Shared Futures, Community Reinvestment Funds project fill GID LAB Winter roster

The elevator door opens and in walks the CEO of the organization you admire most. What do you do? This question drove the 2025 Shared Futures event from the Institute for Innovation and Global Engagement on February 19, where over 40 people came together in the Global Innovation and Design Lab (MLG 203) for a delicious lunch, elevator pitch critique, and networking.

While they are commonly known as “elevator pitches,” they could happen anywhere, and they don’t have to feel as “sales-y” as people often think. Event co-facilitator Drew Bamford explained that it’s really just a way of thinking about how to “tell the story of You”: "You need to be able to tell [your story] in a compelling way and a short amount of time - because you never know when the opportunity will arise."

Preparation for the event began with an event-topic-ideathon at the IIGE's Fall Orientation, where training and advice on "how to tell my story and land that job" emerged as an important need. Community Advisory Board members further shaped the format with professional prompts and case studies, and Winter quarter Global Innovation and Design Lab interns assisted with scripts and acting. The result was two highly enjoyable skits with:

• Hugo Ennis (GID Lab intern) and Yusef Mustefa (GID Lab intern) portraying a tech executive and newly-graduated computer science student enacting a "what-not-to-do" scenario and
• Cathy Jackson (GID Lab Intern) and Phil Jacobs (CEO & Founder of Rebel Firm, IIGE Innovation Action Network member) portraying a marketing firm CEO and a marketing student in a successful encounter.

The sketches were intentionally humorous to engage the audience and help them develop their own pitches. After each sketch, the audience was invited to comment on what they noticed about how effective or ineffective the pitches were. Consensus in the room was that the first sketch was informative on what not to do when talking to a busy person who is giving you time they don’t really have: complaining, being pessimistic, lacking focus, and not engaging or showing an interest in the listener. By contrast, the second sketch demonstrated the effectiveness of clarity and conciseness in sharing passions and achievements, and of engaging in a dialogue with the listener, directly connecting skills to the organization's purpose or needs.

As students broke into small groups to work on their pitches with each other and with community members, IIGE Community Advisory Board member Deneen Grant explained two important pieces to keep in mind:

The rest of the event was dedicated to this practical work and networking with the gathered community members from organizations like Tacoma Public Utilities, Tacoma Housing Authority, Space Works Tacoma, and Tacoma Pierce County Black Collective. Students and community members shared contact information along with insights, setting the foundations for future partnerships.