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

Blog Comment

Hello Melissa,

I just wanted to let you know that updating your profile or connecting your social accounts are not requirements at all.  If you are refering to the "Onboarding" process for the Career College Lounge, it is simply a means to familiarize/orient individuals to the tools and various options within the learning environment. Some individuals enjoy learning from others and building their networks to do so and like the option of connecting while others prefer not to - the onboarding process simply orients users to these types of options but the user ultimately decides how they'd like to leverage… >>>

Leticia, I'm curious if you might be able to share a bit more about what specifically you took away that will help you use social media more effectively and with strategic intent. Can you explain how you felt about social media prior to enrolling and what might be standing out to you personally that makes you feel you will approach your usage with a greater sense of purpose to help you accomplish goals? Thank you for sharing. Robert Starks Jr.
Leticia, I encourage you to ask as many questions as you need. The best way to maximize your learning experience isn't to just read through the content, but to engage and personalize your learning by asking as many questions as you need. I'm hear to help and look forward to our interactions. Robert Starks Jr.

During the 2013 Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities Convention and Exposition, Career College Central Editor Kevin Kuzma visited with a number of sector leaders at the magazine's booth space. This week, Career College Central shares an interview with longtime career education presence Stephen Friedheim, Strategic Coach at Education Systems & Solutions.

Friedheim is a great friend and contributor to Career College CentralHe is a former President of the Association of Independent Colleges and Schools, the first chair of the Career College Association (now APSCU), and former President of ESS College of Business in Dallas. He provides… >>>

Discussion Comment

Jason, Regarding the challenge of keeping in touch with graduates after graduation, beyond changing contact information, what do you believe is contributing to this challenge? Furthermore, what existing intervention strategies do you have in place to address this challenge based on your analysis of what may be the cause(s)? I'd like to learn more background on this challenge so that I may be more helpful and thoughtful in any responses provided to your forum discussion. In the context of this course, understanding more about this challenge can also help me suggest how social media may be one more tool at… >>>

Carolyn, It sounds like you have a well-designed program for interview assessment. Might you be willing to share what content you have as part of your course? Does this include PowerPoint presentations, handouts, student worksheets? Did you develop your curriculum for your class or did you decide to use a vendor? Just to get your thoughts, imagine having a population of 2,000 students vs. 200. How might you envision scaling some of the things you currently do? What might change for the Admissions interviews or the ways in which you currently address employability skills? I think this is likely something… >>>

Carolyn, Is it possible for you to suggest or influence any decisions to include this as part of the Institutional Effectiveness Plan? Are you part of any institutional effectiveness team? This may be a vehicle to have a cross-functional team discuss these issues, initiate research and data collection and then draw conclusions as a group as to what interventions could be implemented to improve institutional outcomes. Has this approach already been pursued? Robert Starks Jr.
Discussion Comment

Tara, Recently, there was a report published by NACE and Devry's Career Advisory Board which indicated a training gap among career services professionals regarding social media usage. I think you are correct - more people could use training to improve their skills in this area which may lead to more measurement of results using such tools. Fortunately, with LinkedIn, the platform already has built-in tools that allow you to see your network statistics. For instance, if I have Advisors trying to help graduates get jobs in Allied Health, I can establish formal goals for my Advisors to expand their employer… >>>

Tara, If you haven't already, I suggest you download this resource: http://www.careercollegelounge.com/pg/blog/rstarks/read/35342/a-beginners-guide-to-social-media-for-the-job-seeker. It is a student handout that can help you begin your journey of educating students. Whereas students may understand the functionality of platforms, it has been my experience that many lack an understanding of how to use social platforms in an intentional manner that progresses their career goals. I think this resource will help you teach them some basics. Robert Starks Jr.
Tara, Excellent example! Very strategic on your part to appeal to common interests in your communication strategy and your tactic of tagging this person knowing they'd be notified. Once we find common ground with someone and rapport is established, we typically find that people are much more cooperative, collaborative, and willing to engage in dialogue. It is amazing how subtle this example is yet how powerful it was for you. Thank you for sharing it! Robert Starks Jr.

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