My Step Signature Project: Internship with Amazon Web Services

 My STEP Signature Project was a 12-week long internship with Amazon Web Services based at the Amazon headquarters in Seattle, Washington. During this tenure, I was a Product Marketing Manager intern and was tasked with managing the overall execution of two digital marketing campaigns. This included defining the channel strategy recommendations, key performance metrics, and corresponding with both product marketing managers and external agencies to ensure the campaign was on track to launch by the set date.

This internship served as a trial run for what is to come post-graduation. This was the first time I was in a new city, living with a roommate, and going to work every day from 8-5. In 12 weeks, I began to shift from this college-student with little experience operating in the real world, to a fully-functioning adult. I developed an internship budget spreadsheet in Excel to help manage my finances during the summer and also make sure I was on track to hitting my savings goals. This required me to allot a certain amount of money to food each week and entertainment/ fun activities. I also developed a strict morning routine to maximize my time each week.

Professionally, my project this summer stretched me helped me unleash all of my potential. As an intern, I was given so much responsibility and was in charge of million-dollar campaigns, and although I doubted myself at times, I was able to rise to the occasion and successfully complete my projects and deliver results.

My roommate for the summer was a great support system for me. We leaned on each other for work and play and held each other accountable. She was aware that I was trying to meet a certain saving goal, and always warned me of my goals when we were eating out to make sure that I was making smart decisions. We also explored the city together. We both are from Ohio and have never spent time in the Pacific Northwest–having her by my side made it easier to venture out in the city and make friends.

My manager played a pivotal role in my professional development over the summer. I learned that impostor syndrome is a real feeling, and while I was trying to get ahead of the learning curve, I often felt like I didn’t belong at Amazon–just because I felt like I wasn’t smart enough. We had weekly 1:1s to discuss my progress, challenges, and thoughts about my experience thus far. Not only was my manager trying to make sure I was able to deliver results, but he took the time to make sure I was networking within the organization and also outside and onto the retail side. He cared about my development and not just about my main project deliverables.

My mentor for the summer was a Sr. Digital Marketing Manager on the Artificial Intelligence team. We met weekly for an hour to discuss my internship experience thus far. She was someone I could be vulnerable with and also my go-to resource for any obstacles that I need help overcoming with my project. When I expressed to her that I wasn’t super confident in the beginning, she reassured me and gave me tips on how to overcome this fear and make sure I excel in my internship. 

This project was pivotal to my overall personal and professional development. I never had a major internship at a large company, and so I needed to learn how to navigate myself in a professional setting and also prove to myself that I am a natural-born marketer and can do anything I put my mind to. This Step Signature Project allowed me to transform into the person I’ve always imagined myself to be.