Last week, students and staff from Blue & Co. gathered in Cincinnati, Ohio, for the annual Jumpstart Summer Leadership Program 2025. This two-day event was an opportunity for students to meet staff to network and share their experiences within the accounting industry.
Our day started with everyone checking in at the 21c hotel and gathering in a large conference room for a kick-off meeting. We began with introductions of who Blue & Co. is and gave the students an opportunity to network with Blue employees.
After lunch, we started into the Branding YOU workshop, led by Amy Lambdin. The workshop gave students tools to define their own brand and practice their elevator pitch. Students were able to practice with each other and see the impact of their personal brand and a perfected elevator pitch.
In the next breakout, each student was separated into states, where they could talk to each Blue employee in a smaller environment. The students could ask questions regarding what life at Blue is really like. Finally, we finished the day with the Power Networking Workshop before we headed to a Cincinnati Reds vs. the New York Yankees game.
The Reds game was a blast! The students were able to connect with each other and with employees in a casual environment.
The second day started with breakfast and then an inspiring speech by Blue’s Chief People Officer, Chad Pfeifer. Chad emphasized that at Blue, "Culture > Cash" and "Training > Title," emphasizing the importance of having community and growth over chasing money and status.
The next activity was the Accountants in Action Panel led by Ryan McClain. This panel was a great opportunity for students to hear more about employee’s journey with Blue and their career journey. Each employee was from a different department and office, so there was a diverse range of perspectives.
After a quick break, the students were separated into six groups where they would have to work as a team to build a bike for BeechAcres—a non-profit organization that supports families through kinship connections, parent coaching, and enrichment programs. To access each piece of the bike, each team had to compete mini games and collaborate to get to the finish line. After the bikes were built, all 12 were donated to children in need. It's safe to say that everyone was full of laughs and smiles.
To end our day, we had our last two breakout sessions. The first consisted of exploring Blue Markets and then Speed Connections. In Blue Markets, students were able to hear real stories from Team Blue. They heard about how they started, the CPA experience, internships, and how they are continuously growing their careers both personally and professionally at Blue & Co. The last breakout, Speed Connections, is where students were able to show everything they have learned the past two days. Students had an opportunity to have a one-on-one interview with a Blue employee and then attended an in-depth session on how to use LinkedIn professionally.
These two days were a blast and Team Blue loved connecting with the future leaders of the accounting industry. Thank you to everyone who attended and a huge thank you to Team Blue for organizing this amazing opportunity.
Blue’s Jumpstart Summer Leadership Program is a two-day, expenses-paid program where college students (incoming sophomores to juniors) can learn more about our company and public accounting roles.
The leadership program is a great opportunity to: