Governor Bob Orr Fellowship

After attending several of the Governor Bob Orr Entrepreneurial Fellowship recruiting events, I have discovered a common concern held by many senior candidates.  As if the job search isn’t stressful enough, many college seniors are concerned that recruiters are attempting to “sell” them on the job at hand, leading them to hold false expectations about what the job will really be like.
 
My response to their concerns is always the same.  We’re not here to “sell” you on anything.  Our responses to your questions and accounts of our experiences are completely genuine.  When we say the Orr Entrepreneurial Fellowship offers executive mentorship, it’s the truth.  Last month, I went to lunch with the President of my company where we talked casually about his career successes and some of the business challenges he’s faced.  On a more frequent basis, I experience executive mentorship through some of the projects I am working on with the VP of Technology.  He’s taken a direct role in some of the critical learning experiences that have pushed me to grow at my host company. 

When we say that the Orr Fellowship offers networking and social opportunities, we mean it.  Aside from our monthly Business Leader Meetings, there is a steady stream of networking opportunities, whether it’s attending a technology-based convention in Indianapolis or attending an Orr Fellowship social event, like the one being held this month, where guests include Orr Fellowship Board Members, Orr Fellowship Alumni, current Orr Fellows, Host Company Executives, and other special guests.

So far, I have completed four months of the Orr Fellowship, and I can honestly say that it has lived up to and even exceeded my expectations.  The Orr Fellowship doesn’t need a sales pitch.  It speaks genuinely of itself. 

 

It's that time of year again; the Holiday Season has passed and in a short amount of time you'll find yourself taking down those holiday decorations that probably cover your entire house.  After you've mustered up enough motivation to finally begin this lengthy process, the last struggle is always the disposal of the family Christmas tree.  However, that's not going to be the case for you this year - the Orr Fellows are here to help!

As a non-profit organization, the Governor Bob Orr Entrepreneurial Fellowship places a strong emphasis on community outreach, civic responsibility, and self-sustainability.  As such, one of our annual fundraisers is called "Tree Luggers" in which we travel around the Indianapolis community collecting and disposing of Christmas trees while collecting donations.  But how does this fundraiser actually benefit the community?  Well, first, we are providing a service that for many people is extremely helpful.  More importantly, though, we offer an incentive to local churches and other non-profit entities that promote our fundraiser to their members.  For all money that is donated to the Governor Bob Orr Fellowship during Tree Luggers, half of the proceeds are given to the specific non-profit that created the referral.  In this way, we are able to assist Indianapolis-based non-profits in funding their efforts.

One of the most important values that the Indiana-based Orr Fellowship promotes is entrepreneurship.  Tree Luggers is a great example of entrepreneurship in action as the Orr Fellows carefully organize, plan, and execute the fundraiser from start to finish.  So what goes into Tree Luggers to ensure its success year in and year out?  Many of the Orr Fellows are "luggers," or those that travel to homes, collect the trees, and then later dispose of the holiday conifers.  Several others use their marketing expertise to help spread the word through social media like Twitter and Facebook, strategically placed fliers in the Indianapolis community, and specified email lists owned by several Orr Fellowship host companies.  We also have fellows that help create partnerships with churches and other non-profit organizations.  Lastly, a couple of fellows take on a financial role so that all donations and referrals are carefully recorded.  To participate in this fundraiser, and save yourself a great deal of time and effort, please sign-up here.  Remaining pick-up dates are:
 

For those that don't know much about the Governor Bob Orr Entrepreneurial Fellowship, it is an Indiana-based non-profit organization that provides jobs for recent graduates in fast growing Indianapolis companies.  Whether you're looking to start a marketing career, an entrepreneurship career, or maybe just a career in business, this is one unique fellowship program like no other.
 

We've all talked about our host companies and what makes ours better than the rest, but how are these companies chosen, and why would someone want to work for an entrepreneurial company in Indianapolis?  In order to shed some light on the Orr Fellowship host companies, I have given the information in a question/answer format.

Q: What is a host company's role in the Orr Fellowship?
A: Orr Fellowship host companies have the responsibility of providing their Fellow(s) with a unique experience that cannot be found anywhere else.  We want these companies to give their Fellows important projects that help them learn and grow as a working professional.  In addition, we require these companies to provide their Fellows with ample exposure to executive-level management so that they can become more comfortable in that type of an environment (this is exactly what we're talking about when we say that the Orr Fellowship is one of the best networking opportunities in Indianapolis).

Q: How are host companies selected to be involved in the Orr Fellowship?
A: Although this process may seem unscientific at times, that's probably because it is.  However, host companies are invited to join the Orr Fellowship if they've successfully demonstrated their ability to move at a fast rate of growth, created an environment that is conducive for great learning experiences, and have emerged with a product/service that has the ability to thrive in a changing society for years to come.  Overall, we seek out companies that we're confident will provide our Fellows with a wonderful two years of experiences coupled with strong promise of job security with that particular company.

