This morning as I head off to a Tufts board meeting for our Center and an afternoon of teaching, I realized that I'm in week 11 of a 13-week semester, and it's time to start working on the fall semester.
Every semester, 6 companies get what most marketing agencies won't deliver:
A dedicated team of five or six Tufts junior, senior and grad students who work directly with the CEO or VP of Marketing every single week for 13 weeks and hand over a complete, fully documented tactical marketing plan at the end of it.
That's not a student project. That's a consulting engagement!
And, as happens twice a year, I need six companies for the syllabus going out on June 1st.
Here's exactly how it works.
Two months before the semester begins, I select six companies. The CEO or VP of Marketing from each company defines their specific marketing objectives — what they need, what they're trying to achieve, what revenue outcomes matter. Those objectives go directly into the syllabus that my students see on Day One. From that point forward, the students work for you to specific objectives of lead gen, inbound and outbound tactics and whatever it is you need for your 2027 marketing campaign.
They formally meet with you on Week 3 for 3 hours and then every week — 30 to 45 minutes — your team meets with the students. You answer questions. They report progress. You course-correct them just like you would any internal team or outside agency.
At the end of 13 weeks, they present to you in a 90 minute detailed and formal presentation what their recommendations are along with a fully documented marketing plan. Personas. Value propositions. SEO strategy. Content plan. Social campaigns. Competitive analysis. Budgets. Tactical recommendations. Whatever you and they have agreed to as objectives.
And here's the part that usually gets people's attention: 40% of the student team's grade is determined by you. You assess how well they met your objectives. That means my students are motivated in ways that are very different from a traditional classroom.
Who are the students?
Tufts seniors, juniors plus a few grad students from our Management in Engineering masters program, all HubSpot Inbound Marketing certified before the first class. They use AI tools, HubSpot, primary and secondary research, and they're trained in presentation skills, persona development, pricing analysis, and campaign construction by a roster of guest lecturers all of whom are alums of this course who now work at companies like Fidelity, ASICS, Emerson Health, Meta, X or who have gone on to venture capital. PE and media careers.
These aren't kids doing homework. They're consultants in training, and the best of them are ready to work.
What kinds of companies fit?
We've worked with companies ranging from healthcare practices to SaaS platforms to nonprofits to med and pharma tech, to oil and gas to food and beverages and everything in between. B2B, B2C, early stage, but established companies. We can do pre-revenue but not concept level startups since typically there is not enough to fill 13 weeks of content. What matters is that you have real marketing objectives you need addressed, and that your CEO or VP of Marketing can commit to weekly 30-45 minute check-ins with the team.
In previous semesters, several students have ended up in internships or full-time roles with their project companies. You're not just getting a marketing plan — you're often previewing your next hire.
The ask is simple.
If you — or someone you know — runs a company with genuine marketing challenges and the willingness to invest about an hour a week to work directly with a talented student team, I'd love to talk. The syllabus goes to students on June 1st, which means I need companies confirmed well before that.
Reach out to me directly. Email me at jack.derby@tufts.edu or text me at 617-504-4222. I'll set up a 20-minute call, walk you through the structure, and we can figure out quickly if it's the right fit.
Six spots. Real work. Real results.
Let's talk.
— Jack
Jack Derby is Managing Partner of Derby Management and founder of the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts University, where he has been teaching ENT 105: Marketing since the course's founding. Over 100 of his alums work at HubSpot alone.
