November 14, 2019 | Bethel HS and Spanaway Lake HS at Groupon | by Marilyn Allbritton
On Nov. 14, we took 16 girls from Bethel and Spanaway Lake High Schools in Bethel School District to the Groupon offices in Seattle! When we arrived, we were warmly greeted by Groupon employees Zhou Zhou and Micaela Deitch. They led us in an icebreaker activity then showed a short video about Groupon’s business, helping customers find deals in their community. After the video, we split into 3 small groups for a tour around their main floor. We were able to see employees at work, see their meeting rooms, and we were lucky to have a moment to talk with Craig Rowley, the Chief Marketing Officer, who shared how his education and previous employment led him to Groupon. The girls were all wowed by the beautiful offices and building!
After we returned from our tour, the students were given a short lesson regarding A/B testing and the difference between correlation and causation. The students then had a chance to brainstorm how they would design an A/B test to try to improve a Costco ad. Each small group had an employee from Groupon working with them and guiding them through the process. All the groups then got to practice their public speaking skills by presenting their findings to everyone. The students were engaged in the activity and enjoyed the opportunity to work directly with Groupon employees!
After enjoying a Qdoba lunch, we gathered for the panel presentation featuring Carmen, a data scientist, software engineers Erin and Shefali, and Diana, a product manager. The employees all shared about their backgrounds and how they came to Groupon, then opened it up for questions. The students asked some great, thoughtful questions and could have asked many more if we had more time!
The students had an inspiring day learning about STEM careers and were motivated to take more STEM-related courses at school! We especially enjoyed Women at Groupon and Allies! We truly appreciate Groupon letting us visit their company and talk with their gracious employees.
From all of us, thank you to Micaela Deitch, Zhou Zhou, Sarah Byrum, Rhonda Mak, Ebo Hanning, Craig Rowley, Anthony Joseph, Jason Kees, Shannon Jung, Rishita Roy and Tauseef Kidwai for leading us through the tour and activity, and to Diana Hsu, Erin Morrissey, Shefali Agarwal and Carmen Easterwood for sharing your stories. This a great example of women working together to help other women!
Here's what the students enjoyed most:
"The women talking about how they made it to Groupon. The tour around the office. This event inspired me to start taking more courses in technology and science."
- 9th grade
"The panel of women speaking. It was really good to hear their stories. The whole thing was a lot of fun!"
- 11th grade
"The interactive panel allowed me to gain more insight into the STEM field and how to pursue a career in my field of interest."
- 11th grade
"Working with the employees in the activity so we could get feedback."
- 10th grade
"Everything! The people were very cool."
- 11th grade
"Hearing the panel and their experiences."
- 12th grade
"How nice everyone was, their advice."
- 10th grade
"My highlight was the tour of the office!"
- 9th grade
"I loved the making of the advertisement."
- 11th grade