The Past, Present & Future of Detroit
When you think of Detroit, what are the first images that come to mind?
If you are anything like I used to be, you probably think of desolation and despair, crushed dreams and hopelessness, urban ruins and the once thriving, now fragile American auto-industry. I can assure you that these images were going through my mind as I was heading into Detroit at the start of my internship this past summer.
First, a little background on how I ended up with an internship in Detroit. Last April, it started to hit me that all my friends and classmates from my school (Bowdoin College) had found internships for the summer. Most of them were in NYC, Boston, Washington, or LA. These cities were not for me. It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just that I couldn’t see myself thriving in a city where I wouldn’t have an immediate impact. As I was searching through pages and pages of possible internships on my college’s career planning website, one position struck me that was different than the rest: an internship at Quicken Loans in downtown Detroit, Michigan.
Detroit was not an entirely foreign concept to me as I had grown up visiting family members who live less than 30 minutes outside of the city. Without much hesitation, I applied to the internship, knowing that I needed somewhere to work during the summer. After applying to several internship programs at investment banks, mutual funds, and consulting groups, I received a phone call from a “313” number. I didn’t know where the call was coming from, so as all college students do, I just let it ring and ring, figuring if it was important, the person would leave a voicemail message. It turns out that it was a recruiter from Quicken Loans calling to inform me that I had been selected for a first round phone interview.
I called back immediately to schedule the interview, as I started to become increasingly excited about the prospect of being accepted for an internship and ending my search process. About 3 weeks and 2 interviews later, I received a call from Quicken Loans telling me that I had been accepted for an intern position with the Vice President of Mortgage Banking. I got the news while I was at a track meet, and I started to tell my friends that I would be in Detroit for the summer. It seemed that everyone reacted the same way with something along these lines: “Oh! That city is dead!,” “You are going to get hurt or shot!,” or my favorite “There is nothing in Detroit but ruins, and it is never coming back; why are you going there?”
“Oh! That city is dead!”
These comments were my first real experience with such negativity towards Detroit. When I was growing up, my father would refer to the city as “the economic crater formerly known as Detroit,” but I knew that he was just trying to evoke a reaction from my mother who grew up near the city. The attitude of my peers made me feel even more strongly about my decision to accept the internship in Detroit. The feeling of fighting and rooting for the underdog has always been appealing to me, as it has been throughout American pop culture. Look at films like Rudy, the Rocky series, Miracle, or even the Silver Linings Playbook. They are all about people that were, according to the numbers and books, not supposed to succeed or even come close to it, but yet these stories draw people in and are enjoyed by almost anyone for that reason. I guess that doesn’t translate to real life for many people. I saw Detroit as the underdog star in one of these films. The city had been written off by everyone, and according to the news, was never coming back and should be bulldozed and turned into farmland.
I would be lying if I said that these opinions weren’t going through my head as I drove into Detroit for the first day of my internship. What I found in Detroit was totally different than anything else I had ever been apart of in my life. I quickly realized this city wasn’t downtrodden, the people didn’t mope around or sulk, they weren’t sorry for themselves, and there was not any negativity. Instead, everyone and everything was focused on possibilities for the future, optimism, and hope for the opportunity to revive the city. It felt like a renaissance, a once in a lifetime chance to reshape a once great American city.
What we contributed actually mattered and made a difference.
I could not have asked for a better internship experience than the one that Quicken Loans set up for my fellow interns and myself. Right from the outset, it was clear that as interns we were not going to be simply doing menial tasks. Instead, we were going to learn what it actually meant to live, work, and play in Detroit. My team leader gave me actual responsibilities and trusted me with important projects and initiatives, and even brought me along to important meetings. What we contributed actually mattered and made a difference. As interns, we could take risks and try new things. The company cherishes this, and appreciates the new perspectives that interns bring to the table. I left Quicken Loans each day feeling like I had actually made an impact on the city.
Throughout the summer, the internship program took us to Ford Field, the new Shinola factory store, the world-class Detroit Institute of Arts, a tour throughout the city with a guide from the Detroit Experience Factory, Detroit River Days, Detroit Tigers baseball games, Detroit City FC soccer games, networking events with executives from around the city, and several intern-only evening events. We even spent a full day with the founder, Dan Gilbert, and the CEO, Bill Emerson. Dan G and Bill took the time to teach interns the ISMs values and culture of the company. The ISMs are the 19 principles that the team members live by at Quicken Loans. A few examples are: “Every Client. Every Time. No Exceptions. No Excuses,” “Innovation is rewarded. Execution is worshipped,” and “Numbers and money follow, they do not lead.” Bill gave every intern his personal cellphone number as a way to stress the importance of an ISM (“Responding with a sense of urgency is the ante to play.”) He felt so strongly about returning phone calls and emails to clients, he said he would return them for us if we were unable to within 24 hours.
“Within Detroit you get this unique opportunity to play a role in making history — the revival of a great American city.”
