Hello! My name is Jenna Summers. I am currently a senior here at Chapman University and my major is Communication Studies with a Themed Inquiry in Leadership. During Interterm of 2022, I have been involved in an internship that has been very beneficial to my own personal growth. The company I interned for is called KR Commercial Interiors, Inc. and my position was Marketing Representative.

My desk in the office!

KR Commercial Interiors, Inc. is a full-service general contractor that specializes in the hospitality industry. These services include both project and skilled trade services. Within the project services are project planning and budget formation, architectural and design services, project management, and permit and approval processing- just to name a few. Some examples of the skilled-trade services KR offers are custom mill work, property maintenance, and repair services regarding tile, electrical, plumbing, wallcovering, etc. My primary responsibilities while interning for this company were answering phones, working one-on-one with customers, filing documents, shadowing the office manager and project manager, and also obtaining potential clients regarding their new location expansion in Florida, which was my main project I worked on. I found this internship through networking with a family friend. I had firsthand knowledge of others who worked there before I started, and had only heard really great experiences which made me to want to pursue this company.

My colleagues and I!

A very valuable experience that I have learned during my internship is a new appreciation for individuals who work in sales. While working on my project to acquire new potential clients, I had to call hotels in the Florida area directly and obtain the names of the general managers to mail our informational brochures to. It was difficult getting those names because many of the individuals I spoke to did not want to hear what I had to say and would try their best to get me off the phone. However, through this, I continued to persevere and did not let these circumstances get the best of me which led me to accomplish my goal of gaining these contacts.

A success story for me during my experience at my internship would definitely be gathering the information for the many hotels that needed to be collected in order to get the project completed. Since the company had just added a new location in Florida, it was my responsibility to help them get in contact with new potential clients that could help to build up their company. This was a very rewarding task to me because I wanted to help this company in any way that I could to be successful and reach their goals. It was also extremely special to witness the beginning to end process and know that I was a big part of it.

As far as advice, I would most definitely recommend this amazing company and encourage others who are interested in this industry to go for it! The hospitality industry is a fun, interactive job field that those who are truly intrigued by it, would absolutely love. From experience, it can be extremely fulfilling to know that one has made an impact on the company and has helped to achieve the end result. I am very thankful that I had this experience and took this opportunity to get an idea of what it would be like to work in the hospitality industry.