It has been fifteen years since the social network, Facebook was founded by CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook is known for revolutionizing social media by establishing a network where people can connect. Over the years, Facebook has continued to evolve and grow. According the to the online Facebook newsroom, there are about 36 thousand employees as of 2018.

Statistics show there are 1.5 billion daily active users on the the social network and 2.3 billion monthly users. Facebook’s annual revenue amounted from 40.6 billion dollars in 2017 to 55.8 billion dollars in 2018. Facebook U.S. offices are spread across the country and the headquarters is located in California. Other offices are located in Boston, New York and Miami.

The WP communication department graduate students attended a tour of the Facebook and Instagram offices in New York. Instagram is one of the many companies own by Facebook. The trip was organized by Dr. Angie Yoo, assistant professor and graduate director of the  M.A. in Professional Communication. When asked why she feels it is important to take students out of the class, Dr. Yoo expressed that the graduate program is, “designed to provide graduates with trending and evolving skills needed for the current industry.”

The tour began with an introduction to the Facebook company given by Alena Casey, a contract employee of Facebook. The introduction highlighted Facebook’s history and culture. Following the Facebook introduction, Jim Yoo, a design engineer for Instagram went over the company’s history, mission and discussed the three pillars which are sharing, interest and community. After the introductions, students had the opportunity to ask the employees questions about Facebook/Instagram or career questions. One of the goals of Dr. Yoo was to encourage students to think about their career paths upon graduating.

Students were then led by Casey through the Facebook and Instagram offices. As the students walked through the Facebook office, the culture of the company was clear. Facebook encourages the practices of creativity in the offices. The hallways displayed various forms of art pieces created by employees.

“What I learned about the culture from the trip was that working in a completely open area is similar to having a feeling of being at home,” said Thomas DeMartino, senior, with a major in public relations. “Allowing free thinking and expressing creativity to decorate their workplace is vital in functioning in a perpetually changing social media culture in order to achieve their success.”

According to an article that examined the office layout of Facebook said that the intent was to empower and inspire anyone who walks in. Casey explained that the windows of the Instagram floor are specifically made to allow a large amount of light in.

On this trip to the Facebook/Instagram offices, the graduate students were able to engage in the culture implemented in the offices. The tour allowed for many photo opportunities with or of the artwork displayed in the offices.

The M.A. in Professional Communication at WP offers courses in strategic communication, digital media, professional writing and more.

For more information on the program visit:

https://www.wpunj.edu/coac/departments/communication/graduate/