Estefania Ellis (McDonough, ‘22) got started with her MBA Internship recruiting through engaging in the Management Leadership For Tomorrow (MLT) program. Through this experience, she was able to connect and build relationships with companies and employees, and ultimately landed a summer internship at Salesforce. During this interview, Estefania spoke about her recruiting journey, what she learned from the virtual interviewing process, and her advice to other MBA students who are virtually recruiting for internships.
MBASchooled: What was the virtual recruiting process like for you?
Going into a virtual recruiting process- like everything this year- you sort of prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Virtual interviewing took special preparation – not just turning on the camera and chatting- there’s a lot of work that goes into setting the stage to “look yourself” on a webcam!
The preparation really helps and once those details are sorted out, you get to a point where you almost forget that you aren’t actually talking across the table from someone. Aside from the added behind-the-scenes work, the virtual recruiting experience was actually very positive. I was able to establish many meaningful connections and got to know my interviewers and see their personalities through the virtual channel despite being in uncharted waters.
MBASchooled: Even though you did not get to meet companies in person, did you feel like you got to know them well? If so, what were the most helpful methods you used to do this?
Though recruiting was virtual, I really feel like I got to know my recruiters well. We’ve all gotten much more comfortable with making meaningful connections virtually now that we’ve practiced doing so for several months. Recruiters are also responding so well to the shift to virtual recruiting by offering even more information and videos discussing the employee experience and have been intentional about sharing their differentiators as well.
For me, the most helpful methods to connect with a company was by speaking to other employees that have the same role I was interested in so as to be able to have a deeper conversation with the recruiter and hiring managers.
MBASchooled: What did you like about it? What were some of the challenging parts with it?
The conversation was much more natural as opposed to driving across town to sit in an interview waiting room. Both yourself and the interviewers are able to be in a comfortable environment that is more natural. Another advantage is that you can really speak to anyone in any place! Of course, nothing replaces meeting others face-to-face and experiencing a handshake to quickly build trust and understanding of teammates. So, that’s a bit of the great paradox of our virtual world.
MBASchooled: How did you end up at the company where you accepted an offer? What was the recruiting process like?
As a Professional Development Fellow for Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT), I’ve been privileged to meet many compelling companies that value diversity and inclusion, including Salesforce. MLT provides its PD Fellows with early exposure to many top companies by setting up company presentations and coffee chats in the spring and summer prior to starting first-year of business school. There are opportunities for Fellows to participate in a Core Skills Seminar, a Career Transition Leadership Seminar and many workshops. Most importantly, it pairs Fellows with a specialized Career Coach for their industry. I am very grateful for the preparation MLT gave me and highly recommend it to underrepresented minorities that will be starting an MBA program.
My recruiting process with Salesforce began in the Fall and involved a first-round telephone screen with a recruiter, a second-round virtual interview with my hiring VP and a last-round virtual panel interview with my hiring VP and Director. Salesforce was far and away the best company I engaged with. It’s an incredible place with incredible technology, but what I really learned is that the people are its greatest asset and I just can’t wait to start working with them!
MBASchooled: What was your most difficult interview, and what was hard about it?
In a way, I feel that every interview is the hardest interview because after all the preparation you put into learning about a company, its product, its people and its values, you have to assess whether or not you truly believe in the company and will fit well with that team. Sometimes the answer is not that obvious…
MBASchooled: What did you learn from the interviewing process?
When I think about my takeaways from the interview process, what’s really struck me has been the possibility to build positive professional relationships with so many incredible professionals at many companies. I know that these new relationships will aid me to add even more value to Salesforce as I build my career there.
MBASchooled: What advice do you have for others who are trying to navigate the virtual recruiting process?
Be yourself! Really try to get to know the company you are interviewing with and look for companies that value who you are and want you to be your best self.