For the first time in fall 2018, Campbell Business School offered several classes at HQ Raleigh, an Entrepreneurial Hub in downtown Raleigh. This presented an opportunity for professor Scott Kelly to introduce his Digital Marketing students to industry leaders at the nearby Raleigh Convention Center. The 2018 Internet Summit conference allowed students still exploring the marketing world to meet face-to-face with representatives of companies such as Airbnb, LinkedIn, and Microsoft.
“Going into the Internet Summit, I was unsure what to expect. I felt like it would be full of marketing elitists with no desire to talk to anyone who was not going to generate a lead,” said Zachary Barton, a senior marketing major from Shallote, NC. “To my surprise everyone there was super helpful, energetic and kind. My favorite talk was hearing how The Onion was established. I love hearing inspiring off-beat origin stories, because it helps me realize not every path has to be so planned, and that you can still find success even if you do not see it immediately on the horizon.”
Darlys Gibson, a Business Administration major and Economics minor from Hope Mills, NC, said, “I absolutely loved all the networking opportunities. The information was useful, and friendly people gave me their business cards and told me to get in touch with them. They even offered to help me with my TED talk. It was very much out of my comfort zone, but I came back with so much information.”
Kelly hopes that the business students’ trip to the Internet Summit will be the first of professional development opportunities near HQ Raleigh. “Industry conferences such as Internet Summit provide students with a platform to test the theories they learn in the classroom,” commented Kelly. “With several back-to-back sessions taught by leading experts, participants can’t leave without feeling they have seen the future and now have additional clarity in how to navigate it.”
Students who would like to learn more about opportunities at HQ Raleigh can contact Scott Kelly @ skelly@campbell.edu