training

Dec 19
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12 Days of Christmas for College Students

By | Career Advice | No Comments

Christmas shopping, cookie baking and family events dominate the holiday season, but these prized weeks during December can also represent a break from the rigorous class, homework and work routine that college students must juggle each semester.

While students may feel tempted to stay glued to Netflix over Christmas break, they can make the most of this time by completing a simple activity each day to prepare them for the upcoming semester and their future careers.

On the first day of Christmas:
Set your short-term goals for the upcoming semester. Make sure they are SMART (specific, measurable, assignable, realistic and time-related).

On the second day of Christmas:
Create or update your LinkedIn profile to establish your social media presence and connect with colleagues, friends and family to expand your network.

On the third day of Christmas:
Research professional business organizations on campus or in your community and commit to attending the next meeting or event in the new year.

On the fourth day of Christmas:
Subscribe to a professional print or online publication that will expose you to new trends and thought leaders in the industry.

On the fifth day of Christmas:
Explore summer internship opportunities to gain real world experience and better yet, apply early and contact the company’s HR rep to show your interest.

On the sixth day of Christmas:
Identify a mentor through your network of family and friends that can guide you through your post-college job search and beyond.

On the seventh day of Christmas:
Complete an online personality or skills test to help you better understand your strengths and weaknesses in your personal life and in the workplace.

On the eighth day of Christmas:
Commit to a professional development opportunity like the Dardis Academy training simulation to give you a competitive advantage in the job market.

On the ninth day of Christmas:
Give back to your community and volunteer at a non-profit that you can stay connected to beyond the holiday season.

On the tenth day of Christmas:
Update your resume to include all of your relevant job experience and have a trusted business professional provide feedback on the format and content.

On the eleventh day of Christmas:
Establish three to five long-term career goals that you can work toward over the next five to ten years and post them in a prominent location in your dorm room or apartment.

On the twelfth day of Christmas:
As your first lesson in work-life balance, sit back and relax with a hot cup of cocoa – you’ve earned it!


Photo credit: Jamie McCaffrey via Flickr

Mar 07
0

Dardis Key to Success: Business Etiquette

By | The Dardis difference | No Comments

Sales training, communication skills and presentation techniques represent several of the critical career skills interns learn through the Dardis Classroom to Career program. These pieces, combined with real world experience, prepare students for a career post-college, but to kick-off a successful career, students also need to learn proper business etiquette.

Business etiquette is more than dressing the part and knowing what to say or do.  It’s knowing how to present yourself in the best light in any business situation from an informal meeting to a black-tie event. Understanding and using proper business etiquette will provide the framework for meaningful conversations and effective work days, which will pave the way for a respected (and successful!) career.

In the Dardis Academy training program, our interns learn key business etiquette elements, including:

The handshake
What appears to be a simple gesture actually signifies your confidence in the workplace. Avoid applying too much pressure, but still approach a new client or colleague with a strong handshake that shows your professionalism.

Business cards
In this digital world, young professionals may be tempted to disregard the importance of business cards, but you never know when or where your contact information may open the door to a new opportunity. Always carry a few cards on you, and make sure the layout is clean and crisp.

Dining etiquette
Business dinners can be intimidating for any professional, but for up and coming employees, they can prove even more daunting. Our interns learn the science behind dining etiquette before their first big client dinner to ensure they know exactly which fork to use.

The nuts and bolts
On day one of your first job out of college, you’re expected to understand how to use the basic functions of your phone, voicemail and email. Our interns have the opportunity to learn these skills ahead of time, so they can focus on learning the job and not their voicemail.

Proper business etiquette separates the rising stars from the rest, giving our Dardis interns yet another competitive advantage in the workplace.

