Robert Pearl Starks

Robert Pearl Starks

Location: phoenix, arizona

About me

As Vice President of Product Development, I lead cross-functional teams of designers, developers, QA testers and product stakeholders to develop, launch, and improve products customers need and love. 

Previously, I've worked in a variety of leadership roles in education / learning & professional development. Through my experience, I've become accustomed to working across departmental silos and with various stakeholders (executives, end-users, faculty, staff, students / learners, alumni, parents, regulatory agencies, partners and employers) to facilitate collaboration and advance common goals. In my previous roles, I've advocated for student needs and driven organizational change that helped educators do their best work, students thrive in their careers, and employers connect with quality talent.

Despite different contexts, a common theme in my career journey has been to do work that contributes to a mission which improves people's lives. It's also always been important for me to work with an organization whose values align with my own. I'm a listener, empathizer, customer advocate, servant leader, and lifelong learner. I'm never satisfied with status quo, I constantly strive for "better," and I'm driven by genuine curiosity to solve complex problems.

“Work to become; not to acquire.” -Elbert Hubbard

Interests

social media, career development, training, higher education, web 2.0/3.0, career services, leadership, marketing

Skills

social media, marketing, training, consulting, management, strategic planning

Activity

Discussion Comment

Hi Amber, You hit the nail on the head. Over time, through consistency in communication and content published, students develop a brand. For instance, imagine a Twitter profile for a massage graduate who constantly posts about massage, wellness, and perhaps their own blog about the topic to demonstrate their knowledge and passion. An entire profile can either bolster one's brand or not - it depends on whether or not an individual decides to use the tool strategically for career-related benefits. The tools are never to be blamed for hurting or helping the individual - it's how they are used by… >>>

Hi Amber, Thanks for sharing this excellent feedback directly from the field. You're right, the content we publish on open sites like Facebook is indexed by Google, permanent, and searchable. Employers can use that data in decision-making for hiring decisions. Today's employers want to hire individuals whose personal brands align with the brand of the company because their employees represent them. Content from students published on social media sites that suggests an individual has values, behaviors, or qualities that do not align with company expectations help employers to make the decision not to hire them. Students need to be thoroughly… >>>

Discussion Comment

Hi Amber, Thanks for sharing. I love that you incorporate a portfolio in the education process. Because I'm not aware of what precisely is on your evaluation forms, I'm not sure if this would make sense but if anything were quantified such as ratings from evaluations in which a Likert scale was used, that data could actually be used to generate a line graph in Excel to visually show improvement but also demonstrate other qualities skills possessed by the graduate. I've interviewed people before for staff positions and one young lady impressed me so much, I still remember her. She… >>>

Hi Amber, In my own experience, stressing to students the need to focus on communicating how they add value (in specific terms) to an employer rarely worked. I found that I needed to provide a writing model to help them communicate effectively. The model presented in the course is the one I used with success. If I may provide feedback on the objective statement example you provide, I'd argue that it is too vague and from an employer's perspective, communicates little value. What specific education? What specific skills and experience? For example, what about specifying the education, skills and experience… >>>

Discussion Comment
Hi Amber, Whereas many career services departments likely have collected many resumes over time stored on their computers, I wonder how many use that information to create their own resume sample binder/book for their students to use. Great practical idea! Thank you for sharing. Robert Starks Jr.
Discussion Comment
Hi Amber, What specific books do you use? There are so many out there, I'm curious which ones you use and how you decided up on them. Resume guide books can be really helpful to get additional ideas about layout, labeling headings, and format among other things. Robert Starks Jr.

American higher education is being swept by two potentially irresistible waves of change. The first is intense scrutiny of academia's costs and benefits, driven by soaring prices, student debt, and the ensuing public anger. The second is the emergence of postsecondary models that threaten to replace traditional colleges and universities on a major scale. In this special forum, we'll look at the threats to accreditors — and through them, schools — stemming from federal reactions to public unhappiness, and at ways to foster quality in the many postsecondary options coming our way.

Dr. Laurie Hazard shares her practical advice on how to help students understand and avoid procrastination.  What do you do to help students understand and avoid procrastination?

Dr. Brian Van Brunt shares his "best kept retention secret."  Dr.  Van Brunt says connection is the key to student retention.  

Higher Education professionals were asked, what can universities do to increase student retention.  See what they said and see what a student said.  What do you say? 

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