Southwestern Advantage’s annual Kickoff Meeting took place October 1st–3rd at the Daytona Grande Oceanfront Hotel in Daytona Beach, Florida. This year’s theme, Push Your Limits, brought student leaders and recruiters together to prepare for the fall recruiting season, learn from one another, and build stronger teams.
Over the three days, attendees took part in leadership sessions, recruiting training, and conversations about how to help others grow. Here are some of the highlights from Kickoff 2026.
Learning to Recruit and Build Stronger Teams
Thursday evening started with a welcome from Danny Gamboa, followed by updates on Southwestern Advantage and the year ahead.
One of the main topics was learning to shift from focusing on your own success to helping others succeed. In his session, Individual to Multiplier, Jacob Flores talked about the importance of building relationships during recruiting season. That means taking an interest in people, asking questions, remembering names, and making others feel important.
Attendees also had the chance to practice these skills by meeting new people and learning about their experiences, accomplishments, and goals.
Friday’s sessions continued with practical recruiting advice, including how to find potential recruits, start conversations, tell your story, and explain the Southwestern Advantage Internship Program. Student leaders also worked on prospect lists, initial meetings, and plans for their teams.
Inschoolers and Fulltimers then attended separate training sessions based on their recruiting experience. Topics included weekly activity, phone approaches, team development, and resources to help them through the recruiting process.
For Martine Cao, Kickoff is an important time for leaders to connect with the students in their organizations and help them prepare for the semester ahead.
“Kickoff is an awesome opportunity as a leader in Southwestern for us to meet and connect with all of the students within our organization to add value to them and set the tone for the fall semester in school, recruiting, life, and sales.”
Developing Skills Beyond Recruiting
Kickoff also included sessions on personal and professional development. Saturday morning offered breakout sessions on the habits of top performers, creating a vision for your life, and landing online leads.
Other sessions covered professional skills, time management, building relationships, and developing a team culture. Attendees also heard from fellow student leaders and alumni about their experiences with Southwestern and what they have learned along the way.
These conversations continued outside the meeting rooms, too. Erica Lande shared that some of her biggest lessons came from spending time with other interns after the scheduled sessions.
“Kickoff helped me realize that growing a business starts with taking care of its people, because without them, there is no business. Some of my biggest lessons in leadership came after the meetings ended, over dinner and conversations with fellow interns that lasted until midnight.”
Those conversations are a reminder that leadership development doesn’t stop when a session ends. Getting to know other student leaders, hearing how they approach challenges, and sharing experiences can be just as valuable as the formal training.
Celebrating 35 Years of Leadership
Thursday evening also included a special recognition of Mark Rau, Southwestern Advantage’s Vice President of Sales, who announced his retirement after 35 years with the company.
Amy Groom led the session celebrating Mark’s career and recognizing his many years with Southwestern. His announcement was a significant moment during Kickoff as the team prepared for another recruiting season.
Saturday’s program included service awards recognizing organizational leaders, assistant organizational leaders, and student leaders. Attendees also heard from alumni who shared stories about their experiences, recruiting, and the goals they have worked toward through Southwestern.
Looking Ahead to the Recruiting Season
For many student leaders, Kickoff is an opportunity to learn from others, reconnect with friends, and get ready for the work ahead.
Billy Yang, who is returning for his third year with Southwestern Advantage, shared why he is excited to continue: “I’m excited to be working with Southwestern Advantage for a 3rd year because of the things I will learn and the people I am surrounding myself with!”
That excitement for learning and being around people with similar goals was a fitting note for this year’s theme. Pushing your limits can look different for everyone. It might mean trying a new recruiting approach, getting better at having conversations, building more consistent habits, or helping someone else take their next step.
As the fall recruiting season gets underway, student leaders will have the opportunity to put what they learned at Kickoff into practice, continue developing their skills, and help others discover what they can accomplish.
Want to learn more about the Southwestern Advantage Internship Program? Visit Southwestern Advantage online to learn more about the program and the opportunities available to college students.
