Yuengling shares professional journey and keys to success
Alvernia University’s Header School of Business hosted Executive in Residence (EIR) D.G. Yuengling & Son’s Chief Administrative Officer Wendy Yuengling who shared her professional journey and keys to success in her second speaking engagement of the 2023-24 academic year.
"Having successful executives who are also genuinely good people that are willing to share their journey, keys to success, and insights is an invaluable learning experience for our students,” said Dean of the College of Business, Communication and Leadership, Travis Berger, Ph.D. “Wendy Yuengling delivered a masterclass and shared a refreshing and welcomed perspective on the value of continuous learning, hard work, simplicity, and people. The Header School of Business is fortunate to have her serving as our executive-in-residence, reinforcing the importance of getting the right results the right way."
Yuengling discussed her journey from when she graduated with a business degree in marketing and began her career in the market research and advertising industries for her first few jobs post-graduation. Working at the brewery was not in her cards at the time. ‘I wanted to learn on my own, spread my wings and experience life,” she said. It was not until 2004 after being shown an article by her former boss highlighting the crossroads that the brewery was at and if it would be able to compete with larger companies that Yuengling started working in sales at D.G. Yuengling & Son.
“I started to learn all about selling beer, which you would think would come naturally, but it actually didn't," said Yuengling “I learned a lot, and quite honestly, it was very humbling because everybody expected you to know what you were doing and what you were talking about...but I learned a tremendous amount working with our team and our distributors being challenged by retailers and by accounts that didn't want to take our brand. It really toughens you up. I did that for about two years and at that point I knew my future was with Yuengling long term.”
After being in sales, Yuengling explained that she went on to work in marketing for two more years before transitioning to operations, then to packaging, followed by logistics before landing in her current administrative role. She discussed how she recently started working closely in the hospitality sector highlighting the company’s new restaurant, the Yuengling Draft Haus & Kitchen, in Tampa, FL that they opened last year.
“She talked a lot about how she kind of worked in different departments within Yuengling when she first got there, how she was at another job previously, and talked a little bit about how she was continually learning throughout her whole experience,” said Senior Digital Media Marketing Major and Management Minor, Emily Sano. “As someone that's going to have a job post-graduation, I thought it was interesting to know that she at one point felt less confident, she did gain that confidence in the end and it’s not as scary to start something new. She continually started something new and she felt like it benefited her to put herself outside of her comfort zone.”
Following her talk, the 75 attendees had the opportunity to ask Yuengling questions. They ranged from inquiring about pivotal moments in her career, her mentors and how they impacted her, challenges the company faces in a saturated industry as well as Yuengling’s expansion and company culture.
“One of the things that has always been something that is unique to us, or at least we pride ourselves on, is simplicity,” said Yuengling. “Having worked with other companies, you see very quickly that things become corporate and over complicated...what I find very refreshing with us is that we try very hard to keep things simple. It's not easy, it's very hard to keep it simple, but that defines us and is an important part of our culture now as well as our core values rooted in respect for tradition, integrity, hard work, simplicity, and pride. That is embodied by my dad and really everybody that works there.”
The EIR program, now in its eighth year, allows Alvernia students to gain valuable insight into real-world experiences directly from regional industry executives. Students also learn about the specific skills that leaders are looking for in college graduates, various leadership styles and real-life professional scenarios through interactive sessions and classroom lectures with Yuengling and other executives.
