Beyond the Internship: Career Growth and Success at DHL Supply Chain

In this episode, Caitlin Ballow, Director of College Recruit Programs at DHL Supply Chain, is joined by former DHL Supply Chain interns turned full-time associates: Allison Plachta, Sales Enablement Analyst, and John Kemp, Business Data Analyst as well as current intern Justin Utterback, Operations Intern. They share updates on our intern capstone project, offer insights from former interns who have transitioned to full-time roles and discuss future plans for our college recruitment program. 

Transcript

00:00:08:17 - 00:00:51:02

Welcome to All Business. No Boundaries., a collection of supply

chain stories by DHL Supply Chain, the North American leader

in contract logistics. I'm your host, Will Heywood.

This is a place for in-depth discussions on the supply chain challenges keeping you up at night. We're breaking beyond the boundaries that are limiting your supply chain. Today's episode is Beyond the Internship: Career Growth and Success at DHL Supply Chain.

Our guests are Caitlin Ballow, Director of College Recruit Programs at DHL Supply Chain, joined by former DHL Supply Chain interns turned full-time associates, Allison Plachta, Sales Enablement Analyst, and John Kemp, Business Data Analyst, as well as current intern, Justin Utterback. Let's dive in.

00:00:51:02 - 00:01:13:07

Alright. Well, welcome to all of you. We're just wrapping up another

intern summer at DHL Supply Chain.It was a banner year, I believe,

 but I'll let you guys tell us a little bit about that.

We'll start the way we always do with introductions. Caitlin, if you could maybe

start first, tell us, who you are, what your name is, title, and role, and how long you've been with the company.

00:01:13:13 - 00:01:21:22

Yeah. My name is Caitlin Ballow. I am the director over our

college recruit programs, and I've been with DHL now

for just over ten years.

00:01:21:23 - 00:01:23:01

Super.

00:01:23:02 - 00:01:37:13

Now, Allison and John, if you could tell us your current role, your first year into your full-time assignment at DHL, but also tell us about your where you went to school and your field of study there. Start with you, Allison.

 00:01:38:09 - 00:01:51:17

Alright. Hi. I'm Allison. I am the Sales Enablement

Analyst for the sales effectiveness team.

I went to Valparaiso University, and I studied human resources. And last year, I interned on the college recruiting team.

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And you appeared on

the podcast, I believe.

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I did. Yes.

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Good. So you should be an

old pro. John, how about you?

00:02:00:15 - 00:02:24:19

So, my name is John Kemp. I graduated from North Carolina A

and T State University with a bachelor's in business

information technology. Now going actually on my eighth

month here as a Business Data Analyst for the Primark site

here at Jacksonville, Florida. Just reviewing all the data and

helping out and assisting and creating, you know, some some educated conversation for our operations team to make some solution-based decisions.

00:02:24:20 - 00:02:29:06

Great. Welcome. And,

Justin, tell us about you.

00:02:29:07 - 00:02:46:01

Hi, everyone. I'm

Justin Utterback. I'm a senior here at West Virginia University. I'm currently at school right now living in a house with twenty-two other guys. That's a lot of fun. So, over the summer, actually got to intern with DHL Supply Chain at the Ferrero site.

00:02:46:02 - 00:02:46:23

Great.

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That sounds like a fun living

arrangement for your senior year.

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Yeah. It's awesome.

Probably a little loud.

00:02:55:14 - 00:03:09:17

Caitlin, let's start with you. Maybe refresh us on the overall, internship program here at DHL Supply Chain and focus in on this past summer for 2024. What did the program look like? How did it all go?

00:03:10:02 - 00:03:33:21

Yeah. It was honestly one

of the best years yet. Honestly, I'm a little bit biased, but,

 it was bigger than it ever has been. We just had just under

three hundred interns with us over the summer in North America, and our interns spent their summer learning on-site with their teams while participating

in their capstone projects. We had just over fifty-two unique projects this summer

that were delivered at our event.

00:03:33:22 - 00:03:34:04

Yeah.

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I was at the capstone event,

and there were a lot of interns.

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It was and the energy was

very high. It was tons of fun.

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So, Caitlin, I know you guys have

been very intentional in terms of how you've set up the internship experience. And I wonder if you could take a couple minutes and tell us what are some of the differentiating characteristics about the program, that we offer at DHL and things that are valued by both the business side and the interns as you as you hear back from them?

