#25 Starcom MediaVest Group
The days of getting a job and staying in it for 40 years are long gone. Even if you find a job you love, these days it's common--and desirable--to grow, expand, and sometimes change jobs within your company. Training has a lot to do with this, and at media communications agency Starcom, so does internal company rotation. The Gen Yers that make up over half of the employees are happy to make moves.
"Every new hire goes through a rotation program where they get extensive experience in the media buying and planning side of the business, working on a variety of accounts," says Courtney Childs, HR Manager. "Gen Yers in the industry love to start their careers here because of the robust training programs. It sets the path for a successful career and it sets us apart from every other agency out there."
Gen Yer Elliott Chapman says, "I started in an entry-level position on the strategy side. Starcom rotates you to experience the buying side as well." Chapman, who has been with the company two years, was recently promoted to Manager. "Rotating to different areas in the company helps you develop your skill set in a variety of areas. You stay busy, but you learn how to plan your time. Learning how to delegate and plan my activities is helping set me up my career for the future."
New Media Strategy Associate Monica DeWitt agrees. "You get to move to different areas of the business where you get a completely different experience. This is definitely helpful when you are trying to move up in the organization--Starcom helps everyone advance." And with so much advancing, the employees are bound to get hungry. Luckily, there's free cereal (Kellogg's is a client) and Coke provides beverages. The corporate gym is across the street and memberships cost just $20 a month.
"There are so many Generation Y employees working here who are excited about their career," says DeWitt. "As Gen Yers, we're eager to go out there and prove ourselves. Starcom is a great place to do this." And they can do it in casual clothes, too: as one employee happily reported, at Starcom, there are "no suits required."
Don't be fooled by the laid back atmosphere, however. There's a lot of responsibility and a gig at Starcom comes with clout. "You feel like a 'big guy' in the advertising world," says Chapman. However, he points out that even with all the training, rotations, and industry knowledge he gets, there's something else at play. "The work is great," he says, "but the people really make the job."
