Fox Honors student Stephanie Enweonwu is a member of the class of 2025 who is double majoring in management information systems and marketing. (Photo courtesy of Stephanie Enweonwu) 

As part of my student experience at the Fox School of Business, I had the privilege of spending 10 weeks at Unilever, a global consumer goods company, as a marketing intern. 

During my time with Unilever’s TRESemmé product team, I gained valuable insights into the industry from the professionals around me. They generously offered me advice and these nuggets of wisdom have already helped guide my career.  

Follow along to see what they had to say. 

Yoni Klein 
Head of Sundial and Skincare, Unilever 

What’s the best advice you have for students who don’t know what they want to do in marketing? 

• Definition. Marketing means a lot of different things. It can be design, management, innovation. Fifteen years ago, it was so much narrower. Now, with all the new innovations like artificial intelligence, the industry is so different.
• Variety. Make sure to find experiences with a lot of variety. Expect to use the first five to 10 years [of your career] to shape where you will go. There’s a functional aspect of marketing, so the product categories you work within will be different depending on what interests you.
• Experience. When people tell you to follow your passion, people usually find passion in things they are good at. It should be about experience, skill set, value for your company and consumers that can help guide you in what you want to do later in your career.

How do you keep yourself connected and inspired in such a big company?  

• Impact. I have been able to grow connections by approaching it with a mindset of working with my team. The things you work on can lead to a larger impact, but you must continue to find ways that you are able to make impact and drive value. That’s our role as marketers.
• Mindset. [Your career] is not something that you just do, but you [use it to] learn and grow. You are able to do these things in different ways by having a mindset on the objectives you own,not just the big company.

How do you excel as a leader? 

• Consistency. The biggest thing is staying true to your principles and being consistent. I want to create the best environment for my team.
• Connections. I try to identify what they’re passionate about and craft work that will empower them. Not just doing the job, but what motivates people and what makes them passionate to make a name for themselves.

Obinna Keke 
Head of Innovation Shea Moisture, Unilever 

What has been your proudest accomplishment in your role? 

• Better products. My passion (and why I left accounting) was to make better products for people that look like me, and to be able to make content that represents us in a more realistic/relevant way. So, when I was asked to work on Shea Moisture men, I was building a brand from the ground up. That is something unusual in consumer packaged goods. I was able to build a brand based on my decisions and goals, and for me it doesn’t get better than that. I took the brand from two million to 15 million consumers, and now I can manage a $300-million-dollar business. 

As a Nigerian-American, how have you been able to take your heritage into the workplace? 

• Ambition. I have a lot of answers, but I will start with this: I’m going to make an assumption that your parents were born in Nigeria, and you were born and raised [in the U.S.]. Our parents were able to survive an unknown entity, living and surviving in the United States, which has a different cultural currency. They figured out a way to navigate this by being ambitious. They had big goals and had to have unwavering perseverance to achieve them. And now that’s what I’m doing and what you’re doing, too. We’re doing all the things our parents did with more resources. 

What advice do you have to marketing students pursuing a job in an oversaturated market? 

• Toolkit. I would say, “normalize oversaturation.” It’s a highly competitive environment. Company structures are pyramid-shaped, meaning there are less slots open as you move up…so sit with that. You need to build a toolkit that will help you differentiate yourself from the oversaturation. So, the question I would ask each [student] is, “how am I going to make myself stand out?” You will do your best if you normalize competition and figure out how to make it work for you.

Lisa Vortsman
Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer, North American Ice Cream, Unilever

Why did you choose to work with ice cream?

• Believe. First, you have to work with brands or product that you believe in…and it’s a treat when you are the consumer, too! It gives you a firsthand perspective on your product. I love ice cream because it’s a source of joy. Ice cream at Unilever carries a positive culture and we hope to maintain this across the board. 

What is your advice for students who wish pursue a career in marketing? 

• Immerse. In marketing you bring your whole self to work. You are a consumer, too, and need to see your coworkers and employees as part of the demographic for your product as much as your target audience.

• Find a brand or category that you are passionate about.
  • Focus on presenting your story.
  • Pitch your ideas whenever you can.
  • Be at the forefront of digital capabilities.

For more information about the marketing program at the Fox School, click here