Day 16 (6/18/18)

-Worked on creating an over view display for the various applications

-Met with team to discuss progress

-Attended a GIT presentation

A Month in Brazil – Fisher Global Projects Program


 

 

 

 

For the month of May, me and 5 other Fisher students traveled to Sao Paulo, Brazil to intern there for 4 weeks. We consulted for the manufacturing and packaging company, Greif. We worked on our project throughout the week, doing any research we needed, and spent our weekends traveling and exploring other parts of Brazil.

Everyone always says traveling abroad will change you, make you more open minded, and make you learn more about yourself. With this being my first time traveling abroad, I listened to everything people told me, but did not truly grasp how much would change until this project was over. This trip made me more understanding and opened my eyes to how different other cultures across the world are. I developed not only a deeper understanding of the culture in brazil, but a strong desire to travel more and experience other cultures out there. I truly realized how privileged we are in the U.S in regards to many things; most of us can drink the water without worrying about getting sick, we don’t have to worry as much about plumbing issues, mosquito viruses, or pick pocketing, and fuel shortages are not as big of a problem. Finally traveling abroad not only allowed me to expand my horizons internationally, but made me more appreciative of what we have. This made me take a step back and evaluate my life at home and my attitude towards certain things and showed me how independent I can be.

The key aspect of this trip that really changed my views were the people we met. I never would have expected to have been so welcomed into a different country, the way we were treated was outstanding and everyone made us feel at home. Brazil stresses personal relationships before business a lot, all of us knew this before we arrived but we would have never guessed how open they would be with us. Our coworkers not only helped us tremendously with any questions we had, but they spent time with us comparing cultures and languages and took us out to explore the city. They invited us to eat with them almost everyday at lunch and made sure to tell us about any plans they may have had after work. They not only gave us a deeper level of understanding the Brazilian culture, but mutually benefited from our conversations and learned about the U.S. On top of our coworkers, we were paired with the organization Campus Brazil that also spent quality time with us. We not only met them for required events, but they even reached out to us to grab dinner or coffee and just chat multiple times. For this being my first time traveling abroad, everyone we met and their friendliness really made everything less scary.

The biggest culture shock of this trip was the language barrier. It didn’t sink in how difficult it would be to communicate until we arrived and were on our own. Luckily we had one person in our group that knew a decent amount of Portuguese and ended up being our savior throughout the month. For the rest of us, things were not always easy. Majority of workers there were patient with us and understanding, but not living in a touristy area meant that no one spoke English and they did not expect to have to deal with so many of us at once. There were many times where trying to communicate was difficult, and a couple times where it was nearly impossible and we failed. “Im sorry” was one of the first phrases we learned, and we used it religiously. We all felt rude and helpless trying to order food or communicating with anyone since we were in their country and didn’t know their language. A major lesson I learned from this trip was that next time I travel I will spend time learning the language before I go. I now understand and feel for those who come to the U.S and don’t know English yet, especially since workers and people here are less understanding and patient in regards to the language barrier.

One last thing that not only I, but everyone else, loved and learned from was the independence. We were truly alone in a foreign country. While we had Campus Brazil and other people we could reach out to for help, we truly were on our own to figure things out. For me this was only my second time flying and first time flying alone, which may have been the scariest part of the trip for me. My first 2 flights were both canceled and I had to find other arrangements in a short period of time. While all of this was happening I was in a slight panic, but learning to deal with this on my own and handle what was thrown at me gave me the confidence to fly alone in the future. The independence we were given was enjoyable but scary at times. Since we were traveling alone we did not always know where the more dangerous areas were and where we should stay away from, and since we were not traveling to major touristy areas we stood out and were easily targeted as Americans. Where as nothing bad happened to us, we learned to really keep an eye out for ourselves and other group members. The independence really taught us to be more aware of our surroundings.