 

Photo credit: Unique Hotels Group via Flickr

Jan 31
0

Internship Myths Explained

By | Classroom to Career | No Comments

Internships, especially with Dardis Academy, can serve as a springboard for a successful career. Many celebrities trace their success to their internship experiences, including:

  • Steven Spielberg
    He began an unofficial internship with Universal Studios at age 17, quietly networking with directors. Universal later offered him a seven-year contract.
  • Jodie Foster
    Before she was an Academy Award-winning actress, she took on a summer internship at Esquire in 1982.
  • Tom Hanks
    As a college student in Cleveland, Ohio, he interned for the Great Lakes Theater Festival. The internship led to a three-year tenure that gave him the confidence and theater production experience to launch his acting career.
  • Oprah Winfrey
    Most people know that the popular TV host had humble beginnings at a CBS affiliate in Nashville. Her hard work and passion paid off when she became the first African-American female news anchor.
  • Steve Jobs
    The late computer genius started as an intern at Hewlett-Packard where he met Steve Wozniak and later built the Apple empire.

Each of these famous professionals started with the job title of “intern” and embraced the opportunity to work and learn, a key component of the Dardis mission. Despite these highly-visible internship success stories, many people still struggle to see the value of internships and fall for unproven myths, such as:

Myth: You don’t get paid.
While many internships require students to work unpaid, Dardis interns can achieve financial success through the Classroom to Career program and even win a trip to Mexico!

Myth: You’re just wasting your time.
If you’re making copies from 9 to 5, then yes, you’re wasting your time, but if you’re gaining real-world experience and honing important skills that you’ll use throughout your career, then you’re investing in a meaningful experience that will set you apart after graduation. Dardis’ program is specifically structured to make the most out of your time and give you the skills and experience to succeed.

Myth: I’ll learn what I need to know in college.
The book work, group projects and other skills that you gain during your four years of undergraduate education will always be important, but to jumpstart your career, you need more than a college diploma. Dardis interns learn valuable work and life lessons because they have hands-on experience in the business world, and that’s something no college class can teach you.

Still not convinced of the importance of internships? Read through powerful testimonials from former interns, parents and business professionals and then apply for the 2014 Classroom to Career internship program to disprove the myths yourself. You won’t regret it.

Photo credit:  M.Ryan Photography via Flickr

Oct 25
0

Recruitment Manager Spotlight: Samantha Kheim

By | Someone you should know | No Comments

As the weather changes and the holiday season looms around the corner, summer internship opportunities may be far from your mind.  Summer may be months away, but now is the time to explore your options to enhance your resume and prepare yourself for your post-graduation career.

At Dardis Academy, we have a team of recruitment managers dedicated to keeping your summer 2014 internship top of mind.  These recruitment managers tour their designated regions to attend career fairs, college information sessions and more to promote the unique Classroom to Career internship program with Dardis.

We will feature our recruitment managers regularly on this blog to share the true spirit of Dardis and encourage you or a college student in your life to apply for this life-changing internship!  Applications must be processed by May 1, but space is limited, so don’t delay!

In our first recruitment manager spotlight, we introduce Samantha Kheim:

What is the greatest benefit of the Dardis Classroom to Career internship program?
The ability to apply skills from the Academy as an entrepreneur.  I am also very excited to see young adults start their professional networking early on.

What sets the Dardis internship apart from other internship opportunities?
In most internships, students find themselves only exposed to the company through what they hear and see when they are making copies.  With Dardis, they are the business.

Why do you think it’s important for students to gain real life career experience while in college?
The #1 quality that employers look for on a resume is real world experience.  Even if your extracurricular activities and GPA are off the charts, they want to find someone who have proven experience getting a job done.

What Dardis intern success stories do you share with prospective interns?
My favorite success story is Elliot Salter.  Elliot went through the Dardis Academy in 2013 and was one of our top-sellers.  He is an example of working smart.  Elliott made $3,200 in a summer, when many of his peers were sitting at home.  He did all of that in about 30 hours per week.

In one word, what’s Dardis all about?
Development.

Where can students find you?
Culver-Stockton College, UMSL, Washington University, SLU, Webster University, Truman State University and more to come!

How can students contact you for more information?
Call me at 636.233.2189 or email any time at samantha@dardisinc.com.

