Making Tulsa an awesome city for young professionals to live, work and play. That’s the mission of TYPROS, one of the country’s leading young professionals groups. In January, University of Tulsa alumnus David Tollette (BSBA ’10) became chair of this dynamic organization.
Tollette’s first exposure to TYPROS came while he was a management major at TU. With the encouragement of his professors Charles Wood and Ralph Jackson, Tollette and other members of the Marketing Club pitched in to help promote a new TYPROS networking event by distributing fliers and helping to spread the word through career services. In its second year, now with funding from the Office of Student Life, the club was able to work with TYPROS to organize, plan and co-host the networking event on Chapman Commons – complete with a stage and band. “It was a great time!”, recalled Tollette.
After graduating from TU, Tollette took a marketing job at a local manufacturing company. However, his role soon transitioned to sales in order to grow a budget for his marketing efforts. “In the process,” he remarked, “I discovered a love of sales and I now consider myself a sales professional.”
With over 10 years of experience in sales, Tollette is now an account manager with Vector Controls and Automation: “My key belief is that sales are all about taking care of your customers. If you take good care of your customers, the sales will take care of themselves. Orders are a byproduct of having supported your customer well.”
“TYPROS has provided a place to learn, serve and grow over time. This organization guided me from attending meetings to helping on projects already in progress. It encouraged me to go from ideas without action to working with others to make our concepts a reality. Most importantly, TYPROS has introduced me to a whole family of like-motivated people who, despite their different perspectives and experiences, are willing to work collectively to help others and drive progress in our region.” (David Tollette)
A focus on others
The same customer focus has driven Tollette’s involvement with TYPROS. “My biggest growth opportunities at TYPROS have come when I focused on serving others and delivering value to my fellow members,” he noted.
As chair, Tollette will direct this vision and energy to working in conjunction with an executive committee to develop and guide the organization’s activities and initiatives. “While the majority of our meetings, events and initiatives will remain virtual due to concerns around COVID-19, it’s our resounding desire to reestablish the sense of community we shared through in-person gatherings.”
Experimenting with new ways to connect people, develop leaders and build community in Tulsa will include the following five main tactics:
- Experimenting with different types of virtual meetings
- Mixing in safe in-person experience options when available
- Pulling in experts from other communities to provide wider perspectives
- Expanding to other social media platforms
- New initiatives designed to serve our members in the digital world
“TU students: This is the perfect time in your life to try things. Start that small business, take that internship, find something you are passionate about and offer to work or volunteer for free if you must. Be willing to serve others! You are compensated by what you learn and the connections you create. These experiences will help you with the next job or opportunity. Learning what you do not want to do is valuable too. The threshold of consequences for failure will never be lower for you than right now. Try new things, test ideas quickly, fail small and improve as you learn.” (David Tollette)
Get involved this year!
For any TU students considering getting involved in TYPROS, Tollette offers a hearty welcome: “If there’s one’ thing you do during your time in Tulsa (besides taking care of your course work), make sure to get involved with TYPROS!”
The organization has an active Facebook and LinkedIn presence, with more platforms coming soon. Prospective members can also attend a 360 to learn about the whole organization, attend several crew meetings, find a crew or initiative that resonates with them and volunteer to help out. “A little bit of effort with consistency can take you a long way with TYPROS,” Tollette enthused. “And don’t forget that TYPROS leaders are always glad to be invited to campus to speak to student groups!”
Management majors at TU can focus on innovation and entrepreneurship, business law, human resource management or sport management. Chart your unique path with us!