Everything I learned from this trip will benefit me in any way imaginable. I was finally able to complete my personal goal of traveling abroad and experiencing a new culture. This trip gave me more personal goals of traveling to different places and making myself more open to trying new things and going out of my comfort zone. This project gave me the perfect mix of personal and professional benefits. It allowed me to travel and experience another culture while working and experience business internationally. I got to experience first hand how business works in another culture and setting, which is more experience than I ever saw myself getting. It allowed me to network my colleagues and gave me skills that I will forever use.While this trip made me grow personally, professionally, and culturally, it gave me the desire to keep traveling and keep growing.

 

 

London Nonprofit Global Projects Program

My STEP Signature Project was through the Fisher College of Business Global Nonprofit Projects Program in the United Kingdom. We were paired with the nonprofit organizations Soles4Souls as a marketing consulting team to try and increase their prevalence in the United Kingdom. We participated in a class before the two-week trip to London to learn about consulting internationally, and we reached out to over 300 organizations to try and create partnerships. While in the UK, we followed up with 5 of the businesses we contacted to strengthen relationships with Soles4Souls as well as create a new partnership with one of the biggest translation companies in the world.

What I learned most while on my project was the value of bringing a kind and valuable attitude to the world. There were so many interactions I had that a positive attitude was able to brighten the day and mindset of either myself or the people I was talking to. Whether I was talking in a business environment or to random people, a positive attitude could make such a difference. Just by displaying a smile and going out of my way to ask others about themselves, I was able to learn so much about their lives or perspective, and if nothing else, have a really enjoyable conversation that I will never forget. There were definitely times throughout the trip that I was nervous to randomly start conversation and felt very out of my comfort zone. Any time I just ignored that nervousness though, it always turned out well and I regretted each time that I didn’t. I learned that I have the power to brighten others’ days and teach the world something through these little conversations as well as continually learn myself. I hope to bring back this friendly nature to the States and try to spread that positivity.

The key aspects that shaped my transformation were without a doubt the people I met. The first thing that comes to mind is a man named Garby. He was the owner of a cheese shop that I went to. I was his last customer for the day, so I was able to sit and chat with him for a while. The concept of his shop is that he has a ton of cheeses, and you tell him what flavors you like, and he makes you a sandwich of cheese and possibly some meats he thinks you’ll love. He will make you take a bite of the sandwich in front of him first, and if he doesn’t see an immediate smile of satisfaction, he gives it to you for free. This man had such a passion for cheese and making people happy through it that it was actually inspiring. Not only was my sandwich incredible, but his positive energy made my day. He really taught me how important it is to find what you care about in life and follow it, let it make you happy. He also said that my positive energy and inquisitiveness made his day, even gave me a discount because of it! I’ll remember this conversation forever and am so glad I made the time to have it.

Another impactful interaction was with a girl in my consulting group. She started off being extremely shy, but by the end of the trip I came to learn how cool and funny she was. She would always have a clever and humorous comment for every situation, it just took her getting comfortable enough to say them. She also is unbelievably talented with photography and videography. The pictures and videos she had been quietly taking were unbelievable and truly captured the essence of the entire trip. I’d like to think that some of my inclusiveness made her feel a bit more comfortable, but either way I’m just happy I got to know her better. It reminded me how many people and stories are out there that could completely blow your mind but are just often not told or overlooked. It’s so easy to try and give more attention to these people and these talents, and if everyone did that a bit more often, the world would be a much better place.

One of my favorite experiences that really shaped my understanding of British culture and the power of conversation was the Chelsea Futbol game. This game was absolutely electric, and the crowd was even better. In the Chelsea Stadium, race, gender, ethnicity, and anything else was irrelevant. The only thing that mattered was what team you were cheering for, and if it was the same team, you were family. People were so nice throughout the game and I learned most about the culture and dynamic of the United Kingdom from a conversation with two older gentlemen after the game. Myself and a couple of other people on the project talked to them for hours and it was absolutely fascinating. They even offered to give a donation to Soles4Souls after hearing about our project. This conversation further educated me on how much you can learn from others, and how showing that initial kindness just spreads the good in the world, as we saw with their donation offer. It also taught me that the world is a lot smaller than we think if a simple sports game could connect people so deeply.