00:04:02:06 -  00:05:46:11

Yeah. Absolutely. So our interns really start the summer. We have a two-hour orientation that they participate in, that includes really everything from an overview of DHL all the way through to what we expect of them this summer, what they can expect from their managers and from our team. Throughout the summer, we have our professional excellence series that covers a variety of different topics that really our interns say they want to learn about or will directly impact their experience. We have a speaker series, so we bring in different business leaders that will talk about their experience and ultimately give really valuable insight and advice on how to build your career within DHL or even beyond. We also do a touch base with our interns. So every single intern has what we call an intern program lead, which is an individual on the college recruiting team that's dedicated to making sure that they have the best possible experience throughout the summer, as well as we talk about where they want to be located, what types of roles they're interested in.

So, ultimately, our goal of the program is to hire our interns full-time. Each year, we're able to offer over sixty percent of our interns into a full-time role with DHL Supply Chain once they graduate. We're really, really proud that they're able to walk back to campus with an offer in hand. So, that capstone project and event, they're working with five to seven other interns within their region on a problem the business is facing today. And then we have our capstone event, which really, I believe, is what sets our program apart from every other organization, is the time, energy, and effort that the business invests in our interns through the capstone event.

00:05:46:11 - 00:06:19:12

I can tell you from an ROI perspective most of the ideas that are

presented from the capstone teams do get taken up by the

business and implemented. So it's a real win for DHL as an organization and it's great to see, the students or interns providing actual practical, input into the business versus more of a theoretical kind of project. Thinking about transitioning

folks from the internship program into full-time roles, how does DHL and your group think about doing that?

00:06:19:12 -00:06:40:15

Yeah. We believe that while our experience over the summer definitely prepares folks to step into a full-time role with DHL or even, you know, beyond that, we recognize that you really never stop learning, or growing. 

00:06:40:16 - 00:06:46:06
So, Allison and John, having potentially benefited from those, programs, tell us what it's like to transition from intern to full-time associate.

00:06:46:18 - 00:06:50:06

It was surprisingly

easy, minus the

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whole schedule shift thing.

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So, having a college student schedule,

you're up a lot later at night.

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So now I need to wake

up early to get to work,

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so that's been the hardest part.

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But the internship was super

helpful just learning about the

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culture of DHL and also

how to kind of just

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navigate this corporate office.

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You know, that's not

necessarily something that,

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students get a lot

of experience in.

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So I found the internship to

be super helpful in those ways.

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And then I actually

did go to office hours,

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that I believe it was India

who held the office hours,

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and they were super helpful.

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Able to just get any

quick questions asked.

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And it was nice to just

reconnect with her as well.

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Oh, great. How about you, John?

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Yeah. Absolutely.

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I don't wanna piggyback

too much off of that, but,

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honestly, it's the

same experience for me.

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India was a great help.

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And DHL as a whole just really

set me up and I don't wanna

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speak for everybody.

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But, honestly, I think they do a really

good job with taking their interns

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and making sure that not

only do they understand what their

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responsibilities or

expectations are for that

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summer, but, you know,

if they are, you know,

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lucky enough to get

the full-time offer,

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there's a lot of next

steps that go into that,

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but it's a lot of communication on

DHL's side as well to keep us on track.

00:08:05:05 - 00:08:06:23

So I think they do a great job.

00:08:06:23 - 00:08:07:05

Good.

00:08:07:05 - 00:08:11:00

So, you were able to stay in touch through

the school year when you were back?

00:08:11:13 - 00:08:12:14

Absolutely.

00:08:12:14 - 00:08:15:09

Yeah. That's great. Okay.

Justin, I want to bring you in.

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Can you tell us a little

bit more about your summer,

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maybe starting with how you got

connected with DHL in the first

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place, what the

recruitment was like,

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and then what you wound up doing

in the course of your internship?

00:08:26:12 - 00:08:27:09

Yeah. For sure.

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So, I actually landed

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my internship in the fall of

last year when I went to the

00:08:34:15 - 00:08:36:21

fall job tour here at WVU.

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I ran into someone who works

out of Mechanicsburg, PA.

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We had a great conversation,

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and I ended up giving

them my resume.

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And then they ended up

following up a day later with

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my first round of interviews.

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And then, from my first round,

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I was invited back to second

rounds in Mechanicsburg.

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And

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from there, I was given my full-time

offer with not my full-time offer, my

00:09:00:19 - 00:09:03:02

internship offer with DHL.

