Hilton's Playbook for Growing Local Talent

Hilton has stood alongside tnAchieves since 2011, making it one of the organization's longest-standing corporate partners. On this episode of At Scale, hosts Ben Sterling and Tyler Ford sit down with Hope Thomas, Senior Manager of HR Consulting at Hilton, to talk about what that partnership looks like today and why Hilton continues to invest in it, even as Tennessee's economy and workforce needs have changed over the past decade and a half. Thomas walks through the full arc of Hilton's student investment: job shadow days that expose students to careers across the company, a ten-week internship program open to every function, and Launch, an early-talent program that moves recent graduates into entry-level roles at Hilton. Along the way, students build durable skills, professional networks, and a clearer picture of what's possible, well before they ever apply for a job. The conversation also turns to what students should be thinking about as they weigh their next steps: culture, professional development, and long-term stability alongside pay. For Hilton, that means treating students not as future hires to develop someday, but as talent worth investing in now, a mindset that connects directly to tnAchieves' work building pathways from high school to college to career.