It’s never too early to start thinking about your career – even for high schoolers.
That’s the advice of Sarah Baker Andrus, director of academic programs for Vector Marketing, the direct sales division of Cutco Cutlery, the largest kitchen cutlery manufacturer in North America.
Cutco sells products through its national network of college students who sell through in-home demonstrations. Through training and work experience, they learn a range of skills that help them pursue careers. These include:
* Presenting themselves professionally
* Demonstrating product value
* Building customer base
* How to work for commission
* Organization/time management
“High school students should consider summer jobs or internships that will help them investigate interests and determine strengths and weaknesses as a worker. It’s especially valuable if the job builds tangible skills that can help in a career,” said Andrus. “Today’s job environment is competitive, so it’s important that students at all levels get experience that distinguishes them from other candidates.
“For example, someone who wants to be a veterinarian could consider a clerical position in a vet’s office,” she said. “The same types of internships can be found in other offices.”
Andrus has first-hand experience in seeing how this approach to summer work can lead to careers. The same strategies, she says, should be applied by high school students.
“I encourage students to avoid the temptation to simply work for a paycheck. Consider what the work will offer in terms of building professional skills. These skills are valuable whether students pursue a career with Vector Marketing or in other industries,” added Andrus. “Many of our reps have sold Cutco for years and then transitioned into other careers because of the skills they developed with us.”
Vector currently works with high school students through its sponsorship of Distributive Education Club of America (DECA), a national organization with the goal of improving education and career opportunities for high school students interested in marketing, management and entrepreneurship.
About Cutco Cutlery and Vector Marketing
Cutco Cutlery is a 58-year-old company with headquarters and manufacturing facilities in Olean, New York. Vector Marketing is the company’s sales division, which trains and coordinates the activities of the direct sales force of college students.
Contacts
For Vector Marketing, Wilmington
David Reeves, 561-391-8717
dreeves@reevespr.com