Logan Hassig, senior commerce strategist, VMLY&R
Graduation year: 2016
Brief bio: Logan was born and raised in Lawrence, Kansas. Her parents both attended the University of Kansas, where her father took the path of entrepreneurship and mother a flight attendant for Delta Airlines. With that, in addition to investing in her education, Logan spent a lot of her upbringing on an airplane. She has lived in Brooklyn, New York, for over four years now, working at the global brand and customer experience agency, VMLY&R. VMLY&R is part of WPP, the biggest marketing and communications firm in the world.
How did you get your current job? It all started amid my pursuit of the AAFKC scholarship in which the interview happened to take place at the original VML Headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri. Though intending to just land the scholarship, that interview opened doors to the rest of my career to this day. I kicked off the interview with a silly story about me ironically having been in the agency before as a young girl for a foot modeling gig in Vault (the agency’s production department); I mentioned remembering my admiration of the working environment and overall energy in the space.
During the interview, I also spoke a lot about my experience within the J-School, as well as my upcoming endeavor to work abroad in Dublin, Ireland, at a local media company. It was happenstance that VML’s Global CEO, Jon Cook, was sitting at the opposite end of the table and generously reached out to me post-interview asking that I’d keep VML in mind for future work opportunities. I capitalized on that meaningful connection and was persistent with staying in touch; I was eventually offered a fall internship in Kansas City, as I was attending my final year of college.
Having always desired to be a city dweller, this ultimately led me to an inter-company transfer to New York, where I started as a key support member on what was then a small retail and commerce team within the agency. The department has seen exponential growth since then, to what is now WPP’s global creative commerce agency, VMLY&R COMMERCE. I have now progressed as a senior commerce strategist, where I focus on both identifying commerce-driven growth opportunities and building existing client relationships within the agency.
What do you like best about your job? I feel that as the agency has grown and evolved, my role has evolved with it, which has been exciting to see take shape. The company culture at VMLY&R is unparalleled; from its people to its entrepreneurial opportunities to the industry-breaking work collective teams produce. I am truly never bored, as every day is different. Not least, I’ve had the opportunity to work across a myriad of verticals and for some of the world’s largest brands. At the moment, my key client focus is New Balance, which is an extraordinary match for my personality, and a company I admire.
How has the J-School prepared you for the workforce? I was the KU Ad Club president during my junior year of college, which was hugely advantageous in terms of gaining proper experience to make my way into the real world. Through this, my professional skills improved, and importantly, I made key connections within the industry and New York at whole. Challenging – yet not required – courses like Presentation Skills: Stand and Deliver, Honors courses, etc., were also central to my professional development.
What advice would you give to journalism students? Put yourself out there! Getting involved and staying connected are fundamental in college in order to not only work out what you want to do, but also meet the right people to help you get there. People are your biggest asset. Also, do not feel as if you need cookie-cutter experience when you are interviewing for a particular role or opportunity – skills can be learned; embrace who you are and use that to your advantage. Be a sponge; always stay curious and keep learning!