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And from there, I moved

out to Harrisburg, PA,

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because my site was

located in Jonestown.

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And that transition was I

thought it was gonna be a lot

00:09:11:19 - 00:09:15:08

harder, but DHL made

it very easy on me.

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They give you a bonus to

transition you out there for

00:09:18:12 - 00:09:19:23

the internship,

so that was great.

00:09:19:23 - 00:09:21:12

It helped a lot.

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And I ended up having a

really fun summer with my internship.

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A lot of stuff I did with the

company and a lot of stuff I

00:09:27:20 - 00:09:30:17

did outside of work, too,

so it was really great.

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Now that's terrific.

Glad to hear that.

00:09:34:06 - 00:09:36:11

Allison and John,

00:09:36:14 - 00:09:40:19

aside from the difficult working

hours or early morning hours, Allison,

00:09:41:01 - 00:09:43:18

what other kinds of changes

have you noticed since you've

00:09:43:18 - 00:09:45:17

come into full-time roles?

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These can be challenges. These

can be good opportunities.

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These could be things

that surprise you.

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Tell us how it's going.

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Yeah.

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So, I think some of

the things that have

00:09:58:11 - 00:10:03:13

just surprised me the most is just

how relaxed the culture is here.

00:10:03:18 - 00:10:06:13

And, you know, when you

think corporate structure,

00:10:06:13 - 00:10:09:20

you think a lot of, you

know, this and that.

00:10:09:20 - 00:10:10:22

But

00:10:11:20 - 00:10:14:05

I definitely felt like I

was being welcomed into this

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community that cared about

everyone on the team.

00:10:16:18 - 00:10:19:00

I wasn't just this little

fish in a big ocean.

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I was part of a team

that wanted me to succeed

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and who wanted me to really

learn and grow with them.

00:10:26:07 - 00:10:29:06

And they truly believed in

my talents even as, you know,

00:10:29:06 - 00:10:30:07

I'm two months in.

00:10:30:07 - 00:10:33:08

So, they truly believe

that I can help the team.

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So, that was definitely something

that surprised me was just that

00:10:36:09 - 00:10:40:05

feeling of immediate camaraderie

and and feeling welcomed.

00:10:40:13 - 00:10:42:20

But I guess just

00:10:43:15 - 00:10:45:08

I don't know if there's

anything that I've really

00:10:45:08 - 00:10:47:17

struggled with because

my team has been so nice,

00:10:47:17 - 00:10:50:01

and I can just

ask them anything.

00:10:50:01 - 00:10:53:22

I don't feel like there's any

barriers to where I they let, me

00:10:54:08 - 00:10:56:06

like, I can ask them, hey,

00:10:56:06 - 00:10:58:16

how would you do this

in a professional way?

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Because I'm not really sure how

I would do this or how would I

00:11:01:20 - 00:11:04:10

respond to this in

the most correct way.

00:11:04:10 - 00:11:07:13

Or, you know, how do you go about

asking someone this question?

00:11:07:13 - 00:11:08:11

And,

00:11:09:18 - 00:11:13:11

it's all been just a phenomenal

experience of never feeling

00:11:13:11 - 00:11:18:09

like I'm singled out or not good

enough or anything like that.

00:11:18:10 - 00:11:18:23

That's great.

00:11:18:23 - 00:11:21:13

So, the only bad questions are

the ones that you don't ask.

00:11:21:13 - 00:11:22:05

Right?

00:11:22:05 - 00:11:23:07

Exactly.

00:11:23:11 - 00:11:26:06

Yeah. John, what's your

experience been like?

00:11:26:22 - 00:11:27:06

Yeah.

00:11:27:06 - 00:11:31:23

So, I think for me, the biggest

thing was just as an intern.

00:11:31:23 - 00:11:35:21

You know, my mindset was really just

to learn as much as I can,

00:11:35:21 - 00:11:38:05

absorb everything, speak

to anybody I could,

00:11:38:05 - 00:11:42:12

really take this opportunity to be

a, you know, Allison, like you said,

00:11:42:12 - 00:11:46:05

kinda be a tadpole in terms

of just learning and and and

00:11:46:05 - 00:11:47:02

taking in everything.

00:11:47:02 - 00:11:47:23

But now, you know,

00:11:47:23 - 00:11:51:19

being here on the big stage

here in Jacksonville, Florida,

00:11:51:19 - 00:11:53:04

it's just been a mindset up.