Q: How long are host companies allowed to be involved in the Orr Fellowship?
A: There really isn't a straight-forward answer to this question.  There have been companies like ExactTarget and Angie's List that have been a part of the Fellowship essentially since the beginning.  However, some companies participate for a year or two while others take Orr Fellows for four, five, and even six years.  We typically allow host companies to be in the Orr Fellowship until they've grown out of the stage of being a small, entrepreneurial start-up or until they've shown that they no longer are a suitable company for an Orr Fellow to work in.

 This year the Governor Bob Orr Entrepreneurial Fellowship has agreed to allow twenty host companies to participate in our program.  Over the years we've made a conscious effort to grow the organization - and this year we've finally made the decision to double the size of next year's class.  So why have we decided to take so many more Fellows?  With an increase in name recognition in Indiana, and the development of a strong reputation among business leaders, we've experienced a tremendous growth in the amount of applications that we've received.  It's because of this recognition that the Orr Fellowship has proven itself to be one of the best places to work in Indiana.  With that, I want to go ahead and congratulate those candidates that have moved on to the final round of recruitment.  You've managed to set yourselves apart from the rest of the competition and have proven yourselves over and over again.  Good luck to you all on Friday and I look forward to meeting the Orr Fellowship Class of 2010!
 

You may ask – what am I learning?  Well, I’ve been learning a lot of new things, but most recently, that you can’t trust a Wabash boy!!  Yes, Blaine stole my picture to use in his blog.  So, in response, here is another picture.  Notice how Blaine isn’t fighting back in this one.

Something else I learned over the last week is to not take the people in your life for granted.  I met some amazing people at DePauw, and over my four years there, they became like family.  It is easy to think that those people will always be around, and then after graduation everyone splits off in different directions.  Being back together with everyone at the Monon Bell game really made us all appreciate the time we have together.  That weekend was one of the best experiences I’ve had.

The transition from the college “bubble” to working in your first full time job in the “real world” can be tough, and now I’m realizing how important the Governor Bob Orr Fellowship has been in that process.  At the Orr Fellowship Reception on the Circle last week, I was asked several times what my favorite part of the Fellowship is.  My answer is simple: the people.  Being a part of the Fellowship opened up more connections than I ever thought possible.  It helps ease that difficult transition by surrounding you with friendship, guidance, and unique opportunities.  The current Fellows have already become a social network and support system.  We are all working in high-growth Indianapolis companies and can share our experiences and learn from each other.  The alumni offer their experience and advice.  The executives and directors are accessible and volunteer their time and energy to contribute to our personal and professional development.  When I joined the Orr Fellowship, I was welcomed with open arms into this fantastic new group of people. 

All of the candidates I met last week at the Reception on the Circle were incredibly intelligent and motivated individuals, and it was great to have a chance to get to know them.   I’m looking forward to see who moves on to Finalist Day.  And I can’t wait to meet my new group of friends… I mean the new class of Fellows.

So despite the fact that we’ve been trained to be enemies during our college careers and we might not like to admit it, Blaine, Ty, Natalie and I are all actually friends.  Maybe sometime I’ll put up a picture where we are all being cordial.  If only we can get Blaine to agree to take one…

People often misunderstand the value and cost savings that effective Supply Chain Management (SCM) has on everything we interact with day-to-day. In fact, over the past 15 years SCM has become the dominant way companies compete. For example, in the early 90’s it took roughly 104 days for a box of cereal to get from the factory to the supermarket (over 3 months for those of you wondering if I do good math). Through optimizing their supply chain, the grocery industry over the past 15 years has been able to save over $30 billion.

On the surface, supply chains seem relatively simple; most chains are only 5-7 ‘links’ long. However, modern day supply chains have become overwhelmingly complex (see image above). The internet boom and growth of sophisticated communication technologies allow companies to reduce material and shipping costs through the strategic sourcing of raw materials used to make ‘stuff’. As such, it’s the job of the supply chain professional to find cost effective and strategic ways to integrate these complex supply chains, reduce lead times, and sync sales channels.

I get asked quite often what I do at Brightpoint. I quip that I answer emails and ship cell phones. Then there is an awkward silence as the supplicant stares at me whilst I conjure up a lay-level explanation of “what I do.” It’s a difficult question for most recent college grads who have found technology jobs in Indianapolis. Much like ‘Supply Chain’, 21st century careers are unique post-graduation jobs, and jobs in fast paced companies are difficult to understand. Try explaining corporate blogging to someone, or why they should pay money for consumer reviews, or why Indianapolis business careers kick ‘SaaS’…it’s complicated. But these types of 21st century and high-growth company jobs, like Supply Chain Management, will be differentiators in a global economy.

The Governor Bob Orr Fellowship provides jobs in startups like Bluelock, Compendium Blogware, Canteloupe.tv, and Oxygen Education. These companies do complex work for a complex world. If you're looking for fast paced, and complex, 21st century jobs, click here.

• the presence of a network of young professionals like myself to share ideas, concerns, successes, etc.
• the pipeline of Indiana business leaders that fellows are given the opportunity to interact and build relationships with
• the position and ability to join a small, start-up company and, through hard work, be able to make an impact within the organization
• knowing that I'm making a good investment in my career by being in an environment that forces me to learn as much as possible about running a small business