Finally, the attitude that changed me wasn’t always from a long meaningful conversation or a long period of getting to know someone, a lot of times, it was the small interactions that made the biggest difference. It was all the Chelsea fans after the soccer game, or the street vendor who gave me a free bracelet, or the woman on the Tube who asked if I was okay after getting squished by the doors. These little instances made my day and put me in a completely better mood for it. It was the thought that people had my back even in a foreign country. This mindset then caused me to go out and do the same and just created a butterfly effect. Little instances and spreading happiness truly make the world a better place, and while I did know this before, I think experiencing this in a place that I was vulnerable and confused reminded me how important this is to share to others who are vulnerable. It reminded me that the people who could really use a spark of happiness aren’t always the friends we surround ourselves with or people we come in daily contact. It may require us to step outside of our comfort zones to really reach the people who could use our help and happiness the most, wherever that may be.

This change is valuable because it will change how I choose to interact with people in every aspect of my life. I’m starting to see more value in talking to teachers, people at school and in my organizations, someone sitting next to me on the bus, recruiters, anyone. Again, I had seen the value before, but now that I have all the practice of doing that in a more vulnerable situation, I am no longer as scared to make the initial conversation starter with any of these people. I think the real test will be making time to do this. Making time for these conversations was easy while abroad because I wasn’t nearly as busy as I usually am, and their culture isn’t as busy as ours either. However, I think these genuine conversations and connections ultimately not only made my life more enjoyable and me a better person, but I think especially in the business setting, people were a lot more appreciative of me and willing to go out of their way for me as well. I think a lot of times, people just really need a friendly face and a positive attitude. This trip has taught me that something as simple as that goes so far, and I hope to bring that positivity back with me into all avenues of my life.

Job Shadowing at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Parkwest Medical Center

Emily Malsch

STEP Reflection

Project: Internship

 

For my STEP signature project, I travelled to Memphis, Tennessee to shadow a Physician Assistant at the world-renowned St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Then, I continued to Knoxville, Tennessee where I job shadowed a doctor at Parkwest Medical Center. I was alongside a healthcare professional each day and observed many patients undergoing care. I got to experience what it is like to work in a medical setting, interact with patients, and I learned a lot about medicine and care-giving. Both experiences were extremely valuable, informational, and enriching to my current education at OSU.

This project was transformational in my understanding of myself and my views of the world. I think it is easy to decide your career path when you come to college without much thought of why you want to do it. I’ve always wanted to pursue a career in the medical field, but I never stopped to reflect on why I wanted to do this. This experience reassured me that I picked the right career path and reminded me why I wanted to join the medical field in the first place. I think this experience was essential to me regaining confidence that I picked the right career path; I understand better now that medicine is where I belong. Shadowing at St. Jude’s has also transformed some of my ideas of health care in the U.S. I have taken a couple classes at Ohio State that focused on U.S. health care and the health care of other countries, and I had formed some ideas from what I learned. But, experiencing health care in a hospital that doesn’t ever charge their patients for care truly changed my point of view. Learning about something and experiencing it first-hand are two completely different things, and this experience has truly opened my eyes to the issues of U.S. health care.

Both of these experiences in my project pushed me out of my comfort zone; I am an inherently shy person and a lot of health care is working with people. Being in that environment where you collaborate with other health care professionals and interact with patients was eye-opening for me. While at first it was a little uncomfortable for me, by the second or third day I was talkative and open with both the patients and health care professionals. This transformation surprised me and showed me that maybe I am not as shy as I thought.

My self-reassurance that I picked the right career path developed through observing the interactions between patients and health care professionals. As I said before, this project reminded me of why I wanted to join the medical field in the first place. When you’re in school studying medicine, a lot of the classes focus on the science side of health care, and it is easy to forget about the people side of medicine. I think this was happening to me before I went on this trip. Seeing the health care professionals interact with patients and their parents was transformational for me. You don’t just fix the medical problem, you care for each individual, and your role in their life is life-changing. I saw the hope and love that came from families at St. Jude’s when the health care professionals visited them. I saw the relationships that have been formed between the doctors and the patients. Patients would smile when the PA came into the room and joke around with them; the parents would be open and thankful for the health care professionals. I was reminded that health care is about helping people and that is what I have always wanted to do.

