FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Saatchi & Saatchi X of Northwest Arkansas announced the “Final 8” in the Diversity
Internship Challenge on March 15. The competition was open to all University of Arkansas students interested in pursuing a career
in advertising or marketing and co-sponsored by the Office of Minority of
Affairs in the Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas.
Andy Murray, chief executive officer of Saatchi
& Saatchi X Worldwide, made the announcement at the company’s headquarters
in Springdale. He said, “Diversity has been a
challenge for the company in recruiting. We feel the best ideas come when you
have a diversity of cultures and backgrounds. None of us are as strong as all
of us. We are very excited about the quality of these students.”
The Final 8 are: Eva Agrawat, a marketing
major from Bombay, India; Cecilia Grossberger, a master’s candidate in
communication from Cochabama, Bolivia; Imraan Ismail, a marketing management
major from Harare, Zimbabwe; Amy Ha, a marketing major from Nashville, Ark.;
Amanda Jones, a marketing management major from Little Rock, Ark.; Justin
Johnson, a logistics/marketing major from Little Rock; Lizliana Ramos, a
journalism major from Chicago; and Celise Weems, an agribusiness major with
minors in marketing and communications from Little Rock.
The Diversity Internship Challenge was
launched in January. Nineteen UA students submitted resumes, wrote essays on
how diversity can make Saatchi & Saatchi a better place to work, and were
interviewed for the internships.
Cheryl Munson, creative
director of Saatchi & Saatchi X, coordinated the competition and will
continue to work with the finalists in their next assignment, helping
them access company resources when needed. The eight finalists will work on two
teams of four and complete an assignment aimed at increasing diversity
awareness in the region and attracting and retaining diverse employees in the
work force.
After completing the assignment,
two winners will be selected to become “The Interns.” They will be awarded a 90-day paid 2006 summer
internship with plenty of perks: a competitive weekly salary; monthly mentoring
for a semester by a Saatchi & Saatchi X executive; guaranteed interview for
a full-time position at Saatchi upon graduation from the University of
Arkansas; a $500 stipend for tuition, books or housing for the 2006-2007
University of Arkansas school year for sophomores and juniors; and $100 Northwest
Arkansas Mall gift card at the completion of the internship for graduating
seniors.
“This is a great opportunity for these
eight students. Even if they aren’t selected as the final two interns, they will
gain bankable, brains-on experience, learning what it takes to be in the advertising
and marketing business. The selected interns will work at one of the most
prestigious and innovative shopper marketing advertising agencies in the world
and will learn from the best and brightest in the business,” said Barbara
Lofton, director of minority affairs in the Walton College.
Saatchi & Saatchi X is a division of
Saatchi & Saatchi, which is owned by Publics Group S.A., the fourth-largest
communications group in the world.