Hi everyone! My name is Olivia Caliendo and I am a graduating senior majoring in Strategic and Corporate Communication and minoring in Law and Social Control. A transfer student, I can’t believe my time at Chapman is soon coming to an end. However, I am so grateful for all that Chapman has set me up for.

Over winter break, my friends had informed me that there was a position available for an internship regarding sales and data entry. This is something I have always wanted to learn and see if I would be interested in doing long term. I have had a lot of experience in marketing and social media, but not in sales and data analytics. I networked with a friend over break who directed me to the right point of contact and I landed the position! I was a little nervous to start an internship remotely because I would be doing things I have never done before, but it turned out to be a really great experience and I think it is important to learn how to work remotely during a time like this.

Where I worked from home!

My time at C.K Associates has been great. I have learned so many new skills that I never knew before. Most of my days on the job in the beginning months were spent in meetings with my supervisor and entering the data to excel spreadsheets that she would send to me. I would create pivot tables for the team and send them over so they would have their weekly reports. I would also send out product promotions to our customers and distributors and hear feedback from them, as well. After learning and mastering Excel, which was a skill I never had before, I gained their trust and I let them know I was ready for more work!

After the first 2 months, I was able to join meetings and listen in on my supervisor presenting to clients or potential buyers. My supervisor even let me be the meeting host for one of the meetings. I was given the opportunity to learn how to present to potential clients as to why they should chose C.K Associates. This was such a huge moment for me as the potential client even said, “I was easily persuaded after that”. The School Of Communication prepared me for this moment through my multiple presentations in classes and also by learning how to persuade people through presenting. I am so glad I had so much training on being a confident presenter during my time at Chapman.

From this internship, I am now a better presenter and have learned how to correctly use excel sheets to input data and send them to potential buyers and clients. I am so glad I got to have this experience and learn more about an industry that I was not previously interested in before. I would 100% recommend C.K Associates to anyone. They helped me learn so many more useful skills that I can carry with me forever.