Louisiana Tech students Aliya Shams (left) and Daniel Okougbo (right) work as undergraduate interns for the corporation’s Ruston branch. – Photo by Danny Do
Imani Coleman
Staff Reporter| itc002@latech.edu
In business, sometimes simple connections can open monumental opportunities.
That scenario was the case for Redwood City, California, based marketing software and solutions company Pierry Inc. and the opening of an innovative hub on Tech’s campus.
According to William Dearmon, regional manager, for corp strategy and development at Pierry, the entire endeavor began with a Louisiana Tech alumnus, Pierry’s Chief Marketing Officer, Ben Lee.
“As an alumnus Ben’s passion for Louisiana Tech was matched by his interest to give back to the university,” Dearmon said.
Pierry’s Innovation Hub opened in January and has since hired three undergraduate interns and also has a Louisiana Tech graduate as a full-time employee, with plans to grow the office in the coming quarters.
“Our hope is to expose our interns to a working environment that operates at the pace of Silicon Valley,” Dearmon said. “Our internship program seeks to be supplemented to the educational experience Tech students are undergoing on campus.” he said. We hope to introduce and cultivate the appropriate skill sets necessary to understand the services we supply.”
A main proportion of what the interns learn is how to solve real life scenarios based on the “Pierry method.”
The Pierry method focuses on marketing as a service and centers around strategy, creativity, technology and being digital. The concept was created by the founder Josh Pierry.
“By mentoring interns in the Pierry method, they gain great insight into how a results-driven, goal-focused, strategic process can show brands what’s possible in the digital and creative space,” Dearmon said.
Pierry is currently hiring student implementation developer positions, and software engineers. To fill the positions the company is looking for undergraduate and graduate student interns that are currently pursuing Computer Science, Computer Information Science or any technical degree related fields.
Daniel Okougbo, a senior computer information systems major and a Pierry Intern, spoke about the skills he has gained working with the company.
“Mostly I’ve learned how to work with teams and also to improve my programming skills,” Okougbo said. We’re also being taught how to solve real world challenges using salesforce marketing cloud.” he said.
Based on a previous press release, Lee expressed his goals and also spoke about the economic benefits of having the startup company in northern Louisiana.
“Pierry is extremely pleased to open this office at my alma mater, Louisiana Tech, as it provides us with on-the-ground implementation resources, establishes a foothold in the Southeastern region of the U.S., and gives us a first-look at some of the amazing talent coming out of the university,” Lee said. Our Tech outpost is also an opportunity to bring a bit of Silicon Valley to North Louisiana, giving the students an opportunity to get real-world experience in the rapidly growing field of digital marketing, and get a taste of what working with a start-up tech company is like.”
The company also has locations in Boulder, Colorado, Cleveland, Ohio, Albany New York, Redwood City, California and Kyoto, Japan.