Each week, we will be highlighting one of our 32 Fellows. As a part of the spotlight, Fellows will tell their story through a feature on this blog. Additionally, Fellows will self-produce a video that creatively documents their experiences thus far in Detroit.
This week’s spotlight is Fares Ksebati.
Here we go!
Growing up in the suburbs just north of the city, I was always curious what it was really like to live in an urban metropolis. The fate of Detroit has always been a topic for conversation in this region, but I felt like the real story was never being told. I was so excited to be accepted into Challenge Detroit, because I knew it would give me the opportunity to discover the City that was in my backyard growing up.
Living downtown has been the ultimate experience! I love taking in the architectural treasures that surround me, and experiencing the best sights, sounds, and eats of the city. Almost everyday there is an event to attend. As a Fellow, I feel that I have the ultimate benefits of working with both Challenge Detroit and hiredMYway.com.
hiredMYway.com allows employers to strategically market their 
positions to dozens of the leading websites in online recruiting where they are most likely to have success. My role right now is re-designing the reporting architecture and interface on the back-end of our website to ensure our sales team and management has the best analytical reporting in the industry. It’s a really awesome opportunity to work at a Detroit Venture Partner start-up. Being able to work closely with the founders of a company is really cool, too, and the opportunity to lead projects is particularly rewarding.
In addition to my role as Fellow, I also share my time with Challenge Detroit as my year-long employer along with hiredMYway.com. As the Marketing Coordinator for Challenge Detroit, I get a behind the scenes look at what allows the program to be so successful. Working with Challenge Detroit’s leadership, I am responsible for documenting the challenges, cultural events, and year by producing digital content that is showcased through all our media channels. I serve as photographer, videographer, blogger, and social media manager. Serving as a Fellow, and working for Challenge Detroit, I get the best of both worlds.
My unique role is to translate Challenge Detroit’s vision into digital content, promoting our program to the other Fellows, our host companies, non-profit partners, Detroit, and the world. Detroit is a special place to be, and I am really excited to continue to share my journey this year with you.
Thanks,
Fares