In cities like New York City and San Francisco, you are one of several million people, but in Detroit, you can stand out as a young person, become known, and have a large impact on the city itself. A former Venture for America fellow named Kwaku Osei-Kwarten that I met in Detroit, who now works as an Executive Associate to Dan Gilbert, told me: “Detroit is hands down the biggest opportunity in the US right now and for the foreseeable future. People who come here have the chance to have a positive impact I am not sure they could have anywhere else in the nation. Fresh from bankruptcy, there is truly nowhere to go but up and this is already happening. Within Detroit you get this unique opportunity to play a role in making history — the revival of a great American city.”
There are examples of the city’s recovery all over the place. The construction of a new hockey arena and entertainment district, Shinola Watch Factory, new restaurants, bars, and coffee shops, and people enjoying Campus Martius (a centrally located park in the Business District of the city that offers daily live music in the summer, yoga, a restaurant, beach bar, and ice skating in the winter). Artists are starting to take note of the revival of the city. The Galapagos Art Space, formerly located in Brooklyn, picked up and left for Detroit. They purchased several buildings and have big plans for their new space. In no other city would they be able to do this.
When speaking with Tony Nuckolls, Vice President of Training and Leadership Development at Quicken Loans, he told me that “Detroit is fertile soil, it’s an opportunity to pursue your dreams and career aspirations at an accelerated pace compared to more populated and developed cities. Detroit is still ripe to be shaped.” Tony has been with Quicken Loans for 20 years, and started well before Dan Gilbert decided to move the company from the suburbs to the city — at a time when everyone thought the move was crazy.
“There has been a transformation in the way people think and the circumstances in which they live, work, and play.”
Tony continued, “The Detroit of the past was a brawn economy; people worked by hand, and manual labor was the backbone of the middle class: a hard day’s work for a hard day’s pay. Now the work force is enlightened and having a greater level of education. There has been a transformation in the way people think and the circumstances in which they live, work, and play. The thoughts, feelings and actions people have taken for our city has created a ton of positive momentum. With the new unity of the city and the suburbs due to the M1 Rail, we are going to see a greater connectivity and collective action and accelerated development of the whole city.”
One aspect of Detroit that has helped the revival is the return of innovation. Several companies such as Bizdom (Dan Gilbert-backed accelerator), Detroit Venture Partners (venture capital), and Grand Circus (entrepreneurial education and resources), are helping entrepreneurs and startups flourish and succeed. Young people are beginning to choose Detroit as the place they bring their ideas and creations to fruition. Jake Cohen, a Partner at Detroit Venture Partners, told me in a conversation that “in a sense, the city itself is a startup, but it has the benefit of having a long heritage of success and one of the best ‘brands’ in the world.” “In Detroit,” Jake said, “you feel like an entrepreneur in your daily life — from checking out new restaurants, to volunteering in the community, or buying a new house or apartment — you feel like you are part of a movement to improve the world around you.”
Sam Hamburger, a recent graduate of the University of Michigan, moved downtown following his graduation to work for Bedrock Real Estate Services, Dan Gilbert’s real estate arm. He says: “There is no better place for young people to have an impact. It is a big fish, small sea mentality, and in no other city can you get the exposure, meet the people that you can meet, and if you are a hard working person find success so quickly.”
We hope for better things; it shall rise from the ashes.
Unfortunately, there still are some areas of the city that are not seeing a revival. In these places, people struggle day in and day out to make ends meet. Whereas critics from the outside say that the gap between these two worlds of Detroit will continue to grow, I see the opportunity to help these people and fix the problems they face. Many of my peers talk about wanting to have an impact in their career, and I cannot think of anywhere else where you can have as big of an impact, close the digital divide, and improve the post-volatile racial climate.
One ironic thing about Detroit is that its motto is Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus: We hope for better things; it shall rise from the ashes. This refers to a time when Detroit literally burned down in the early 1800s; however, this motto is relevant now more than ever. I knew that it was a little different to spend the summer in Detroit. None of my friends would have ever thought about doing this as they wanted to be in Manhattan, LA, and Boston at panache, brand name organizations, but I accepted the challenge, and for that I am forever grateful.
“Those who stay will be champions!”
What is possible for Detroit’s future? Could Detroit become one of the most densely populated cities? Could this become the greatest extreme home makeover project in the US? Could the city get its finances together post-bankruptcy to have a well-run government that is efficient and effective at policing, educating, enlightening and restoring its image? The city is full of “what ifs”? This is the dream of Detroit. I expect it will happen!
When legendary football coach Bo Schembechler began his twenty year tenure at the University of Michigan, he proclaimed “those who stay will be champions!” I could say the same for Detroit. Those who stay and come to the city to live, work, and play will be champions of change.
In the great poet Robert Frost’s poem The Road Not Taken, he writes: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I — I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” This message resonates well for me as I have experienced the opportunities made possible in Detroit and I encourage everyone to experience the former heart of the “Arsenal of Democracy,” as its best days are still yet to come. The ones who accept the challenges of Detroit are the ones that will benefit greatly and be forever transformed, just as I was not so long ago.
