Kyle Emory
- Venture Head of Business and Growth
- UP.Labs
School Information
School: University of Virginia
College Major: Business
Years at College Works: 2009
Career Information
Working For: UP.Labs
Title: Venture Head of Business and Growth
Industry: Venture Capital
Brief Description of Duties / Responsibilities:
I am currently building new ventures with great teammates across the mobility space.
College Works Career Impact
In one sentence, what has CW meant to you?
College Works Painting allowed me to truly get to understand how people work when making major financial decisions and how important it is to always follow through and exceed their expectations once they trust you with a contract.
How did your CW experience impact your career? Immediately after graduation? Now?
College Works Painting greatly improved my sales skills and allowed me to secure a job in Management Consulting directly out of college. The client interaction I built while with College Works Painting taught me the importance of over-delivering and working until the client is satisfied with the job. As a result, when I began to interview for more senior roles in Executive Suites, I was able to always focus on the value I could offer & my relentless energy to execute beyond what was initially asked.
What do you want to tell your clients about what it meant to work with them and how it has helped you get to where you are today?
Thanks for making me sweat.
What was the greatest lesson you learned from your CW experience?
Attention to detail. I’ll never forget the $500 of stain I purchased with a gloss finish when I needed stain for exterior wood paneling on my biggest job. I had to eat the costs and there was nothing I could do about it.
Advice
What advice do you have for potential CW participants? Current CW participants?
Book jobs early, work hard to get the right painters, and stay organized. Those three things will let you have a lot more fun in the summer if you get them squared away off the bat. Take more time to do these 3 things.
Many college students struggle to choose between an internship specific to their target industry or doing CW. What advice would you give them on this subject if they wanted to enter your career field?
If you get a chance to work with College Works Painting before your Junior year, take it. It will help you land much stronger internships than your peers who will be going for their first real-world internships.