Shadowing at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital transformed my ideas about health care because I had never been at a hospital that didn’t charge their patients for anything before I did this project. When I learned about health care in school, I thought that the U.S. had an okay health care system; although clearly flawed, I thought it was the only way health care could fit into our capitalist country. However, during this project, I saw so many patients that were unbelievably grateful for the care they were receiving, and it broke my heart because they were the lucky ones that were able to receive free health care. Their thankfulness and new hope through St. Jude’s really changed my mind; the interactions with the patients were crucial to my transformation. This experience of caring for people changed my views; it made me a more soft-hearted person. After seeing how health care worked at St. Jude’s, I believe that there is a way to reform our health care so that there is less disparity.

As mentioned above, job shadowing at both of these hospitals was transformative in my people skills. This project pushed me out of my comfort zone. I spent a lot of time with my assigned proctor, and I had to create small talk at times. This seems like a simple thing for most people, but I can struggle with making small talk with people. However, since I spent so much time with my assigned PA and doctor, I was forced to make small talk, and that was a big step for me. I am much more confident in my ability to talk with people I don’t know now. I also pushed myself out of my comfort zone by asking medical questions whenever I didn’t understand something. This was hard because usually I don’t like to admit that I don’t know something, but once I started asking questions, it was so beneficial. I also introduced myself to patients and families and chatted with them. This aspect really helped me make the most of this project, and now I am much more comfortable being more outgoing.

These transformations that came from my project are valuable to my academic, professional, and personal goals. This project reassured me that I have chosen the right major and the right future career path. I learned so much about how it is to work in the medical field and how a hospital operates, and I know that’s where I want to be. Since I am already in my second year, it is very important that I am confident that I am doing what I want to do, and this project has helped me do that. This experience has also given me a lot of information that will be useful in my future classes. I learned a lot about medicine, anatomy, microbiology, and hospital care. This is stuff I have learned a little bit about in school, and I will be learning more about in the next couple years, so it was good to be exposed to it now. My professional goals are to continue onto Physician Assistant school, and I believe that this experience will be crucial to my success. I am prepared for what the job of a PA looks like and will be more prepared for the schooling. Having this great experience will show schools that I am serious about and experienced in this field. Overall, this experience ended up being very beneficial to my academic, personal, and professional goals.

Canadian Parliamentary Internship (STEP Reflection)