00:11:53:04 - 00:11:55:00

Like, hey. Like, I'm

not just learning.

00:11:55:00 - 00:11:56:18

I'm supposed to be, you know,

00:11:56:18 - 00:11:59:21

giving and having a certain

output to be able to help my

00:11:59:21 - 00:12:01:08

team in any way that I could.

00:12:01:08 - 00:12:04:05

So, it's not just about asking

questions maybe to learn for myself,

00:12:04:05 - 00:12:07:10

but also to kinda have that

turnaround and be able to help.

00:12:07:10 - 00:12:10:05

So, I think that would be more so

the different I don't know if I

00:12:10:05 - 00:12:14:03

would call it a challenge just because

the team here has been really good,

00:12:14:03 - 00:12:16:16

and they did a really good job

helping me prepare for this moment.

00:12:16:16 - 00:12:19:17

But I think the biggest thing for me

is just that I like to learn a lot.

00:12:19:17 - 00:12:22:07

But, you know, here now,

it's about the, you know,

00:12:22:07 - 00:12:24:13

the output and the

results that I'm giving,

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and I feel like I'm, you know,

really prepared to do that.

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So that's been my biggest

change, I guess, you could say.

00:12:29:21 - 00:12:33:00

Have you stayed in touch with

the folks on your capstone

00:12:33:00 - 00:12:34:22

project from last summer?

00:12:35:19 - 00:12:37:19

The folks, absolutely.

00:12:37:19 - 00:12:40:20

I would say that I was

actually just thinking

00:12:40:20 - 00:12:42:14

about my capstone

leader the other day,

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and I sent him a message that we

had to have some good rapport.

00:12:45:13 - 00:12:48:15

It's just, the way

that, you know,

00:12:48:15 - 00:12:50:06

everyone here at DHL,

00:12:50:06 - 00:12:52:10

when you reach out to them

or you see them, you know,

00:12:52:10 - 00:12:55:03

at a training or something

along that nature,

00:12:55:03 - 00:12:58:00

they've got the same

energy, the same enthusiasm.

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It's like it's like me

meeting a friend from like,

00:13:00:06 - 00:13:01:07

middle school or something.

00:13:01:07 - 00:13:03:20

It's just always

that high, you know,

00:13:03:20 - 00:13:06:02

that energy and attitude

that seems to be consistent

00:13:06:02 - 00:13:07:05

throughout the the company.

00:13:07:05 - 00:13:11:01

So, I definitely got to reach out to a

couple of them throughout my time here.

00:13:11:01 - 00:13:13:19

I'm at a start-up, so it's

been busy, but, you know,

00:13:13:19 - 00:13:16:11

it's always good times

that I do speak to them.

00:13:16:23 - 00:13:18:01

Terrific.

00:13:18:23 - 00:13:21:10

And, Justin, you've most

recently done a capstone.

00:13:21:10 - 00:13:25:05

Can you tell us what your

project was and maybe who your

00:13:25:05 - 00:13:28:20

coworkers were on that and kinda

how that experience went for you?

00:13:28:20 - 00:13:29:03

Yeah.

00:13:29:03 - 00:13:32:10

So, it was kinda funny because

the members of my capstone

00:13:32:10 - 00:13:35:03

team, one of the people

on it, John Francis,

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I actually go to

school with him,

00:13:36:12 - 00:13:39:21

and our supply chain major

here is not very big.

00:13:39:21 - 00:13:43:11

So, you see a lot of the same

people in all your classes.

00:13:43:11 - 00:13:46:09

So, I actually had a lot of

classes with John Francis,

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and I didn't really know him

that well before capstone.

00:13:48:14 - 00:13:51:06

We ended up becoming

best friends through capstone.

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I just saw him last

night, actually.

00:13:53:11 - 00:13:57:10

And so we can hang out after

work and all that sort of stuff.

00:13:57:10 - 00:14:01:12

But as far as my capstone

project goes, we were given the

00:14:01:12 - 00:14:05:00

task of kinda

recommending a new pallet

00:14:05:00 - 00:14:07:16

tracking software

for an RF suite.

00:14:07:16 - 00:14:09:20

So, we kinda took that route on

00:14:10:22 - 00:14:12:03

it and it was very interesting.

00:14:12:03 - 00:14:14:05

We really loved

working together.

00:14:14:05 - 00:14:16:14

I think our team

was very dynamic.

00:14:17:00 - 00:14:18:12

There were a lot of fun talks.

