California, here I come!

UW-Green Bay senior will use Amazon internship as a springboard following Spring 2022 Graduation

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Senior Connor Hamann has learned a formula for success—start with a clear vision, use rejection as a learning opportunity, and work tirelessly until your dreams are fulfilled. This formula has taken the Sheboygan, Wis. native to his dream state, California, via an internship with Amazon; and it has already allowed him to secure employment in his major when he graduates in May 2022.

“My first Internship was at Vector Marketing where I was a salesperson,” he said.  “I learned through this internship how to effectively communicate with people and bouncing back from rejections as it was a vital part of sales. I loved this job but knew I didn’t want to pursue sales as a career.”

Connor Hamann enjoying the sites in California

Hamann said it wasn’t until he took a course called through UW-Green Bay’s Cofrin School of Business called Leadership and Development with Associate Prof. David Radosevich, that he realized what he wanted to do was management.

“I was intrigued by the psychological aspect of management and the impact great managers can have on a business,” he said. “Since taking the class I have strived to become a great leader and made it clear on my LinkedIn I was looking for some type of leadership role.”

In fall of last year an Amazon recruiter reached out him and asked him to apply for an area manager internship position on LinkedIn.

“I applied and after I got the job, I was assigned to be located at a fulfillment center an hour outside of Los Angeles. This was always my dream to live in California so it gave me confidence and pushed me to be at my best!”

He said his responsibilities included shadowing other area managers, helping them manage employees, and making sure operations were running efficiently.

“The biggest part of my internship was a project that I was assigned to improve overall quality and decrease total damages they were receiving in the inbound department. By gathering data, coaching employees on the correct standard practice, putting mechanisms in place, and presenting on regional calls made my project very successful. A few months after my internship, I got a return offer to come back to the same Fulfillment Center after graduation.”

Hamann credits a number of role models to get him to the point that he can jump in to his desired career and location, post-graduation.

“My friend Adam Jansen ’11 (Economics and Business Administration) not only helped me along my journey, but the one who gave me the vision. Adam is a previous Alumni from UW-Green Bay and we grew up together as our parents are close friends. He had the same dream as me with moving out to California and after seeing him succeed and living out there for nine years, it gave me the confidence that I could too. From my journey, I realized that anyone can fulfill their dreams if they have a clear vision of what they want and work tirelessly until their aspirations are fulfilled.”