The MBA internship is a cornerstone piece of the graduate experience. It’s an opportunity to test out concepts learned in class practicum, take ownership of a project from start to finish, make meaningful recommendations the company can implement, and create lasting relationships with professionals in my chosen field. I had been planning for my internship from the day I started looking at MBA programs and had worked hard preparing for it during the first year of my program, so naturally, my expectations for my experience were quite high.
Going into my internship, I was looking for an opportunity to learn from experts and build my skill set in strategy, marketing, and analytics. I wanted the chance to prove I had what it takes to lead a cross-functional team to complete a project that would have a lasting impact and drive profitability. I wanted mentoring and coaching, but also the space and autonomy to set my course, develop a timeline for critical milestones, and track my progress.
At the start of my internship, I was thrown into the ever-changing and fast-paced world of start-up eCommerce consulting firm, BOLD Strategies. I was welcomed to the team and given an overview of the project, before the CEO was called away to meet with a new client. I was on my own to determine the critical path, build out my team, and create the timeline for the next 12 weeks.
My task was to identify and standardize the core eCommerce processes for BOLD’s client journey. My goals were to decentralize critical industry knowledge from the executive leadership team to the rest of the company, create more efficiencies in client engagement, streamline the onboarding of new staff and communicate our services consistently to prospects. My path to do so would bring me into direct contact with nearly all of BOLD’s 27 employees worldwide. I would also be doing so virtually, because due to COVID, everyone was working remote.
During that first week, I read every piece of marketing literature I could get my hands on. I signed up for LinkedIn trainings on two different software programs I would use regularly over the summer. I set up coffee chats with nearly every employee at the company and sat in on a dozen customer meetings. I arranged for weekly check ins with my CEO to give status updates and make sure I was on the right track. Once I had my strategy in place, I jumped right in.
The BOLD team is an amazing group of crazy-smart, energetic, figure-it-out masters who were endlessly kind and helpful during my time with them. That said, there were still challenges along the way. First, I had no prior eCommerce understanding outside of being an avid Amazon shopper. Some of my prior classes had touched on it, but in large part, this was virgin territory for me. Second, I noticed right away that different staff members had different ways of doing similar tasks. This made figuring out the core processes much more challenging and figuring out the right way to standardize even more so. There was also a big difference in how they were doing things versus how leadership felt they should be doing things. Finally, the terminology they used varied as well, so I needed to standardize a common way of communicating between staff and clients, so there would be less confusion across the board.
At the end of my 12 weeks, I had successfully road mapped 20 core processes along the client journey from lead development to platform build-out to campaign strategy and tracking. I had conducted over 100 interviews with staff and joined over 30 client meetings. I created dozens of branded templates and tools for client meetings and developed a plan to roll out the standardized processes to staff over the next 6 months.
In addition to the applicable skills I gained, there were a few key take-aways that I believe will help me indefinitely as I move forward in my career. Being an expert at “Figure it out” is just as valuable as being an expert in your subject matter. The best employees are always learning, always trying new things, always looking to improve.
Being an expert at “Figure it out” is just as valuable as being an expert in your subject matter.
Second, employees need to see the view from the top. It is critical for staff at all levels to understand how their role effects others’ and how jointly, we all work together to achieve our goals. Third, standardization of core processes helps staff focus on the things that can’t be automated – like critical thinking, research-based insights, and creative design. By giving them the tools they need to streamline the more redundant parts of their job, we are freeing up valuable hours to spend creating real, measurable value.
My internship with BOLD Strategies helped me gain valuable insight into a new, exciting industry and connected me with some pretty brilliant people along the way. I had the autonomy to run my project and the coaching to make push me to think beyond my first impressions and really challenge the status quo. My processes were implemented and the roll out began during the last week of my internship. It was amazing to hear how impactful my work was and I am incredibly grateful for the time I spent working with BOLD Strategies.
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