00:14:18:12 - 00:14:21:01

There was a lot of

serious talks and

00:14:21:04 - 00:14:23:13

we kinda worked

around everybody's,

00:14:23:13 - 00:14:26:19

I would say, flaws,

different leadership styles.

00:14:26:19 - 00:14:29:07

We kinda worked with

everybody's like different

00:14:29:07 - 00:14:30:10

skills in a way.

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So it made for like a

really perfect group.

00:14:32:12 - 00:14:35:08

We executed perfectly,

I thought, and,

00:14:35:14 - 00:14:37:21

our charisma was

just through the roof

00:14:38:10 - 00:14:40:06

and that actually at capstone,

00:14:40:06 - 00:14:42:11

everybody like what

John was saying,

00:14:42:11 - 00:14:44:06

everybody was so

friendly with each other.

00:14:44:06 - 00:14:47:07

It was like seeing your friend

from kindergarten again.

00:14:47:07 - 00:14:51:08

So, you just met this

person, it was an amazing experience.

00:14:51:14 - 00:14:51:16

Yeah.

00:14:51:16 - 00:14:54:23

Could you describe a little bit

and actually, all three of you,

00:14:54:23 - 00:14:58:17

would be interested in the

capstone week is a really great

00:14:58:17 - 00:15:01:08

one, here for all of us.

00:15:01:08 - 00:15:04:07

But what's it like from

an intern's perspective?

00:15:04:14 - 00:15:07:20

Describe a little bit about what

you're doing and what it feels like

00:15:09:04 - 00:15:10:22

and take it anywhere you like.

00:15:10:22 - 00:15:13:23

Yeah. So, it's

actually a lot of fun.

00:15:13:23 - 00:15:18:09

The days are really long,

but they go by really fast.

00:15:18:09 - 00:15:22:11

So, it's like in a blink of

an eye, you're just beat tired by

00:15:22:11 - 00:15:25:22

the end of the day, but the

energy is just so high there.

00:15:25:22 - 00:15:28:15

I think that's why you're so

tired at the end of the day.

00:15:28:15 - 00:15:30:21

You're constantly talking

with other interns.

00:15:30:21 - 00:15:34:04

I think I got over a hundred

and fifty new LinkedIn

00:15:34:04 - 00:15:36:18

connections, especially

from the capstone event.

00:15:36:18 - 00:15:39:21

So, you're definitely doing some serious

networking there with other interns.

00:15:39:21 - 00:15:42:16

I was talking with

interns from Alberta,

00:15:42:16 - 00:15:45:03

Canada all the way

on the other side

00:15:45:03 - 00:15:49:07

of the nation, which I just

think phenomenal and really cool.

00:15:49:08 - 00:15:51:09

Yeah. How was it

for you, Allison?

00:15:52:14 - 00:15:52:20

Yeah.

00:15:52:20 - 00:15:57:02

Just to kind of echo, I mean,

it was probably one of the best

00:15:57:02 - 00:16:00:16

capstones that like I

had ever been a part of.

00:16:00:16 - 00:16:02:12

And even talking with

my other friends,

00:16:02:12 - 00:16:05:18

their capstones were nowhere

near as cool as ours was.

00:16:06:14 - 00:16:09:07

I think it was three days

started with the Crew Stadium

00:16:09:07 - 00:16:11:13

for all the interns to

get to know each other.

00:16:11:13 - 00:16:14:06

That was a really amazing

time just to get to talk to

00:16:14:06 - 00:16:17:22

everyone, get those kind of

like pre-networking nerves out.

00:16:17:22 - 00:16:22:01

That was my favorite event just because

I got to meet everyone personally.

00:16:22:08 - 00:16:26:00

And then, the next day was just

packed full of learning—learning about

00:16:26:00 - 00:16:28:11

the business, learning about

the charities we support,

00:16:28:11 - 00:16:32:01

about the things that we do,

about the different, you know,

00:16:32:01 - 00:16:36:00

pillars of, like, DEI

or sustainability.

00:16:36:11 - 00:16:41:05

And then, the next day was all of

our presentations and saying goodbye.

00:16:41:06 - 00:16:44:08

And saying goodbye was

surprisingly hard to a lot of

00:16:44:08 - 00:16:47:03

those interns that you had just

met two days ago because you

00:16:47:03 - 00:16:48:17

were already really

close friends with them,

00:16:48:17 - 00:16:50:10

and it had been two days.

