Name: Jessica Shambora
Age: 27
Location: New York, NY
Education: A bachelor’s degree in English from UCLA in Los Angeles
Job Title: Reporter for Fortune magazine
What She Does: Jessica writes for Fortune magazine and helps editor-at-large, Pattie Sellers, with her blog Postcards From the Pinnacles of Power. A typical day involves pulling together research, pitching story ideas to Pattie and the team of editors, calling sources, attending editorial meetings, keeping up to date on breaking headlines, and posting on the blog twice a day. One of her daily posts, called “Power Point,” is a poignant quote from the news that she chooses and then provides commentary around. But what’s difficult about working in news, as Jessica points out, is that you can’t plan for it. “Sometimes we know ahead of time [what we’ll be writing about], and sometimes we don’t.” she says. “It keeps me on my toes.”
How She Got Her Gig: Before coming to Fortune, Jessica was an assistant editor at Travel + Leisure Golf magazine. On her own time she launched a blog about living and working as a writer in NYC. One of her entries explored women and power, the subject of a panel discussion Jessica observed where Pattie Sellers was the moderator. About a year and a half later, she got the chance to introduce herself to Pattie at a networking event where Jessica was volunteering. It just so happened that Pattie was looking for someone to head up her own blog and to help out with the upcoming Most Powerful Women issue. “We got to talking and we just really hit it off,” recalls Jessica. She followed up with a note and a copy of her blog post on Pattie, and less than two months later Jessica was coming to work at Fortune.
No News Isn’t Good News: With the uncertainty of the print publishing industry today, Jessica takes comfort in working for Time Inc., the largest magazine publisher in the U.S. “We feel protected because we’re one of the flagships of Time Inc.,” she says. And, given the circumstances of today, their financial slant is a hot topic. Jessica cited that the recent news around the economy is comparable to September 11th in terms of the public being engaged and actively seeking information. “It’s not a very straightforward issue, and they want to understand what’s going on,” she says.
Nothing Like a Free M.B.A.: Jessica calls working at a newsmagazine “the best education you could ask for.” There isn’t a day that goes by when she’s not learning—whether it’s about the craft of journalism, a downturn in a certain market, or the history of politics. “I feel engaged in what’s going on in the world. It’s incredibly fulfilling,” she says.
Keeping Up With the Flow: With the large and constant flow of information filtering through the doors of Fortune, Jessica finds the most difficult aspect of the job to be “knowing what you can give your time to and what information is most relevant to readers.” With little time to catch her breath, “it’s hard to feel a sense of accomplishment because you’re always moving on to the next thing,” she says.
Interview Action Points: When conducting an interview, Jessica believes it’s important to first consider the kind of story you want to tell. “Maybe even write the lead beforehand,” she says. “Know how to word the questions and in what order so you’re able to get the kind of quotes you’re looking for. Be reassuring so that [your subject] feels comfortable opening up,” she advises.
This Job’s for You if: “You can look past the mere facts of people and events and see an untold story that has the ability to teach and to move readers,” says Jessica. To do this, it’s crucial to develop your skills around awareness and observation. “Those are the little things that make a difference in a story,” she says.
