Edgewalk Business Experience Debuts in Atlanta; Provides Georgia State Students With Real-world Work Experience With Kaiser Permanenteof Georgia

Edgewalk Business Experience Debuts in Atlanta; Provides Georgia State Students With Real-world Work Experience With Kaiser Permanente of Georgia

Edgewalk Business Experience, the national company that facilitates partnerships between colleges/universities and corporations to accelerate the development of tomorrow’s business professionals, inked its first deal with Kaiser Permanente of Georgia.

Edgewalk has already provided the health care company with access to two Edgewalk Business Apprentices™, Urjita Naik and Omari Shaw, seniors at Georgia State University.

Ian Oxman, vice president and Experience Leader at Edgewalk’s Atlanta Hub, mentors the Business Apprentices and oversees their work.

“We are very excited to be working with Edgewalk,” said Jim Cullinan, senior vice president of Sales & Marketing at Kaiser Permanente of Georgia. “Edgewalk screened and trained two bright and motivated GSU students who are ideally suited to work on Kaiser projects. Plus, we’re able to access additional students as needed. From my perspective, it’s a perfect win-win. Kaiser gets high-quality work done cost effectively and the students gain meaningful work experience essential for their professional growth.”

“Urjita and Omari know firsthand the challenge today in getting job offers in a very competitive environment,” said Oxman. “Developing critical skills as Edgewalk Business Apprentices, working in Kaiser’s fast-paced environment, having mentoring sessions and networking with executives, will give them a leg up when they’re ready to enter the workforce.”

“We are dedicated to helping all Georgia State University’s Robinson College of Business students become Robinson Ready to pursue their professional goals,” said Sharry Conroy, associate director of the Career Management Center at GSU. “Edgewalk Business Experience not only screened and identified two qualified GSU candidates, but gave them the opportunity to work with Kaiser Permanente of Georgia, one of the state’s highest rated organizations. We are proud that Urjita Naik and Omari Shaw are the first of -- who we anticipate will be many -- Edgewalk Business Apprentices from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at GSU.”

The Edgewalk Business Model

Most companies today require that more be done with less - less resources, less money, less time. Rather than outsource personnel needs, Edgewalk offers businesses of any size the opportunity to have complex work projects – including social media, product marketing, database construction, events management, website content and competitive research – completed by local college and university Business Apprentices under the leadership of seasoned Edgewalk Experience Leaders who serve as business coaches and mentors. The Experience Leaders, who have 15+ years of subject matter experience, work directly with the client and ensure the success of all assigned projects.

Edgewalk recruits, trains, manages and pays the Business Apprentices. No staff management is required by the business.

Unlike traditional interns who can be relegated to unpaid- or low-paying summer stints doing clerical tasks, Edgewalk Business Apprentices can work on long-term projects throughout their college years, earn a salary and gain the skills to become high-performing employees.

Companies that are short staffed, particularly in market research and online services like social media and content development, benefit tremendously from talented Business Apprentices. Moreover, the company staffers are not bogged down with their training and management.

Colleges and universities that are hard pressed to find meaningful career opportunities for their students benefit from Edgewalk’s recruitment capabilities and from the Experience Leaders who serve as indispensable business coaches.

Making the Grade in Atlanta and the U.S.

“We are delighted to have made our debut in Atlanta with Kaiser Permanente of Georgia and Georgia State University,” said Shari Marion-Hoff, Edgewalk’s founder and CEO. “I welcome all local businesses and colleges/universities to work with us to provide the state of Georgia with a steady stream of qualified job candidates and for Atlanta to become the model for Edgewalk’s work nationally.”

To find out how Edgewalk Business Experience can help solve your staffing and college career service needs, and how you can become an Edgewalk Business Apprentice or Experience leader, visit www.edgewalk.net.

About Edgewalk Business Experience

Edgewalk facilitates partnerships between colleges/universities and companies/corporations in order to accelerate the development of tomorrow’s business professionals. The company provides businesses with highly-qualified Edgewalk Business Apprentices™ who serve as cost-effective project labor to help businesses optimize resources and provides college students with soft skills development and real-world experience to help them succeed post graduation. Edgewalk is headquartered in Bellevue, Wash. and has Experience Hubs in Atlanta, Ga. and Portland, Ore. For more information, visit www.edgewalk.net.

About Kaiser Permanente of Georgia

Kaiser Permanente is Georgia’s largest not-for-profit health plan. Its mission is to provide high quality, affordable health care services to improve the health of its members and the communities it serves. Kaiser Permanente serves more than 240,000 members in a 28-county service area in metro-Atlanta with care focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists, and team of heath care providers. Expert and caring medical teams are supported by industry-leading technology and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Nationally, Kaiser Permanente is recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers, serving more than 8.7 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. For more information, visit www.kp.org.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 8.7 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: www.kp.org/newscenter.

About Georgia State University J. Mack Robinson College of Business

The largest business school in the South and part of a major research institution, Georgia State University's J. Mack Robinson College of Business has 200 faculty, 8,000 students and 70,000 alumni. With programs on five continents and students from 150 countries, the college is world-class and worldwide. Its part-time MBA is ranked among the best by Bloomberg Businessweek and U.S. News & World Report. Its Executive MBA is on the Financial Times list of the world's best EMBA programs. Located in Atlanta, the Robinson College and Georgia State have produced more of Georgia's top executives with graduate degrees than any other school in the nation.

Wendy Hirschhorn, 212-826-8790
wendyhi@nyc.rr.com