The Fordham University Marketing Association (FMA) hosted Professor Gregory Licciardi in Keating Hall last week for a lecture and discussion on reframing rejection from jobs or internships. Licciardi teaches in the marketing department at the Gabelli School of Business, notably the Ground Floor class, which introduces first-years and new students to the business world. 

Licciardi has been in media and advertising throughout his career, working for American Express, Univision and Worth Media. Licciardi is an International Coaching Federation trained executive coach. He is from Summit, New Jersey, and is currently working on a book on marketing skills, teaching at both Fordham and Seton Hall University. He is also a graduate of Fordham Gabelli’s MBA program. 

He began the session by addressing the students and congratulating them for attending. “80% of success is showing up,” said Licciardi. “As hard as it [job rejection] is, there are positive outcomes that come from rejection, and if you can embrace them, in the long run, it can make you so much more successful.” 

Licciardi opened the floor to attendees to share an experience where they were rejected. “I found this internship that combined both sales and marketing,” said Elizabeth Hoppe, GSB ’25, the vice president of alumni relations for FMA. “I made it to the final round and I ended up not getting it.” Hoppe noted how, even though she did not get her dream internship, she used those experiences to hone skills at a new internship.

“A lot of times you end up in this vacuum, you do all the necessary steps and you leave the interview thinking you did great, but you don’t know who you’re up against,” said Licciardi. “But, you prepared, you were ready, you were present, you did your research and sometimes, there’s only so much you can control.” 

Licciardi described how putting your best foot forward is important, and keeping a positive attitude and spirit has to be kept, even if one senses they won’t get the position. “It’s okay to be upset if you don’t get a job you’re really excited for,” he said. 

“Early in my career, I got four rounds of interviews for Google, and I got to the final level as general manager,” said Licciardi. “So, I got into the interview, and I was really personable, but I could tell the person who was interviewing me didn’t really care about that stuff.” Licciardi explained that he probably wouldn’t have received his next job if he hadn’t experienced a setback during that interview. “Sometimes, it takes a big fall to realize what your strengths and passions are,” he said. 

Throughout the event more students discussed their experiences with interviews. “You could tell they [the interviewer] were looking for specific answers, and I kind of felt I wasn’t getting what they wanted from me,” said Zoe Skinner, GSB ’26, the vice president of marketing for FMA. 

Professors also attended the session. “If you are interviewing and it doesn’t go well, you don’t get a lot of ‘hey, this could have been better’ from recruiters,” said Professor William Sickles.

Licciardi responded by advising the audience to generate internal agents to help them out in an interview, since oftentimes recruiters do not provide much feedback on an interview which was not successful. 

“As you go about looking for an internship, it’s really important to go outside your comfort zone, building your base and foundation of contacts,” said Licciardi, adding that talking to people you already know may be easy, but challenging yourself to  be open minded is critical. Licciardi touched on how reaching out to potential connections and new people, especially alumni, can help students to strengthen their network and build confidence in trying new things. 

Finally, Licciardi listed several celebrities who faced rejection, including J.K. Rowling, Bill Gates, Elvis Presley and Albert Einstein. “It’s not how many times you get knocked down, it’s about how you get up and power forward,” said Licciardi. “It’s not where you are now, it’s how you go on your journey to get what’s right for you and what you’re passionate about.”