The Wellynn Group Assisting Wharton Undergraduates
(February 2008) Susan Wynne and Richard Wells of The Wellynn Group are assisting teams of undergraduates of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania as they act as communications consultants for 16 small businesses from the Philadelphia area.
The project, part of Wharton's Management 100 course, involves teams of students conducting a communications audit for local entrepreneurs. Students will review the companies' print and electronic communications (including web sites), conduct both primary and secondary research on the communications' effectiveness, and identify where and how the companies can improve their communications with target audiences. Final presentations to the entrepreneurs will be made in April.
Working with three Wharton faculty members, The Wellynn Group helped develop the assignment and is acting as mentors and facilitators to the student teams. The businesses were selected with the help of the University of Pennsylvania's Small Business Development Center (SBDC), and represent diverse enterprises in retail, healthcare, food production and distribution, and personal services.
"Our work with the students has been in helping them understand what a communications audit is, how to conduct research, and how to develop a strong working relationship with their clients," Susan says. "It is great fun to work with these students because they bring such great energy and ideas to the project. It's been a pleasure to work with the faculty at Wharton and the staff of the SBDC, too."