International Corrugated Packaging Foundation I N T E R N AT I O N A L
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mentor-mentee programs to scholarship information and more. However, one of the most valuable resources for me was the ICPF Career Portal. I made a profile online at careers.icpfbox.org, searched through available jobs and internship positions from leading companies within the industry, and applied easily. I began using this tool right after my first Teleconference, and I was offered and accepted a special internship opportunity with Hood Container for the summer of 2020. My internship with Hood Container exposed me to so many corrugated facilities and caring people who wanted to help me learn about the industry. I traveled to seven Hood facilities in North Carolina,
South Carolina, Virginia, and Illinois. Actually seeing the large equipment I had learned about in my college lecture hall allowed me to develop a much deeper understanding of the overall processes. During the internship, I worked on numerous projects that ranged from sales and marketing research, to CAD table design, to providing input on further developing Hood’s internship program. During the fall of my senior year, I once again returned to the ICPF Career Portal to explore career opportunities for new graduates. I applied to and was honored to be offered a commercial sales trainee position with WestRock. Through this program, I also would have the
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chance to again use my voice in working with the company in further developing a program that would appeal to new hires and best prepare them for a successful path into the future. After graduating this past May, I have been enjoying every moment and the mentors who are supporting me in my role with WestRock. I could not have asked for a position that is more up my alley. I look forward to pursuing my career in the corrugated industry with WestRock for years to come. I also plan to continue connecting students with the corrugated industry by spreading awareness of ICPF and its corrugated packaging and display industry resources.
ICPF Vocational, Technical, and Trade College Initiative
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ver the past decade, opportunities for recruiting new graduates into the corrugated packaging industry through ICPF have expanded dramatically. During this time, ICPF developed new formal partnerships with an additional 20 university partners; used its educational partnerships and social media to expand its outreach beyond packaging engineering and packaging design college students to include majors and minors in marketing and sales, business, supply chain management, chemical engineering, industrial engineering, process engineering, mechanical engineering, and related disciplines; and grew its existing programming to engage 1,000 or more students annually. As a result, ICPF annually recruits and maintains up to 1,100 current college students in its corrugated packaging career network who specifically are interested in a corrugated packaging
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career. Each year, there are many more students and new graduates in this network who are seeking entry-level positions or student internships than related openings in the industry. ICPF’s Corporate Partners continually use ICPF’s Career Portal and Résumé Bank, its Student/Executive Dialogue Dinners and Teleconferences, and other resources to successfully recruit. Through these ICPF resources, over 120 students with diverse educational backgrounds are recruited annually for production, operations, sales, and design. With this success in creating and maintaining an ongoing pipeline for the corrugated paper industry’s future managers and executives, ICPF is now additionally focusing on needs for the plant floor. It is currently developing a database of local vocational and technical colleges (listing administrators and career college counselors) for key
metropolitan areas. The database will be posted on ICPF’s website to assist firms in recruiting for the plant floor. In 2022, ICPF also will identify entry-level plant floor position needs and position descriptions through a survey of ICPF Corporate Partners that it can use in working with two-year vocational colleges in launching a regional pilot program. The pilot will provide steps that ICPF and partner corporations can replicate across the country. ICPF Corporate Partners that are interested in participating in ICPF’s pilot program in the Chicago or Atlanta areas can contact rflaherty@icpfbox.org. Richard Flaherty is president of the International Corrugated Packaging Foundation.
