is the founder of one of the largest non-profits in the world: Girls Who Code. She is also the internationally bestselling author of “Brave, Not Perfect.” Prior to starting Girls Who Code, Reshma was the first Indian-American woman to run for congress, and also worked as an attorney at top law firms. Her career gives us so much to learn from.

Here are three major takeaways from her Lunch & Learn, which you can watch down below:

• Many of us think we have to be experts to be successful in something but you really just need to have passion and curiosity to get started
• Get yourself involved in technical processes as much as you can because everything will involve it to some extent
• Don’t be afraid to fail and be someone who can do a multitude of things

Michael Seibel, CEO @ Y Combinator

Michael Seibel is the leader of the most influential startup accelerator in the world. Y Combinator has provided seed-round funding and counsel to world-changing companies like AirBnb, Doordash, Stripe, Dropbox, Instacart, Reddit, and way more. Plus, Seibel founded the company that became Twitch.

• It’s critical to network, build relationships, and make friends with all types of people with different experiences
• Small actions result in big change! Don’t forget to invest in yourself
• If you’re considering starting a company do the following: identify a problem, find the right partners (who are passionate), build a first version, get customers, learn, and then you’re ready to raise funding

If you’re looking to hear about the worlds of tech, startups, venture capital, and entrepreneurship, look no further.

Benno O. Dorer, CEO @ The Clorox Company

The Clorox Company does way more than just bleach. They’re home to iconic brands like Brita, Burt’s Bees, Glad, and way more. If you’re interested in a career in the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry, global business, or just want to know what it’s like to be the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, then this Lunch & Learn is a great place to start.

Here are three key takeaways from Dorer’s talk, which you can watch in full down below:

• Be selective with the first few companies you work for and make sure they are focused in training/development
• Learn as much as possible early in your career because people will stop telling you what to do at some point
• If you’re starting a career in Supply Chain make sure they have a rotational program so you can get experience in many fields

Register Now For These Upcoming Speakers

Click on any of the names and dates below to learn more and register for your spot now.

• Zach Sims, Founder & CEO at Codecademy, at 3pm ET on July 16
• Eva Moskowitz, Founder & CEO at Success Academy Charter Schools, at 12pm ET on July 21
• Gerri Martin-Flickinger, CTO at Starbucks, at 3pm ET on July 23
• Peter Boyce, Partner at General Catalyst, at 12pm ET on July 28
• Jim Cramer, Investment Pro & Media Personality, 12pm ET on Aug 4
• Linda Findley Kozlowski, CEO at Blue Apron, at 3pm ET on Aug 6

For more about the WayUp Lunch & Learn Summer Series, check out the National Intern Day site here!