Speaking Candidly: Lessons Learned from Internship Challenges and Triumphs

For any student, the greatest reward for academic study is to apply knowledge from the classroom to the hustle and bustle of the real world. At NRF’s BIG Show, students and employers engaged in a conversation about retail internships, in the “Lessons Learned from Internship Challenges and Triumphs” session.

Looking back on their summer internships, NRFSA members Allyssa Rinck (FIT), Lindsay Gray (Santa Clara University), and Rachel Wakefield (Georgia Southern University) all commented on how much they didn’t expect to encounter as interns. As many would have thought, their experiences weren’t focused purely on selling or fashion. Cross-functional projects with other interns made a real impact, and the feeling of professional development from exposure to executives made a huge difference for them. Each spoke of applying lessons from the classroom to real-world experiences, not just making copies or grabbing coffee.

Representatives from employers, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Brown Shoe, and Walmart, also joined the panel to comment on the goals of internship programs, training, and advice for success in any similar role. From an intern who juggled two different roles at the same time, to someone that had written a book as a sophomore in college, they each spoke of successes and initiatives that they’d seen interns accomplish at each company.

From left to right: Kathy Mance, Executive Director of NRF Foundation, Rachel Wakefield of Georgia Southern University, Lindsay Gray of Santa Clara University and Alyssa Rinck of the Fashion Institute of Technology.

Success wasn’t about just doing what they were told or asking for permission on projects. For these interns, it was about going above and beyond. This meant asking for forgiveness instead of permission and completing a task before their manager had even asked them to do something. According to these recruiters, interns should take their own responsibility and assume there’s never an upper limit with what they can do.

The biggest impact came from those who saw the mark they could leave on a company. Working on projects for the Chief Financial Officer of a company or playing a role in a key part of the company’s mobile app, the students and recruiters who were allowed to see the bigger picture and had greater exposure to executives gained the most in terms of career development.

For those now entering the search for an internship, advice included displaying high energy and creativity, along with good communication skills and pre-interview research. Students who had done their due diligence made a much bigger impression in an employer’s mind than those who finished an interview with no questions for the employer. Gaining sponsors in the interview process or during the actual internship is what these students should focus on.

As the newly formed NRF Student Association continues to grow, it will be interesting to see the development of these programs more closely align with the interests of each student. It’s not often that students and recruiters get a chance to talk candidly and comment on the experiences and goals they share, so the collaboration that the audience witnessed today is sure to drive upcoming intern programs in the future.