Catie Conlon

conloncatie@gmail.com

What was your major at Butler? Have you pursued any graduate degrees post-Butler?

I double majored in marketing and international business, with a Spanish minor.

Where are you currently working? Where have you worked before now?

 I am currently working at Unilever, where I have since graduation. My second role was at Unilever’s US headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on the Vaseline Global Innovation team. I worked on developing new product artwork and digital communications, long term innovation project planning, and helped with the roll outs of new product launches in Europe and Africa. I am now back on the Kroger team in Cincinnati, now working as a Category Management Analyst for ice cream and e-commerce. I work with our internal teams to provide shelving recommendations to Kroger and analyze consumer and household data for our ice cream brands at Kroger. 

Have you worked or traveled internationally since graduation? If yes, where? If not, do you anticipate going abroad in the future?

Since graduation, I traveled to Croatia in July 2021, Italy in November 2021, and Spain in May 2022. I am currently planning a trip to Copenhagen and Stockholm for this June! While I have not had the chance to work internationally at this point, I feel lucky to work at an international company, where I have had the chance to work with teams in the UK, South Africa, Kenya, and more.

What advice would you give an IB major who is not sure about what they want to do with their major after graduation?

My advice would be to try to find a company that has a presence in multiple other countries. While you may be working in the US post grad, by working at an international company, you may have the opportunity to build connections with colleagues in other countries, or learn more about how business truly operates in another country.

Are there any skills (soft skills, language skills, communications, etc.) that you would advise that IB majors prioritize while still in school?  

I would say that strong communication skills, both writing and speaking, are very important, especially if you are trying to communicate across a language or cultural barrier. If you are working with someone from another country or culture, I would always try to remember that business practices and ways of working may be different where they are, so just be patient or learn more about the best ways to work with them.