Name: Kayla Wilson

Project: Canadian Parliamentary Internship Program

  1. For my STEP project, I participated in the Canadian Parliamentary Internship Program. For 5 weeks, I worked in the office of a Member of Parliament. I wrote speeches and statements for my MP to give in the house, compiled press releases, worked on constituency concerns, and attended legislative committee meetings.
  2. My perspective definitely changed during my time in Canada because I was fully immersed in not only a different country, but a unique political system. I was trusted with important government business and had to do things that actually impacted citizens. It gave me a broader view of how politics can be carried out because I was in the mix of something completely foreign to me. I also gained a lot of new skills that I would not have had the opportunity to learn anywhere else. I feel as though my time working in Parliament made me a better and more globally conscious person by not only putting me right in the middle of politics, but by giving me a lot of responsibility, as well. It was a time for personal growth and exploration of world issues and how leaders approach solving them.
  3. One of the most memorable and impactful experiences that I had while in Canada was my visit to the US Embassy and meeting the US Ambassador to Canada. My internship took place when the trade war began between the US and Canada, and our visit to the embassy was actually just a few hours after the tariffs had been announced. Hearing from real diplomats about this issue and how they see it playing out, as well as their vast experiences in other countries, really opened my eyes to politics on a new, global level. I like to think I had always been decently globally minded, but this experience really opened my eyes to all of the different people that were involved in global issues like this, and how they affected every person.                                                      A few weeks later, we had the opportunity to meet the US Ambassador to Canada. No one on the trip was particularly excited about this because she was not a career diplomat, and we assumed she would be under-qualified for the position. However, we were very surprised by not only her knowledge, but her openness and friendliness to our group. She invited us to her home for a Canada-US reception, and we got to interact with Canadian and American politicians. It was a truly transformational experience that opened my eyes to new perspectives after hearing from actual politicians. We were fortunate enough to hear about their individual work and experiences dealing with relations between the two countries, which is something that I would definitely not have experienced anywhere else.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Another aspect of this trip that was extremely transformational was my time in the actual office. They have be an immense amount of responsibility, which is something I would not have been trusted with in the US. I was able to directly influence the words and actions of my MP, allowing me to genuinely participate in Canadian politics. It was intimidating at first, but I soon realized I was gaining invaluable skills and networking with very important people. It was a life-changing opportunity, and I am so thankful that I was brave enough to dive in and get the full experience.
  4. I have always been passionate about creating positive change in our world, and when arriving at OSU I decided that politics were the best way for me to do so. This internship provided me with real, valuable experience that I can take to other jobs and apply in order to succeed. I now know how to better write political speeches and pieces, and I have experienced many government meetings and interactions. I feel as though I was introduced to so much that I hope to do in life, in just 5 weeks. I will take these skills and experiences to my government job in Columbus, graduate school, and future interviews and jobs and be able to begin further ahead than many of my peers. I will also value the connections I made and stay in touch in order to keep opportunities open. I know that my time in Canada will be invaluable during my future endeavors to create positive change.

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SOLO Internship

Brock Swenton

Internship

  1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project.

In May I took a Wilderness Emergency Medicine Technician class through SOLO academy. The course was spread out over 20 days, and it took place in Conway, New Hampshire. The completion of the course resulted in a 2-year certification as a WEMT, a 2-year AHA CPR certification, and a National Registry of Emergency Medical Technician certification.

 

  1. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project?

I now have a better appreciation for what goes into the modern medical process. Entering into my project I knew that I was interested in medicine, but I had zero to little knowledge of anything that actually occurs in the medical field. Throughout my project, I was able to interact with people that had varying paths and experience in life which I found very valuable as I am in a transitioning stage in my life.  Also, I now better appreciate teamwork and communication because without these two things, the safety of patients as well as providers are at risk.

 

  1. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you?

Part of my project was shadowing paramedics and doctors to learn about the medical process, and to better understand my responsibilities as a Wilderness EMT. While shadowing I was able to see how an Emergency Room runs from behind the scenes. I followed the doctors as they attempted to diagnose patients as well as the nurses as they ran triage processes to ensure that patients were taken care of in order of their priority of injury. While in the hospital, we had many disruptive patients as well as patients with potent conditions such as MRSA and Hepatitis. Luckily the nurses that admitted the patients into the ER were able to communicate to all other providers to avoid contamination and wear proper protection when dealing with these patients.

While in the Emergency room, there were many patients that needed to be transferred to better trauma centers that had surgeons on call. The nurses had to contact the receiving hospital as well as an ambulance service, and fully inform these two services about the patient’s condition and medications. Without this vital communication lives could have been lost in the transfer of care process. Additionally, while working on an ambulance, I saw another reason for great teamwork and communication, as the paramedic would delegate simple tasks to the EMT while he was performing more difficult skills. Both providers were needed to keep the patient stable and safe while in route to the hospital.

