Maddie (Martini) Hanten

Major: Journalism (emphasis in Strategic Communications)

Certificate: Digital Studies

Graduation Date: May 2018

How did you end up working at U.S. Bank?

I interned at U.S. Bank summer before my senior year and was offered a full-time position upon graduation. I’ve been at the company just over 5 years, but this is my third full-time role. I supported prepaid cards for about a year, then moved into a regional marketing role supporting senior leaders in the Midwest on niche projects and now support our mortgage business. It’s a large company, which can sometimes be tricky to navigate, but the tradeoff is lots of opportunity for growth!

What does a typical day in the office look like for you?

I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but no day looks the same! I work on a team of 10 marketers all focused on different lending products (auto, home equity loans and lines, home, personal, etc.). I support our mortgage business line from a marketing perspective and work on a wide variety of projects. SEO, content strategy/thought leadership, paid social (especially LinkedIn), podcasts and benefit aggregator marketing are the main channels I work on. Since financial services is such a highly regulated industry, I spend lots of my time working with compliance and business line partners, but it’s fun to be the creative arm in the processes.

How has Digital Studies influenced your career path?

It’s not a job requirement that I know Adobe Illustrator or any coding, but I took a class on both as a part of the Digital Studies Certificate and having a baseline understanding of graphic design and coding has made me a much more valuable team member. I am able to help marketing partners with simple coding questions or web design and am able to do small graphic design jobs on my own rather than waiting for an agency partner or in-house design team.

Do you have any advice for current students?

You’re at the best school, soak it all in! The real world isn’t as fun 🙂

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career thus far?

Being promoted to Marketing Manager! Learning how to advocate for myself was incredibly important throughout my time at U.S. Bank. Each year, I keep a log of everything I accomplished and what work I did above and beyond my job requirements. I put it in a deck that is easily digestible and share it with my manager after every year. Not only has it helped me get promotions (and raises!), it also helps me reflect on my year and what I’ve learned.