By Emily A. Hay

Have you heard about Challenge Detroit? It’s bringing a positive vibe to the city, and I am proud to be part of such an innovative initiative to revitalize Detroit and involve today’s young professionals. As a Challenge Detroit board member, I’m excited about the opportunity to help move Detroit forward — and propel tomorrow’s leaders into the next prosperous stage of their lives. And you and your company can also become part of making history.

ABOUT CHALLENGE DETROIT

Challenge Detroit, an initiative by The Collaborative Group, is an opportunity to engage in a revitalization effort for our community. The program focuses on placing top talent in innovative companies for a one-year Fellowship. Challenge Detroit is currently in the midst of its inaugural year, but planning has already begun for year two in partnership with the MEDC’s LiveWorkDetroit!

The Challenge Detroit Fellows are being exposed to jobs, non-profits, new friends and countless other benefits Detroit has to offer. They commit to live, work, play and give in and around metro Detroit for one year. The thrilling part about challenging these young professionals is that they are seeing firsthand how unique Detroit is, with so many opportunities available — and our hope is they will love the city so much that they’ll make an impact on the city and choose to stay and grow roots. What better way is there to make Detroit’s future bright?

BRINGING BUSINESSES IN

For the second year, Challenge Detroit will once again invite 30 Fellows to participate; therefore space is limited to 30 host companies. (See the companies involved in year 1 here). The companies are leaders in their fields, and believe in this initiative to attract and retain creative professionals in Detroit.

JOINING THE CHALLENGE DETROIT TEAM

Intrigued? You can help out! Challenge Detroit is still accepting host companies to help out in the next stage of the challenge. Your company will receive exposure from being involved, including media stories, social media visibility, top qualified job applicants and community “buzz” surrounding your company. Have a host company in mind?

Host companies will:

• Employ a highly-educated fellow
• Encourage them to give back to the community
• Support a community-wide effort to retain and attract talent
• Contribute to the revitalization of Detroit

For more information, please let me know or email challengedetroit@collaborativegroup.org, to speak further about this opportunity.

Be sure to follow the progress on Facebook and Twitter, and watch updates on YouTube.

Kudos to all those involved in Challenge Detroit and stay tuned for updates on this creative initiative!