While performing a rescue of a patient in the White Mountains National Forest. I learned yet again why great communication is vital in the medical process. A group of about 20 rescuers joined myself as we were dispatched to a patient that was injured on a trail in the national forest. Primarily we had to communicate and figure out our transportation to the trailhead. Additionally, each person had to ensure they had proper supplies in case we would be out on the rescue for a very long time. Once at the trailhead, we had to figure out the best route of entry and communicate that to the entire team. After a 2 mile hike in we made contact with the patient, and immediately issued care to the patient treating every injury. Once the injuries were addressed communication of what was injured on the patient was communicated to the entire team, so we could look for signs and symptoms of the injury worsening along the carry out. We proceeded to load the patient into a litter (heavy duty sled with handles), and began the carryout on very treacherous terrain. This part of the rescue was by far the most dangerous and exemplified why communication and teamwork was vital. Call outs of rocks and roots were made, as there was no vision of the ground while carrying out, and communication was necessary when fatigue set in while carrying. Without proper communication, a more serious injury could have occurred to the rescuers, or further injury to the patient could have taken place. All in all this process took 5 hours, and this is all pre-hospital care!

Going into this project, I expected many college-aged individuals like myself to be taking this course, but upon arrival I was greeted by a very diverse group of age and experience. There were many military personnel aged from 25-35, older EMTs with lapsed certification, ski patrollers, and of course college aged individuals like myself. I found this very interesting, as they shared stories about the experiences; One man was an Everest guide who lived in Iceland and runs month long expeditions. One of the army personnel was part of an EOD task force, so he would share stories of defusing bombs. With the diversity of classmates, I realized that while pursuing medicine, I could use my knowledge in many different fields, not just a hospital setting. I also realized how early in life I am, and that the experience I gain now will help shape me into the great physician that I one day will become.

 

  1. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life?

This change is valuable to me because I now have a better understanding and appreciation to what I want to do as an occupation in the future. This experience offered me clarity and justification for the decisions I have made in the past to get to the point in life that I am in now. This transformation helped me understand that there is more to medicine than being in the classroom and learning, as the knowledge is useless if you can’t get the patient to the hospital. Interacting with patients and making them feel better really transformed me into realizing that there are many things to be grateful of everyday, and the feeling of making someone else’s day better is priceless.

Step Reflection (Fisher GPP)

Step Reflection

Ethan Shust

Project type: Internship

 

I used the Fisher Global Project Program for my step signature project. Through the GPP I went to Stockholm, Sweden for the month of May to work as a student consultant for BSH (Bosch and Siemens Home Appliances). We worked about 40 hours a week but we still managed to use our free time to explore many aspects of this new country.

 

Throughout the course of the project I noticed many transformations that included my understanding of myself, my assumptions, and my view of the world. Before completing this project, I thought I had a pretty good understanding of myself but I knew that I was conflicted about what career I wanted to pursue after college. I’m a marketing major but before this project I hadn’t been exposed firsthand experience of what someone in marketing would do after college. However, after completion of my STEP project I can confidently say that I am excited to pursue a career in marketing and I enjoy the day to day work. I can say this because our project at BSH had a heavy marketing focus and I found myself thoroughly enjoying all aspects of it. Before going on the project, I assumed that businesses would be ran very different in Sweden than in the United States. Throughout the course of the project I found this belief to be wrong, in fact working at BSH felt very similar to working in America. There were some differences, for example when proposing marketing tactics, we had to remember that what are considered ‘acceptable norms’ in Sweden were not the same as in America. In conclusion I now have understand that businesses are run very similarly around the world, and a factor in this may be because so many businesses operate on a global level. Finally, completing this Step project really transformed the way I see the world. This project was only my second time leaving the country (the first being in Japan for 8 days) and at the beginning of it I saw the world as a vast place with many different types of people and environments. This belief held true my first few days in Sweden, however, throughout the 4 weeks we got to know the Swedish people on a more personal level and it made me realize how similar we are at our core. This changed the way I saw the world because I now feel a stronger bond with people from all over the world and I understand that even though we may speak different languages or act different on the surface, on the inside we share common beliefs and morals, as we are all human beings living on the same planet.

