Let me introduce myself: 

• Lauren Renee Frisch
• 28 Years Young
• Co-Owner & Sales Rep for Wasatch Container
• Family Orientated
• Philanthropist
• Outdoor Enthusiast 
• Dog Lover
• Current MBA Student at Westminster College
• Bachelors in Business Admin & Corporate Finance at Colorado State University

Family

I was born in Minneapolis, MN and raised in Sandy, UT.  When I was 2 years old, my father, Jerry Frisch, moved our family to Utah with a goal to experience the west and return to Minnesota in 2 years... its 26 years later and my parents still live in the same house I grew up in. We absolutely love Utah! I grew up at the bottom of Little Cottonwood Canyon which gave us easy access to mountain adventures such as skiing, ATVing, jeeping, hiking, boating, and camping. My dad constantly kept our family entertained with fun adventures which created the strong family bond we have today. As you can see in the below picture... my family loves to have fun. 

 

I have 2 older siblings who are my rocks: Ryan & Andrea

Education

Since I was a little girl, I dreamed of becoming a veterinarian due to my strong love for animals. I went to Colorado State University in Fort Collins which is ranked the second best veterinarian school in the United States next to Cornell University. After many stressful nights studying and tears shed, I quickly realized that the science world was not for me. After two semesters of soul searching and multiple visits to the career center I finally found my passion in business.  I earned my degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Corporate Finance. I was a very active college student by participating in greek life as a Chi Omega and having two on-campus internships. I absolutely loved college!

 

Work Experience
US Bank: 2010-2013

After graduating, I came back to Utah to be closer to my family. I immediately got a job at US Bank as a Personal Banker at a local branch. During my 3 years of working there, I had significant accomplishments and found my strength in sales. I was consistently the top banker in the Salt Lake City district and always in the top 3 for the state of Utah. I had multiple growth opportunities such as introducing new incentive plans to the district, mentoring bankers on sales techniques, selected to participate in the Emerging Leaders program (an accelerated career development opportunity), and opened and managed a new branch which rapidly became, and still continues to be, Utah's top performing branch.

US Bank was a phenomenal first job out of college which taught me many valuable professional and personal skills but I wanted something more. I also had someone constantly hounding me to come work for his business... my father. 

Wasatch Container: 2013 to Current

In 1995, my father started Wasatch Container - a designer and manufacturer of customized packaging in Salt Lake City. Our team creates the optimal packaging solution with a focus to reduce returns of damaged product in transit, decrease packaging expenses and labor through innovative and resourceful designs, and increase brand awareness utilizing high-end graphics. Our clients include any local manufacturer of a physical product including: food & beverage, electronics, aerospace, military, personal care, appliances, etc. - we work in a variety of industries since every physical product needs some sort of packaging. We are committed to providing creative designs, exceptional customer service, and efficient manufacturing practices to produce high quality, value added packaging.

I have been a sales rep at Wasatch Container for 3 years now. My family independently owns Wasatch Container: Jerry Frisch at 90% ownership, Ryan Frisch (my brother) at 5%, and myself at 5%. We currently have roughly 50 employees ranging from sales, customer service, production staff, designers, accounting, and IT.

I love being in a family business due to the perks of working with my mom, dad, and brother everyday - we are a great team and fully dedicated to growing the company. The opportunity to be a second-generation owner of a family's business is truly a rare and incredible place to be. I am proud of what we have accomplishment and commit to only working smarter and harder for the company's continued success.

The article to the right is Wasatch Container's first publication.

Volunteer Work

I am a philanthropist at heart. I believe in the community, social, and personal benefits of being active in your local community. I have volunteered most of my life with the Junior League of Salt Lake City and Chi Omega.

• Junior League: Director of Kids in the Kitchen
•  Created and implemented a healthy cooking program for the mother and children at Salt Lake City's YWCA 
• Make a Wish Foundation: Chi Omega Philanthropy Chair 
• Created and implemented the bi-quarterly fundraising events

Internship

I had many internships through college but the most influential one was at Colorado State University as the financial coordinator for CSU's student program board. I was responsible for a $500,000 budget in student fees which needed to be allocated to different student organizations. I maintained all financial documents and contracts for over a hundred different programs. It was a requirement to give monthly presentations of our financials to the state of Colorado to ensure we were spending student fees the most efficient way and to reach the maximum amount of students. 

How my past experiences relate to Project Management

I have little knowledge of the specifics of project management and its' techniques but I do believe I practice project management on a daily basis. In my current sales role position, once a potential client sends a project my direction, I communicate the package's specific goals, brainstorm creative designs, discuss the timeline, and project's budget. With every project I am responsible to follow the process from the creating phase to the final execution. 

Strengths

• Commitment: When I am involved in any activity (work or personal), I am fully committed to that project or event.
• Public Speaking: I enjoy giving presentations and speaking of topics that are of importance to me. 
• Numbers Savy: With a finance and banking background, I do enjoy examining financial documents.

Class Expectations & Learning Objectives:

Wasatch Container is a small business compared to many affiliates and competitors. We are highly active in our national association, The AICC - Association for Independent Corrugated Converters. After networking with other packaging manufacturers, I learned that many companies are starting to add project managers to their staff to oversee each new product's entire process, starting with the initial brainstorming session to the delivery of the final product. Wasatch Container is a small company and there isn't a strong need for a project manager at this point. We are striving to increase sales which will lead to becoming a larger company which will develop the need for a project manager.  

Also, with our aggressive goal to increase sales by 20% this year, it is with the intent to buy a new building to increase efficiencies. I will be utilizing the skills learned in this class to research, plan, and budget the big move without interrupting the everyday business activities.  

I have a commitment to Westminster's MBA program and to our Project Management course to learn and utilize the practices taught to better my ability to run a successful second generation company and better manage clients and future projects. With that being my overall goal, I am eager to engage in the course's discussions, projects, and assignments for my overall understanding of project management to continue my development of business education and growth.