Meet Kristen Olson
I think my job at General Mills is pretty cool. But when I met Kristen Olson during my first few weeks on the job I quickly learned she’s got a great gig too. I interviewed Kristen to find out more about her and her role.
What’s your job title?
Olson: I’m a digital food editor in the Betty Crocker Kitchens.
Describe your typical day.
Olson: My typical day is never typical. Some days I come in, throw on a chef coat and spend the day creating recipes. Other days I’m scouring menus, cookbooks and the Internet for new trends and recipe inspiration. Or, I work with our website and social media teams to answer consumer questions and comments, or host how-to cooking videos for our websites.
How long have you worked for General Mills? How did you get started?
Olson: I’ve been at General Mills for about four years. I got my start working as an intern in the Betty Crocker Kitchens. It was a fabulous experience! I had the chance to work with many different teams, doing everything from assisting with food styling and recipe development to recipe testing and editing. After an extended internship, I was hired as a full-time food editor and never looked back!
What’s the most memorable project you’ve worked on?
Olson: The Betty 10 Red Hot Holiday Trends was an awesome project to work on. We created a holiday campaign that featured the top 10 holiday food trends as well as recipes and videos. I was the host in the videos and also got to represent Betty Crocker in public relations appearances. I even did a live cooking segment on the TV show “The Talk.” The Red Hot Holiday Trends project really showed the power of food and recipe ideas, and of Betty Crocker as a food media brand.
What’s the best part of your job?
Olson: The variety! I’m always working on fun new projects. I especially love working on producing and hosting food and recipe videos.
If you didn’t work at General Mills, what other job would you have?
Olson: I’ve been a hobby bee-keeper for about four years now, and I really enjoy it. So, I would love to be a full-time bee-keeper.
Editor’s note: You can hear from Kristen and see her in action in this video for Betty Crocker.