 

For the transformations I explained above, there were key events, relationships, and activities during the project that lead to them. The transformation in my understanding of myself and my career I talked about came through working on marketing material every day but I experienced other self-transformations as well. Stockholm was a very large and busy city, one day I decided to go on a run through the streets and during my run I realized how much I liked living in this new place and I really enjoyed how busy and active it was all the time. Throughout the stay I noticed myself begin to try many new things and branch out more than I usually do. I think knowing that my time in the country was limited pressured to make the most of every day and take advantage of every opportunity which in return transformed how I acted and looked at life.

The relationship that had the biggest impact on me was our relationship with our advisor at BSH, Tilda. From the start Tilda was very welcoming and helpful to us, but as the trip went on she made it clear that she not only cared about the work we were doing, but also about our experience in Sweden. She advised us on many fun things to do in Sweden and one night she even invited us over her house for dinner! The dinner at her house was one of my favorite experiences from the whole trip and talking to her and her family is when I made the realization that people from all over the world are very similar at their core, and this transformed how I see the world today.

We did many activities throughout the project that transformed my views in one way or another. There were many museums in Stockholm and one of my favorites was called “Vasa” and housed a 17th century Swedish war ship. The ship is the oldest of its kind remaining and even older than the United States, but was preserved underwater for hundreds of years as it sunk on its maiden voyage. Exploring this museum made me realize just how much history our world has and made me eager to keep exploring the world and learn all I can from our past

 

The transformation my step signature project provided me has been significant for my future in numerous ways. In general, I believe one of the keys to living a happy is loving who you are as a person. Every experience in life allows you to better learn, know, and shape yourself to reach this ideal state, and my STEP signature project was no exception. In terms of my academics, as I stated previously this trip was valuable in solidifying my confidence that I chose the right major and creating excitement towards my future. Personally, this trip helped me to grow out of my shyness both socially and professionally as well as teaching me to make the most of every single day. And finally, Professionally, this project taught me first-hand what it is like to work in marketing on a corporate level. But that’s not all, it showed me how business compared on a global level and taught me valuable skills with regards to working on a team, consulting, presenting, and living in a new country.

The Sweden team on their first night in Stockholm

One of the lions that guards the Royal Palace in Stockholm’s Old City

Napa Valley, California

  1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.

 

I traveled to Napa. California to shadow one of the Senior Portfolio Directors for Delicato Family Vineyards. I worked on brands such as Z. Alexander Brown, Noble Vines, and Black Stallion. The main focus of the week and meetings that I attended were marketing based projects and ventures, but I was also exposed to a few financial meetings and forecasting objectives.

  1. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.

 

I think the most transformational thing about my project is the confidence in myself. Whether it be to travel, to nail an interview, to speak my mind, or take a risk, I think this project gave me all the more confidence to do all these things. This simple one week shadowing opportunity allowed me to fly across the country alone for the first time, enter an office where I knew no one, voice my opinions and insights in meetings, and find success in all this while gaining industry knowledge, building new relationships and connections, and creating confidence. It makes me want to reach higher and further than maybe the opportunities that Ohio can provide to me.

 

  1. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.

 

My project advisor, who was also the director that I was shadowing, did such a great job of walking me through each project we were working on and explaining all the people and aspects involved. She, and the rest of the office, made it such a welcoming space that asking questions was so easy and any idea that I gave was always accepted and considered. There were not any new projects being started while I was there, so rather I just joined into preexisting ones.

 

My two favorite projects and meetings were from two different brands. One was for Z Alexander Brown, and the other was for Noble Vines. Because of company policy, many of the details of the project I am unable to expose, so rather I will remain brief in description. For Z Alexander Brown, we were discussing updates to the Wine Lounge that tours with Zac Brown Brand and appears at each of his concerts. The Noble Vines project was taking and updating mood boards for a new Instagram look and aesthetic. This was something that was very up my alley as I am a constant social media user. We discussed alterations to captions, angles of photos, posting timelines, reach and current interactions. Now that I have been away from the office for a month, I’ve enjoyed keeping up with the social media and seeing the content that I helped to create come to life.