00:16:50:10 - 00:16:53:22

So it was definitely an

experience that you almost have

00:16:53:22 - 00:16:57:08

to experience to understand,

but it was it's phenomenal.

00:16:57:08 - 00:17:00:03

John, any reflections

that you have?

00:17:01:18 - 00:17:02:20

Absolutely.

00:17:02:21 - 00:17:06:19

Justin spoke great about the

level of community and just

00:17:06:19 - 00:17:09:01

networking and connections,

not just from higher-ups,

00:17:09:01 - 00:17:11:12

but also from your

fellow interns.

00:17:11:12 - 00:17:12:15

And I think that was great.

00:17:12:15 - 00:17:16:08

Allison, you spoke a lot about

the ability of the capstone just

00:17:16:08 - 00:17:19:08

being something that

was so exciting and fun.

00:17:19:08 - 00:17:21:01

And honestly, that

was the honest truth.

00:17:21:01 - 00:17:24:05

And for me, the capstone

ended up itself presentation

00:17:24:19 - 00:17:29:07

was just, I think it showed me a little

bit more about myself than I thought.

00:17:29:07 - 00:17:32:15

You know, I think everyone has

their own specific position or maybe

00:17:32:15 - 00:17:35:01

internship department

that they're working in.

00:17:35:01 - 00:17:37:09

But then when you're able

to spend some separate time and

00:17:37:09 - 00:17:40:22

and meet together with the

team and have a capstone leader

00:17:40:22 - 00:17:42:18

who's gonna prepare you

the best way they could.

00:17:42:18 - 00:17:44:10

It also shows you,

like, you know,

00:17:44:10 - 00:17:47:03

at the end of your internship

00:17:47:04 - 00:17:49:11

in addition to the specific

department that you worked on,

00:17:49:11 - 00:17:51:21

the project you worked on,

you got to say that, hey,

00:17:51:21 - 00:17:55:04

I worked with a team of,

you know, x amount of other

00:17:55:04 - 00:17:58:12

interns, presented to some

supervisors and executives,

00:17:58:12 - 00:18:01:02

and really got to show not

just my presentation ability,

00:18:01:02 - 00:18:04:22

but my ability that I was able

to show to them and myself that

00:18:04:22 - 00:18:08:14

you can study, you know, in

with preparation and practice,

00:18:08:14 - 00:18:10:11

you could really

make a good output.

00:18:10:11 - 00:18:12:11

So, for me, you know, of course,

00:18:12:11 - 00:18:15:03

the community was great as well

as just the capstone was fun,

00:18:15:03 - 00:18:17:21

but also I got to learn a

little bit about myself,

00:18:18:02 - 00:18:19:20

in terms of, you know,

accomplishing that.

00:18:19:20 - 00:18:21:10

So I think that was

that was fun as well,

00:18:21:10 - 00:18:22:23

and I enjoyed that part.

00:18:22:23 - 00:18:24:02

Yeah. That's terrific.

00:18:24:02 - 00:18:27:05

So, Caitlin, you've seen a few

more years of capstone than

00:18:27:05 - 00:18:29:15

our, three other guests.

00:18:29:15 - 00:18:32:23

How have you seen it evolve

over your time in the role and

00:18:32:23 - 00:18:35:05

where do you see

it going forward?

00:18:36:02 - 00:18:37:21

Gosh. That's a great question.

00:18:37:21 - 00:18:39:11

My first summer was actually,

00:18:39:11 - 00:18:43:02

I think we had seventy-eight

interns and we were we had

00:18:43:02 - 00:18:48:00

dinner and our event actually in

two completely different places.

00:18:48:05 - 00:18:51:10

Our activity was a high ropes

course because we had, you

00:18:51:10 - 00:18:52:23

know, a small number of interns,

00:18:52:23 - 00:18:56:01

and it's really transformed into

what it is today where

00:18:56:01 - 00:18:57:10

we're focused on the industry.

00:18:57:10 - 00:19:01:23

We're focusing on continuing that

development through those three days.

00:19:02:12 - 00:19:07:01

So, ultimately, I see the

future being continuing to look

00:19:07:01 - 00:19:09:07

at what the needs

are of our interns,

00:19:09:07 - 00:19:12:04

what they're looking to learn

or get out of the summer and

00:19:12:04 - 00:19:15:02

how can we continue to build

on their business acumen and

00:19:15:02 - 00:19:18:20

really educate them on

the supply chain industry.

