In this “Internship Experience” blog post series, we will be featuring the profile and thoughts of our students from Syracuse University’s Martin J. Whitman School of Management as they reflect on their internship experience over the last year.
Name: Christopher Lorenz
Graduation Year: 2022
Majors: Supply Chain Management / Finance
Hometown: Pequannock, NJ
Internship Company/Title: DISH Network – Inventory Management Intern
Describe your position and some of your daily tasks?
My position was in the In-Home Services Division of DISH, specifically with the On-Tech Smart Home Services Inventory team. Throughout the 10-week program, I was assigned a project focused on the improvement of the inventory management and forecasting processes for third-party partners, who support DISH’s internal operations. Throughout this project, I developed a dashboard to help give the inventory team better insights into third-party inventory levels, as well as some forecast modeling.
How did you land your internship?
I found the opportunity through Syracuse University’s Handshake job board. I applied and then created a video cover letter, a short two-minute video answering a few questions. Following this, I completed a phone interview, a quantitative assessment and finally a virtual interview with a hiring manager before receiving my offer in mid-March.
What did you learn from your internship experience?
On the technical side, I learned a lot about the world of data analytics and gained experience with some programs, such as Tableau. I also learned a lot about the importance of soft skills and building relationships. But by far the most important thing I learned was how important critical thinking is in the real world. Problems don’t have a set solution and you may not have all the data to reach your desired outcome.
Has your experience changed your plans or career choice when you leave college?
My internship helped me to find an area I was interested in. I chose to study supply chain due to a diverse amount of career options and data analytics is certainly one I am more interested in.
How will your internship experience help you after graduation?
The experience will help a lot. I was able to persevere through early challenges to succeed in my project in the end, which will make me more confident in challenging situations in the future.
How has the Whitman School prepared you for your internship?
Whitman has helped me to prepare in many ways. My experience using R in BUA 345 helped me a lot to try new modeling techniques to see what worked best. SCM 403 also provided me with a wealth of analytical knowledge that was very helpful in my internship.
What did you enjoy most about your experience?
My internship was a great experience and I think what I enjoyed the most was the welcoming environment. My team was extremely helpful and supportive throughout the whole internship, and my managers (up to the department’s senior vice president) all made time to sit down with me and discuss my experience and give advice. As well, the intern class was super close, and we spent a lot of time together outside of work exploring Denver and the surrounding areas.
Do you have any advice for students who are looking for an internship?
Persevere through rejection. I applied to internships for six months before receiving an offer. If you face rejection, use it as a lesson to improve for the future. The process can be scary at first if you’re like me and don’t know how to go about it, but over time you can succeed if you are willing to learn from mistakes.
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