In Milwaukee Buzz
A new networking site for students and recent grads
Move over, Facebook. There's a new networking site in town. But it's not a place to post your birthday party photos or keep your friends updated on your every move. In fact, the only thing that the Intrepid Innovations Networking Club and Facebook have in common is the "social network" tag.
Launched in December '08 by Intrepid Innovations, a small, Muskego-based company specializing in Web design, graphic design, Internet marketing and consulting services, the club is geared toward college students and recent grads.
Intrepid president Aaron Robertson says the online networking site is designed to help send young people into the professional world better prepared. It focuses on goal setting, planning for the future and financial literacy -- things he says are too often under valued in the traditional classroom setting.
"In college, like many students, I went through credit card problems and it seemed like I was always short on cash," says Robertson. "I didn't think about putting money away for the short term, let alone the long term or for retirement."
He says he and his Intrepid business partners, Phillip Burghgraef and Daniel Kenitz, created the networking club to provide information, resources and strategies that students won't find in their classroom or even at their university's career office.
For a $100 annual fee, or $10 per month, members receive reading material -- an autographed paperback copy of Robertson's book, "Beyond Majors and G.P.A.: A Real Philosophy for College and the World Ahead" and paperback copies of Napoleon Hill's "Think and Grow Rich" and James Allen's "As a Man Thinketh."
Robertson and his business partners send out monthly e-newsletters featuring interviews with business professionals of all fields and advice and resources for networking, resumes, technology, entrepreneurship, and strengthening leadership skills.
The members also have access to the club's Facebook group, downloadable materials from Intrepid, a 20 percent discount on Intrepid's professional services and invited to various networking events.
"Because we're offering it online, anyone in the country can join," says Robertson. Unfortunately, people living outside metro Milwaukee would miss out on the personal interaction -- the monthly meet-ups, guest speakers and activities. But all members have full access to tips on tweaking resumes, advice from working professionals about life and business.
"I realized that this stuff isn't taught in the classroom, but it should be," Robertson. "We're not bashing professors or academic institutions -- it's not meant to be a slight against them. But we're doing our best to see that they get a good education outside of the classroom, too."
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