Southwestern Company‘s Great Recruiters Seminar 2011 was highlighted by several alumni guest appearances.  Our new product Dream Team provided a lot of knowledge and excitement for the attendees. The new online product, named Southwestern Advantage, consists of several elements, each under the development of a separate expert.

Ethan Shen (4 summer bookperson), our Technology Consultant & Project Manager, promoted the new aspects and features of Advantage online.  Its mission: 1) to help young people realize their academic and personal potential and 2) to help Southwestern Company managers double their profits.

David Kong (also a 4 summer bookperson), another of the product’s key developers, walked the students through an overview of how Advantage would integrate and enhance the books.  David’s specialty is SEO and is the creator of both the Redline and FORCE websites.

Haley Price (3 summers) not only is developing a children’s site—complete with videos, blogs and articles to help young students get better at life—but she also delivered an energetic speech Thursday evening to all the attendees.  Haley worked previously at Microsoft and we are excited to have her back at Southwestern Company.

Kate (Walker) Raidt (10 summer book veteran) went on to describe her vision of a parent component to the new online product, which would provide advice on a range of parenting topics.  Her site would also feature a Mom of the Month—someone who is doing an outstanding job with her kids!  Kate also authored the book, The Million Dollar Parent.

If there weren’t enough alumni energy already, GRS culminated with an inspirational talk by former head of the Elite Eagle organization, JT Olson.  JT shared how his training and background helped him with his new project, the Both Hands Foundation.  Both Hands is a non-profit ministry that serves widows in the community and helps raise funds for families who would like to adopt.  JT stressed making a difference and how student managers could have an impact on someone else’s life through their involvement with Southwestern Company.

Pat Roach (SW: 1993 – 2006) kicked off the GRS with a keynote Thursday night about “Your ‘Journey Toward Understanding’”—the evolution of a student manager in the business. Pat started a residential real estate brokerage – Southwestern Real Estate – as a part of our company.  After several years of working by himself he has already sold over 7 million dollars worth of real estate in the Chicago market. He stressed a new K.I.S. model for success: “Keep it Stupid,” emphasizing that success at Southwestern was astoundingly simple. His PowerPoint was full of monkeys. 

Two powerhouses from Southwestern Consulting (formerly Success Starts Now!) contributed to the seminar: Dustin Hillis (SW: 2002-2005) and Rory Vaden (SW: 2001-2005). Dustin shared ideas on how to prepare for a Mort Utley summer in a heavily-attended workshop, and Rory Vaden keynoted Friday evening on the value of discipline, that is, the value of “taking the stairs.”

Our international guest alumnus was Rob Lilwall (SW: 1999 – 2001), former Highlander turned author, explorer, and cycling adventurer. Rob shared his tale of riding home from Siberia to London on a most circuitous route. He paid for his three year journey with the money saved from selling with SW!

Each of our alums did an outstanding job of communicating the value of the Southwestern experience, and they all contributed to the GRS’ overall success. As always, we very much appreciate alumni who share their insights and expertise with young student managers.

Imagine powerpoint from Southwestern GRS 2010.