 

These experiences have shown me that my thoughts and ideas are worth sharing and can make an impact. Just in this short week, I can see the effects that I helped to create, however minor they may have been, the fact that I was part of the process makes it all that more special. I’ve discovered my real love for working in teams and a hope to be in project management. This is always something I have known about myself and something that I already do, but never really considered turning that characteristic of myself into a career. This STEP Project has allowed me to rediscover that about myself and I will hold it with me as I finish out my next two years at Ohio State and take it with me as I enter the work force.

  1. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and future plans.

 

This trip made me gain a lot more confidence in myself and has given me a better idea of where I want to take my talents when I enter the workforce. I’ve always been a numbers person but simultaneously I have always been drawn to aesthetics and creativity. While working under a portfolio director, I was able to see and experience both these sides of my brain. I was able to help pick design layouts for a shippers, create a mood board for an upcoming social media project, but also was able to talk through production numbers and forecasting and compare brand sales and methods. I did all of this while working in teams and creating great interactions and relationships. This is something that I can see myself doing in the future and I will continue to take the steps necessary to achieve this goal. I’m so grateful for this opportunity and everything it has given me.

New Zealand Global Project

 On the last day, I managed to squeeze in a sail boat tour since Auckland is the City of Sails!

 Jumped off of this bridge in Queenstown.. it is where bungee jumping started.

We worked in the IBM office building in the Central Business District along the Viaduct Harbor! 

As part of the Global Consulting Project through Fisher College of Business, eight of us students flew across the world to New Zealand. Four of us, including myself, worked for the American Chamber of Commerce, while the other four worked for Auckland Transport. We balanced working with exploring Auckland and the rest of New Zealand including a flight to Queenstown.

My mindset on many aspects of life transformed in New Zealand. Immersing myself into the culture there allowed me to gain many insights and perspectives I would not have without this experience. As a business student, I am very familiar with the American sales pitch and fierce competition in the business world here. But working in New Zealand, I was able to experience their relaxed business atmosphere where they work to live, not live to work like we do here in America. In addition, Kiwis are generally more collaborative and leverage teamwork. Because professionals are relationship based, they value trust and respect with their partners. I am also much more globally minded after traveling to New Zealand. Through many interactions, I realized how narrow minded Americans are.

As part of my project, I had the chance to walk around the city of Auckland to the many different companies. In many interviews, the interviewee would actually take me to get coffee or would show me around the office. Many interviews would in fact be more personal, not business oriented, talking about work life balance, what I was doing with my life, and welcoming me to New Zealand. I was very surprised for these interviews to be so laid back, despite the CEO’s and country managers having hectic schedules and actual business to conduct.

I thought it was very intrigued when I was waiting to interview Microsoft and the news was on, but instead of it being the New Zealand new, it was a world news station, not just New Zealand news. I had not once been waiting for an appointment or interview and had the world news on.

As I interviewed companies, I also noted the difference in sales pitches from how they are conducted here in the US versus in New Zealand. In the US, we are much more eager to give off the best presentation and version of ourself to get the job or sell the product. In New Zealand, this sales pitch does not exist at that severity. Rather, Kiwis would rather get to know a person first and develop trustthrough a relationship before jumping into a deal or hiring somebody. This just emphasizes the cut throat environment and intense competiton in the US.

While in New Zealand, I had many interactions with complete strangers like taxi drivers and convenience store cashiers about Donald Trump. As soon as people realized I was from America, I would get responses such as, “Oh, so you are form Trump country.”I learned that most of the world knows about what is going on in our country, but I do not ( and many Americans) do not know what happens in many other countries besides our own.

This global project came at a critical time in my life as I enter the final two years of college. Interacting with CEO’s among many other high ranking professionals gave me the chance to grow and develop my interpersonal skills with people other than college students. It was also a valuable experience working with three complete strangers and figuring how to mesh our personalities and strengths. Collaboration and learning to be a team players were two skills I developed and will carry them with me to my jobs in the future. For now, I am now interning at Cardinal Health, a global health and pharmaceutical company. Working on international matters and speaking with professionals from around the world so having a broadened global minded is proving to be invaluable.