Job builds partnerships across Shawnee County

by Connor Doel

Erika McNeill, ‘11, originally a marketing major, decided she wanted to work on the creative side of things.

“Mass media was a way I could get into marketing without doing all the numbers, and I could do the creative stuff,” said McNeill.

Currently, McNeill works for Envista Credit Union as the engagement coordinator where she oversees the EnvistaCares Challenge that engages with organizations in the community by creating media packages to help raise funds for nonprofits.

“Nonprofits rarely have a lot of funds for marketing budgets, so that’s where our marketing team steps in and creates a media package for them,” McNeill said. “I create design work like billboards or social media graphics that they can use.”

Another part of McNeill’s job involves providing current Envista employees an opportunity to get paid while spending their day volunteering in the community. It's one way her job helps employees understand the Envista culture.

While at Washburn, McNeill was on the Washburn tennis team and was involved with a sorority.

“I didn’t join any groups in mass media, but I did get to know my professors very well and still have those relationships today,” McNeill said.

McNeill’s first job gave her the opportunity to travel around the United States and go to conventions.

“Right out of college, I worked for Visit Topeka,” McNeill said. “I was the convention sales manager and I would travel to conferences around the United States. I would meet with meeting planners who were planning to have meetings outside of their city, so I would showcase Topeka well so they would see us as a destination city.”

McNeill realized that she wanted to be on the other side of the table and plan the events, so she waited for an opportunity to switch directions and landed up across the street from campus at the Washburn Alumni Association and Foundation for five years and developed a professional network with donors and alumni, which again inspired McNeill.

“I met someone at Envista who I looked up to as a career mentor,” said McNeill. “He was very engaged in the community, and I knew I wanted to be more engaged in our community. Now I work with organizations in the community to create partnerships.”

Ashley Schmidt, creative director at Envista, said McNeill is, “a very collaborative person to work with.”

McNeill advises anyone who is professionally minded to focus on gaining hands-on experiences and to continue to plug into Washburn's extensive alumni community.

“I would say it’s about who you know and those connections mean everything,” McNeill said. “Networking is key to being successful.”