Sep 27
0

Find Your Inspiration At Work

By | Leadership | No Comments

Successful business leaders need a strong financial background, leadership skills, the courage to take risks and a strong moral compass, but the truly successful leaders boast one additional quality – inspiration.

Inspiration looks different for each individual, but all inspired leaders are intrinsically motivated by something greater than him or herself.  Gender and age play an important role, as well, based on a recent survey of LinkedIn members.  The survey showed that women younger than 29 tend to feel less inspired in general than their male peers, but women older than 65 feeling considerably more inspired than men.

LinkedIn went one step further too add context to these results, asking 60 LinkedIn members the simple question, “What inspires you?” The answers may be inspiring in themselves:

  • Richard Branson, Founder at Virgin Group
    “My professional inspiration has no separation from my personal inspiration:  it is people who will stop at nothing to make a positive difference to other people’s lives.”
  • Naomi Simson, Founder, RedBalloon
    “Tell me I ‘cannot’ do, be or have something – and that is the surest way to inspire me into action.”
  • Jim Whitehurst, CEO at Red Hat
    “Most of us are inspired by our family, friends, and colleagues–as I am–but the thing that most inspires me is problem solving.”
  • Claire Diaz-Ortiz, Twitter, Inc.
    “Reading has been my favorite pastime since my earliest memory, and in my adult years books have become some of my greatest inspirations.  I read more than 200 books a year, and most of these books are non-fiction.”
  • Steven J. Thompson, CEO at Johns Hopkins Medicine International, Senior Vice President Johns Hopkins Medicine
    “You need to do more than plod along that safe and known track.  You need to be ready to switch tracks, and to inspire people to follow you when you do.”

At Dardis, we encourage our clients and our students to find their inspiration in their current jobs, as well as their future careers.  We are in the business of training current and future leaders, and our most successful candidates are inspired by what they do and see every day.  Our training through Dardis Communications and hands-on sales experience through the Dardis Academy provides a solid base for clients and students, but motivation and the drive to succeed stems from inspiration.

Spend a few minutes today thinking about what inspires you.  What cause are you strongly connected to?  Which leaders, family members or friends have left an impression on you?  What gets you excited at work?

By identifying these motivating factors, you will be on your way to an inspired (and successful) career.

Photo credit: Nimish Gogri

Jun 14
0

“Real life. Real world. Real business experience.”

By | The Dardis difference | No Comments

Our 2013 class of interns begin their summer with us this week kicking off another year of our Classroom to Career program. Our program is made up of some of the most hard working, talented and motivated college and high school students in the nation, and their work begins long before the school year even ends.

In the spring, Student Managers work with students to identify and qualify a targeted list of 75 leads.  Students and Managers review their prospect lists, refine their skills on gaining referrals, confirm their territory and schedule and prepare for a busy summer.

Students then complete our very own training program, Dardis Sales Academy, before returning to their hometowns to put their training into action by selling our quality menswear in their local communities.

Our interns are trained on practical job skills like how to manage their schedule, approach prospective customers, demonstrate professional communication skills, deliver an impressive presentation highlighting our products, ask for the business and gain referrals.  Our clients appreciate and recognize the quality of interns and look to them to share information on professional image and wardrobe management.

Our clients benefit firsthand from our Classroom to Career program, but the students take away much more from the experience.

“The summer was unbelievable. The experience you gain, not only at the Sales Academy, but also being out in the field as a representative, is so beneficial. Meeting with clients at their office or home, face-to-face, and delivering a product that you’re confident in, is the best experience you can get. Learning the skills in the Academy, then seeing success as a result, is huge! Not only for a confidence booster, but also for paving the way for the rest of my career. This is the real thing. Real life. Real world. Real business experience. If you’re looking to get out in the field and gain hands-on experience and knowledge, this is the opportunity for you.”
– Ben Brandsgard, 2012 Student Representative

Our Classroom to Career program opens doors, not just for future internships but for future career opportunities. We provide the professional skills and training that the business leaders of tomorrow need. Connect with one of our experienced clothiers today to see the Dardis difference for yourself.

Contact Dardis today to learn more. Contact Us