By Jessica Tamburo
From considering where to live, to what jobs to apply to; thinking about life after college can feel a bit overwhelming. Lucky for DePaul PRSSA members, two hospitality industry leaders paid a visit to our last meeting. They discussed their current roles and their unique relationships with DePaul University.
First on the roster was Vice President of Revel Global Events, C.C Ryan. Revel is a Chicago-based event planning agency. One of the agency’s first clients were the Chicago Cubs! C.C gave us the scoop on the agency and some of its core mottos, including one of my personal favorites, “work hard play harder.” She elaborated on what makes Revel unique from its competitors. Throughout the event planning process at many agencies, the client will speak with different representatives throughout each stage but at Revel, the client maintains communication with the same team member to guarantee the mission of the event is carried through each element of the event space.
“It’s really important to us that the overall food and beverage experience goes really well with the event,” C.C said.
Revel has provided DePaul students the opportunity to freelance with the company and C.C can be quoted saying she thinks DePaul students are “THE BEST” freelancers (how awesome is that). Revel often needs additional staff to help with programming aspects of events, providing the perfect opportunity to gain insight into the hospitality industry. If you are interested in this opportunity email her your resume and cover letter. cryan@therevelgroup.com
Our second guest was DePaul alumni Matt Kotchis. During his time at DePaul Matt held several internships including ones with Margie Korshak and WGN-TV and was even the Vice President of Membership Services and Development at DePaul PRSSA. After graduating in 2012, Matt began an internship with Edelman and fast forward six years later, now holds the position of Account Supervisor. He spoke of the diverse experience he has gained at Edelman working on accounts like Hilton to Unilever, the parent company of brands like AXE and Dove. At the end of his presentation, Matt shared one unique piece of advice with us.
“My advice for you guys as you are trying to get out there after you graduate is to embrace new technology. It’s no longer pitching a journalist and telling a story… think through different ways you interact with each other and interpret things, and think of how to tell stories through those angles.”