00:19:19:04 - 00:19:22:07

Thinking about people who will

follow you into the internship

00:19:22:07 - 00:19:25:20

program, and we hope there are

many who are listening to this,

00:19:25:20 - 00:19:30:01

what advice would you give

to them about either becoming an

00:19:30:01 - 00:19:33:04

intern, transitioning

from intern to full-time,

00:19:33:04 - 00:19:35:07

getting connected with DHL?

00:19:35:23 - 00:19:41:09

What things would you stress

that they keep a focus on?

00:19:41:09 - 00:19:43:08

Any of you can go first.

00:19:44:04 - 00:19:48:15

I mean, I think the main thing that I

would say is something that you know,

00:19:48:23 - 00:19:51:15

anybody who's reflecting on

time and the good times that

00:19:51:15 - 00:19:54:00

they've had and the growth that

they had can say it's just to

00:19:54:00 - 00:19:56:08

appreciate the moment

that you're in.

00:19:56:08 - 00:19:59:05

You know, in regards to the goals

that you might have as an individual

00:19:59:05 - 00:20:01:01

for your project, for your team,

00:20:01:01 - 00:20:02:16

maybe where you wanna

go after college,

00:20:02:16 - 00:20:04:00

whatever the case may be.

00:20:04:00 - 00:20:08:06

Just understand that it's a

great time to be in the moment,

00:20:08:06 - 00:20:10:22

and you'll only get the most out

of it if you're in the moment.

00:20:10:22 - 00:20:13:09

Focusing too far ahead is

going to make you, you know,

00:20:13:09 - 00:20:15:17

kind of a little bit not

necessarily complacent,

00:20:15:17 - 00:20:18:23

but not as focused or producing

the best you can in the moment.

00:20:18:23 - 00:20:20:22

Thinking too much about the

mistakes you made in the past

00:20:20:22 - 00:20:22:01

is never going to

get you forward.

00:20:22:01 - 00:20:24:04

So just make sure that you're

always appreciating where

00:20:24:04 - 00:20:26:14

you're at and doing the best

you can in that moment and good

00:20:26:14 - 00:20:28:02

things will all respond.

00:20:28:10 - 00:20:32:12

I would say for anyone, whether

you're in a new role or looking

00:20:32:12 - 00:20:36:19

for an internship, is to

just talk to everyone and

00:20:36:21 - 00:20:38:23

learn their roles and

what they're doing.

00:20:38:23 - 00:20:41:08

I think if you had told me two

years ago that I would be in

00:20:41:08 - 00:20:43:10

the supply chain industry

working as an analyst,

00:20:43:10 - 00:20:45:15

I would have told you

that you were crazy.

00:20:45:23 - 00:20:47:00

But I love it.

00:20:47:00 - 00:20:50:19

And so getting to talk

to people and you know,

00:20:50:19 - 00:20:52:11

people love to talk

about themselves.

00:20:52:11 - 00:20:53:23

They love to talk

about their roles.

00:20:53:23 - 00:20:57:02

Everyone has projects

they're passionate about,

00:20:57:02 - 00:20:59:16

and really learning that and

creating that rapport with them

00:20:59:16 - 00:21:02:22

is so beneficial to you

in your current state,

00:21:02:22 - 00:21:04:09

but also your future state.

00:21:04:09 - 00:21:07:05

And so definitely

just talk to everyone.

00:21:07:13 - 00:21:10:12

Great. Justin, what words

of wisdom do you have?

00:21:10:14 - 00:21:14:05

For me, it'd be just take that

step and put yourself out there.

00:21:14:05 - 00:21:15:23

One of my favorite

quotes of all time is

00:21:15:23 - 00:21:18:15

"you miss a hundred percent

of shots you don't take."

00:21:18:15 - 00:21:20:00

So for me personally,

00:21:20:00 - 00:21:22:14

going and getting this

internship is a big stepping

00:21:22:14 - 00:21:24:08

stone in my career.

00:21:24:08 - 00:21:26:00

I had a lot of

nerves going into it,

00:21:26:00 - 00:21:28:17

a lot of doubts about

my abilities going into it.

00:21:28:17 - 00:21:31:22

So just take that step.

Be confident in yourself.

00:21:32:20 - 00:21:35:06

Not everything's gonna fall

in line perfectly for you,

00:21:35:06 - 00:21:38:16

but it's how you handle that adversity

and how you bounce back from it.

