Below are three different examples of Boss Lady internships that members of our WIB E-Board experienced this past summer. Find out what the female working business world is like!
1. Haley Chupka- Senior Operations & Information Management Major
This past summer, I had the pleasure of interning on the Military Engines Spare Parts Team for the Materials Management & Logistics (MM&L) Internship at Pratt & Whitney. It was an incredible experience where I was able to learn a lot about the company, make connections, and develop my skill set. My work mainly consisted of coordinating inventory movements for individual part numbers that were in danger of going "cold", or inactive, meaning the part has not been received by a Pratt & Whitney plant from a supplier in two years. When a part goes cold, about $25,000 in reboot costs go towards reactivating the part––mainly through inspections that must be conducted as well as major tooling. I worked in multiple programs to move scheduled inventory receipts to earlier dates to avoid these reboot costs, and was able to save the company over $3 million in doing this. I had other smaller projects that mainly focused on increasing efficiency and productivity in different work groups throughout my organization.
What drew me to Pratt & Whitney was their incredible culture and sustainability initiatives. As an aerospace engineering company, they have a significant impact on the environment. They have specific goals that they have advertised to be met by 2020, such as reduction of greenhouse gasses, hazardous waste, and water consumption by 2-5%, and to recycle 90% of industrial process waste. This was important to me because I am passionate about sustainability, and I was looking for a company that shares similar values to mine. In regards to their culture––a company can boast about having a great culture all they want, but, at Pratt, they really do have one. They value collaboration, communication, knowledge sharing, standardization, and developing/taking care of their people. Pratt immediately felt like home to me, and I took advantage of all of the opportunities that came my way. As an intern, you are "at the bottom of the totem pole," but this is a great thing because you have a fresh start and a new opportunity to establish yourself in a new environment. Interns are provided with all of the resources needed in order to succeed, but it is up to them to decide what they will make of their time and themselves during their time there.
I am ecstatic to be returning to Pratt & Whitney full-time after graduation as a Materials Management Development Program (MMDP) Associate. During this program, I will rotate through three different areas of materials: Supply Planning, Delivery Execution, and Demand Management. This program is two years long, consisting of four rotations through each of the areas previously mentioned. I can't wait to further develop myself and my career at this company!
2. Maria Jara- Junior Marketing Major
This past summer I was a buying intern at The TJX Companies at their global headquarters in Framingham, MA. I applied for their Merchandising Development Program in the fall of my sophomore year. I had always been interested in fashion and have always wanted to work in retail, so I felt like it was worth a shot to apply for an internship that encompasses both of those things!
Needless to say, I was so excited when I was offered the internship! On my first day at the company, I was inspired and amazed by the friendly culture, the drive to succeed, and the overall fun that everyone seemed to be having. During my summer with TJX, I worked on a team of seven buyers who worked in the men’s division with hats, wallets, belts, tech and family gifts. I was exposed to such diverse aspects of the company and I absolutely loved how the work I was given was meaningful and had an actual impact on daily business. I was able to develop hard skills like using various buying software and reading ladder plans, but I was also able to develop many soft skills like adjusting to work life balance and public speaking! I’m pleased to say that I will be returning to TJX next summer as a Planning and Allocation intern!
3. Julia Gleim- Sophomore Marketing Major
This past summer I interned at Applause, where I was a member of the Community Management Team. I remember talking to sophomores who had internships after their freshman year and being amazed that freshmen could even get these opportunities. I was determined to put myself out there in hopes that I could also get an internship and begin my journey to a career in the business world!
A little background on the company I worked for, Applause is a software company that has its own platform called uTest. UTest is a software testing company that other companies post job opportunities to test new technologies before them launching it. When a company is unable to acquire enough testers that fit their needs, they contact my department, Community Management. As a member of the Community Management team, I am tasked to recruit these specific types of “testers,” whether that be based on their accent for voice testing, location for on-site testing, or interests such as football for specific types of testing. It was my responsibility to post facebook ads, contact people directly, and create job boards in order to recruit these different types of “testers”. After completing my summer internship I was asked to work remotely at school and I could not pass up this offer! When I got to school I quickly realized that working and doing my school work was too much for me, so I requested to receive credits for my work so I could drop a class. My request was approved and the process was very easy. I have loved every aspect of working for Applause, and I look forward to continuing to learn and grow while working there!
As you can see, the opportunities out there are endless! Feel free to reach out to Haley, Maria, or Julia with any questions about their experiences.