小猪视频

Business major Zander Lai cast a wide net when looking for a co-op during his sophomore year, submitting nearly 300 applications online. His diligence paid off with a six-month commercial analyst co-op at Wayfair, the Fortune 500 e-commerce company headquartered in Boston.

Lai, whose concentration is in management information systems (MIS), is part of Wayfair鈥檚 new business-to-business account-based marketing team.聽

鈥淏ecause the group is only a few months old, I鈥檝e been given more meaningful projects than I expected,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just busywork; I really feel like I鈥檓 making an impact and helping build this team from the ground up.鈥�

His work has been both technical and collaborative. Lai queries large datasets using the SQL programming language to collect information, analyze performance and identify trends. He has built dashboards to visualize key results and works closely with other teams to improve decision-making processes. He also uses ZoomInfo to develop targeted lead lists and design ad campaigns, supporting Wayfair鈥檚 sales development representatives.

The company鈥檚 culture, he adds, has been a pleasant surprise.聽

鈥淭here are a lot of young employees, which makes it really easy to connect,鈥� says Lai, who commutes into Boston from his home in Sharon. 鈥淢y team does monthly bonding events 鈥� recently, we went to a Red Sox game together 鈥� which makes the work environment really enjoyable.鈥�

Lai transferred to 小猪视频 after one year at the University of Pittsburgh, where he studied computer and electrical engineering. He transferred for affordability and switched to management information systems.

鈥淚 wanted something that combined business with coding,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he more I looked into MIS, the more interested I became.鈥�

On campus, Lai mentors incoming first-year students through Students Trained in Asian American Resource Support聽(STAARS), a program run by the university鈥檚 Asian American Center for Excellence and Engagement (础础颁贰).听

鈥淚 really enjoy helping others adjust and seeing the difference it makes,鈥� he says.

Lai was determined to get a co-op 鈥渂ecause work experience dramatically improves your chances of landing a job after graduation.鈥� He credits the for helping him land at Wayfair as a sophomore.

鈥淚 found the co-op process super-helpful, especially as a transfer student,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey worked with me on my r茅sum茅, and I felt that gave me an advantage over other applicants.鈥�

With Wayfair on his r茅sum茅, Lai has already noticed a difference as he looks for his next paid career-connected experience.

鈥淚 applied to around 300 jobs before Wayfair and got maybe six or seven interviews,鈥� he says. 鈥淣ow, after adding Wayfair to my r茅sum茅, I applied to just 10 positions and already got two interviews at big companies.鈥