Mari Morgan | XYZ Organization Internship Experience

XYZ Organization Internship Experience

Project Details

Instructional Problem: There's a noticeable gap within the XYZ Organization Internship Program in offering structured guidance on navigating SaaS business dynamics, effective client communication tactics, and troubleshooting methodologies. Despite the program's 'learn-as-you-go' approach, it overlooks the need to prepare interns with these skills and validate their proficiency upon completion. This potentially leaves interns without the skills needed for success in future roles within Ad Tech or another SaaS business.

Target Audience: Interns in the Operations department

Date: March 2023 - May 2023

Learning Solution: Prototype website and dedicated mentor

Pedagogical Model: Cognitive Apprenticeship

Tools: Wix

Launch Prototype

Note: Given this was a prototype, not all content has been added nor are all links clickable.

Background

Considering Ad Tech is such a niche industry, it’s likely that incoming interns do not have any background on the basics of working in the Ad Tech field.
Since the Ad Operations department spans several functions across the business, interns may have a variety of majors, including engineering, computer science, marketing, communication, psychology, business, design, etc.
Learners will focus on the foundations of how Ad Tech works, as well as general applied skills for being a successful employee in a SaaS organization.

Learning Outcomes

In this program, learners will...

Demonstrate a proficient understanding of how the Ad Tech industry works.
Develop problem-solving and critical thinking skills to troubleshoot and investigate incoming issues.
Model communication best practices when responding to clients and working with stakeholders in a SaaS setting.
Cultivate a collaborative and transparent team-building environment.
Evaluate business processes in their respective department and design recommendations to streamline or improve a selected process.

View Full Project Proposal (PDF)

Evaluation

Several strategies will be implemented in this program.

A survey will also be conducted at the beginning, mid-point, and end of the program for interns and mentors. This will provide an opportunity for feedback on the mentorship approach and any modifications to the program that would facilitate a more supportive learning environment.
Each intern-mentor team will have a page on the program website that lists potential scenarios they might encounter. Learners will be expected to provide real-world examples of each scenario and explain how they tackled them (with the guidance of their mentor as needed).
A rubric will be used as the assessment to determine how well the intern applied their problem-solving and critical thinking skills to address the scenario. The result will be a portfolio showcase of all the interns’ examples and related tasks on the website, ultimately representing how much they’ve learned throughout the internship program.