The Women's Network's first-ever Virtual Career Fair took place on Tuesday, February 28th. Nearly 1,700 TWN members registered for the event, which featured webinars, company tables, and industry-based roundtable discussions.
The Virtual Career Fair's user-friendly interface ensured that each aspect of the event was accessible and easy to navigate. The webpage mimicked a conference hall or a large meeting space where attendees could click on labeled "doors" to access the part of the fair they were interested in.
The event kicked off with a webinar from keynote speaker Jennifer Justice, the Founder and CEO of The Justice Dept., a female-focused advisory, consulting, and law firm. Justice spoke about her experience as a woman in a male-dominated field and how she broke into the entertainment law industry.
"To me, as a woman, you can never be ambitious enough," said Justice, reflecting on her experience not being selected for a job because she was "too ambitious."
Much of Justice's presentation during the Career Fair consisted of her takes on how to be successful in any professional environment. She discussed knowing your worth, speaking your mind, and finding a work-life balance. "The only way to make change is to do something different," she said.
Later, Sarah Lee and Christine Chang, the Co-Founders and Co-CEOs of Glow Recipe, discussed early career confidence and the lessons they learned throughout their journey to establish their business.
Lee and Chang spoke to attendees about failure, asking questions, and networking early on in your career. One of the topics they covered heavily was being a student of your industry. Lee emphasized the importance of asking questions, shadowing a role model, and not limiting your learning to your job description.
Chang highlighted the importance of understanding that you are not expected to excel 100% of the time. "It's more about have I given this my best shot, and can I walk away from this with no regret?" said Chang.
Founder and CEO of The Women's Network, Jamie Vinick, wrapped up the Career Fair with a "Let's Chat" event, where she discussed how to become a star intern. She gave advice on how to utilize your internship to better your communication skills, sharing and getting credit for your ideas, and having a good attitude, all of which can help an intern stand out.
"Attitude matters so much," said Vinick. "It's really important that you have a positive outlook."
In the Exhibit Hall, attendees were able to view and visit all of the community tables at the fair. They could also connect with TWN on social media, shop TWN merch, and listen to Redefining Ambition, a podcast highlighting leading women, hosted by Vinick.
Finance, manufacturing, film, sports, marketing, consulting, retail, food-service, and publishing industries were all represented in the company tabling. Attendees could click on a table, learn about what the company does, view their available opportunities, and join a Zoom call with company representatives.
"I talked to so many people, and I got a lot of amazing new connections that I look forward to talking to more," said Gabby Pearl, Co-VP of Marketing at The Women's Network-Tufts University.
The roundtables offered attendees the opportunity to take part in more intimate discussions with experienced professionals in different industries. Members could ask questions, make connections, and learn about the roundtable leader's career trajectory.
A multitude of industries were represented, such as fashion, journalism, pre-law, pre-med, and production. The variety allowed all members to explore industries they were interested in and to discover new ones.
"The overall experience of the career fair could not have gone better," said Jade Taylor, a Digital Investment Associate at Wavemaker and the host of the Marketing Roundtable. "The Women's Network has done such a great job at cultivating a space for these like-minded individuals to truly give them so many unique opportunities to further their careers."
In addition to the three main aspects of the fair, members could access tech support to ensure their Career Fair experience went off without a hitch. "Swag Bags" were another available feature, where participants could download documents from company tables and the "resources" tab to their "bag," and then email the contents to themselves at the end of the fair.
"We are already beginning to see the impact that this event has had on members: confidence boosts, network expansions, access to internship and job opportunities, and fresh industry knowledge," said Vinick. "I am so proud to have worked on this project and am really excited about expanding on this venture in the future."
