Career Path of a Senior Manager of Sustainability at Freeman
Karen's career journey, beginning with a high school internship at WFAA that revealed television wasn't for them, led to a radio internship at Clear Channel, which sparked an interest in production. This ultimately culminated in a Senior Manager of Sustainability role at Freeman, after entrepreneurial ventures, event planning experience, and a pivotal realization that "events are incredibly wasteful," prompting a career shift towards sustainable event practices.
Event Planning, Sustainability, Entrepreneurship, Career Pivoting, Adaptability
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Karen Young
Senior Manager of Sustainability
Global Events Company
Texas State University
n/a
Film, Media Arts, Visual Arts
Consulting & Related Professional Services
Climate, Environment and Sustainability
Honors Student, Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. Building a career path often involves unexpected turns and pivots. Karen's journey began with an early internship in television, which revealed it wasn't her ideal path. She later transitioned from radio and advertising to event planning, highlighting the transferable skills gained from various experiences.
2. Entrepreneurship can be a valuable stepping stone. Karen's experience running her own event planning business, Relish Entertainment, taught her valuable lessons in budgeting, deadlines, client management, and resilience, skills directly transferable to her current role. She emphasizes the importance of saying 'yes' to opportunities and the value of hard work.
3. Sustainability is a growing field within event planning. Karen's career highlights a shift toward incorporating sustainable practices into large-scale events. Her progression from event planning to focusing specifically on sustainable event production demonstrates a growing demand and career opportunities within this niche. This highlights the importance of identifying and adapting to emerging trends in your field.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path? Please start with your experiences in college and any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
High school actually started my career journey. Our senior year, we had an elite program where we could get a job as an internship for about a semester. I was working for a television network called WFAA, the ABC affiliate in Dallas.
My first day was a 3:30 AM start time. They realized I was 17, so they adjusted my start time to 6:30 AM to give me a break, as I still had to go to school. That entire experience made me realize television wasn't my thing.
When I went to college at Texas State University, I started thinking about electronic media as a whole and went into it as a major, really interested in radio. My college internship was for a radio station. I was working for Clear Channel part-time throughout college.
The Jagger Morning Show on the Edge, KDGE in Dallas, needed an intern. I filled that role as quickly as I possibly could; they couldn't keep me away. Working part-time for the radio station in promotions and as the intern for the morning show was a lot on my plate on top of school, but probably the best decision I ever made.
From there, I realized that production was a possible job, which wasn't on my radar until that moment. From college, I went into an advertising agency called Morro as an assistant producer. I started producing commercials for McDonald's, watching food footage and deciding if it came in from the left or right side of the screen. It was a bizarre job, but I learned a lot.
I decided that working for a corporate office wasn't really my path at the time. I had a chip on my shoulder and thought I was destined for more. I think everyone is and should follow that path if they think that way. So, I started my own business called Relish Entertainment.
From all my radio and television contacts, I started working with bands and venues as an event planner. My production experience translated into having a deadline, a budget, and contacts, and seeing something through to the end. This totally aligned with events, which took me down the path of being an event planner.
Having your own company is very challenging. You need to pay rent and feed yourself. I was working at J. Crew and Sephora. I hustled and worked every possible opportunity, saying yes to everything. I put myself in some awkward situations, but looking back, I enjoyed it and am proud of myself for doing it.
When I was offered a job doing full-time events for trade shows, it was a legitimate career with benefits, and I was almost 30 at that point. It kind of changed my life. About three years into that world as an event planner, I realized that events are incredibly wasteful.
I pivoted my entire career path to focusing on training other event planners on how to produce sustainable events. From Informa, I worked for a nonprofit called EARTHx. I worked for a small consulting firm out of Los Angeles called Vertical Group. Now I'm at Freeman.
Freeman has been my home for almost a year, and I oversee event sustainability for a very large corporation with a lot of revenue and support. It comes from the top down, so I'm very thankful that my college experience pointed me in an opposite direction. I don't use my degree at all, but I think the skills I learned completely apply.