Junior Achievement Job Shadow Day @ WEX

We were excited to recently give 21 students an inside look at the work we do and future career opportunities as part of JA Job Shadow Day. This is the fourth year we’ve collaborated with Junior Achievement of Maine for this event that’s designed to give youth a chance to visit a professional work environment and gain insight into how to find a fulfilling career.

“We are so grateful for WEX’s support of JA Job Shadow Day that exposes students to a company in their own backyard,” said Michelle Anderson, president of Junior Achievement of Maine. “Through job shadowing at WEX, students not only learn about the global impact of the company, but the variety of different career opportunities and job functions WEX offers. We hope by immersing students in a workplace environment, they can begin to identify their skills and interests and how they might translate to a career in the future.”

An Agenda for Success

A team of WEXers worked with students to provide an enriching, educational and fun job shadow experience at our headquarters. The morning began with an introduction to WEX and what we do presented by Ken Janosick, our chief portfolio risk and operations officer who is also on the Junior Achievement of Maine board.

“The JA Job Shadow Day gives students a great opportunity to better understand how a business works and to see how teams work together,” said Janosick. “The day also provides the students a view of how technology is shaping not only their lives, but also how businesses work.”

During break-out sessions, our HR team shared career paths within human resources and the skills they require. They also worked on personal branding, helping students identify a differentiator that can be used in a resume and future job search. Another session with our global services team provided an overview of our customer service operations and the opportunity to hear real questions and conversations we have with customers.

Technology was also on the agenda with WEXer and JA Volunteer of the Year Mike Violette leading students in a coding exercise designed to give them a taste for what it takes to build an app. The session was based on the CodeX program we recently hosted for youth in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine. Students also got a tour of our data center, which is always a favorite destination.

“It’s about giving kids a chance to think about what they could be,” said WEX Chief Legal Officer Hilary Rapkin of the JA Job Shadow Day. “They never think about what they could be – they think about what they know and their universes are sometimes very small, so this widens that for these students.”