00:21:38:16 - 00:21:42:16

So take that step, take those

chances, and run with it.

00:21:43:02 - 00:21:43:17

Terrific.

00:21:43:17 - 00:21:45:04

So, Caitlin, maybe to wrap up,

00:21:45:04 - 00:21:48:08

can you tell us what comes

next in terms of the annual

00:21:48:08 - 00:21:52:20

recruiting calendar and what

your office will be doing

00:21:52:20 - 00:21:55:11

to set up for 2025?

00:21:56:00 - 00:21:59:06

Yeah. We're currently in the

thick of our fall planning.

00:21:59:06 - 00:22:01:06

Our team is looking

at, you know,

00:22:01:06 - 00:22:04:04

a list of roles that we're

looking to fill intern,

00:22:04:04 - 00:22:05:22

full-time and for

our apprentice,

00:22:05:22 - 00:22:08:01

which is our second

year program.

00:22:08:02 - 00:22:11:01

And we're looking at hiring close

to that five hundred mark again.

00:22:11:01 - 00:22:13:08

So we definitely have

the opportunities.

00:22:13:12 - 00:22:14:09

Our goal really is,

00:22:14:09 - 00:22:17:01

as we go out on campus is

figuring out different ways

00:22:17:01 - 00:22:20:11

that we can add value to

students and universities that

00:22:20:11 - 00:22:22:14

we partner with, whether

that be, you know,

00:22:22:14 - 00:22:25:17

engaging with different

organizations on campus and

00:22:25:17 - 00:22:27:17

building up again

their business acumen,

00:22:27:17 - 00:22:31:07

or it's just going to a career

fair and talking to as many

00:22:31:07 - 00:22:34:00

students as we can that could

be interested in our space.

00:22:34:00 - 00:22:37:10

So lots of career fairs

ahead, a lot of presentations,

00:22:38:00 - 00:22:42:04

and, hopefully, a lot of opportunities

to meet some really great students to

00:22:42:04 - 00:22:44:17

be our future leaders

of the organization.

00:22:45:01 - 00:22:47:20

And if somebody wanted to

do a little preliminary

00:22:47:22 - 00:22:53:05

research, how how might

they get contacted with DHL?

00:22:53:17 - 00:22:54:01

Yeah.

00:22:54:01 - 00:22:56:12

So, honestly, if

you're on LinkedIn,

00:22:56:12 - 00:23:00:05

we have a series called Ignite

Your Future and our interns

00:23:00:05 - 00:23:04:22

this summer had the opportunity

to submit a lot of different

00:23:05:02 - 00:23:08:03

thoughts about topics ranging

from how they landed their

00:23:08:03 - 00:23:10:18

internship, their

onboarding experience,

00:23:10:19 - 00:23:12:13

interesting things

that they learned,

00:23:12:13 - 00:23:16:00

or how they engaged with the

three pillars of our program:

00:23:16:00 - 00:23:18:13

professional excellence,

collaboration, and networking.

00:23:18:13 - 00:23:22:16

And we were able to highlight

one submission per week.

00:23:22:17 - 00:23:25:03

We'll continue to highlight

those throughout the fall and

00:23:25:03 - 00:23:28:00

spring season because we

had a lot of submissions.

00:23:28:00 - 00:23:31:10

So I'd check out on

LinkedIn DHL Supply Chain.

00:23:31:10 - 00:23:34:23

But also, you can always see if

we're coming to your campus or check

00:23:34:23 - 00:23:37:10

us out on a job board if

you're wanting to learn more.

00:23:37:10 - 00:23:40:05

There's lots of information

out there as well.

00:23:40:05 - 00:23:41:08

Great. Fantastic.

00:23:41:08 - 00:23:44:05

Well, I want to thank

all of you, particularly,

00:23:44:05 - 00:23:46:21

our three interns and two,

00:23:46:21 - 00:23:50:08

new full-time associates for

joining us and sharing your

00:23:50:08 - 00:23:51:17

experiences with us today.

00:23:51:17 - 00:23:53:14

Great stories all.

00:23:55:11 - 00:23:57:03

If you enjoyed today's episode,

00:23:57:03 - 00:23:59:15

be sure to rate us and

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00:23:59:15 - 00:24:02:20

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00:24:02:20 - 00:24:06:16

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00:24:06:16 - 00:24:11:03

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00:24:11:03 - 00:24:12:14

See you next time.