Cardinal officially launched their summer internship program on June 8th. Now in full swing, this is the first year Cardinal has conducted their summer internship virtually. Cardinal welcomed ten new and three returning interns. The interns work in the Software Development, Global Customer Service (GCS), Marketing, and Global Product departments.
The first week of interning is commonly known as Immersion Week – it is a time to learn what really goes on behind the scenes at Cardinal. For instance, what Cardinal is, what they do, and all about authentication. Software development intern Devinn Kilgore described his integration into the company as “fast, almost instant, you could even describe it as frictionless,” which is music to our ears (authentication humor). He also added, “I don’t think the virtual experience has stopped us from learning and accomplishing things. The meetings that we have had during Immersion Week increased my knowledge of the company and provided information that I otherwise wouldn’t have known.”
Along with getting to know their fellow interns during Immersion Week, the interns also got time to meet the teams they would be working with and other important people within the company. Megan Knapp, returning intern and member of the product team, commented, “While typically we would get to know our team by going out to lunch together, Cardinal still found a way to make our virtual Immersion Week extra special by ordering all the interns their own pizzas for lunch.” Another intern from the data engineering team, Sarah Yurick, talked about the “stand-ups” that her team does every morning – short meetings that have helped her get to know people and feel connected. She also wanted to give a special shoutout to her manager, Jeremy Williams, for being very hands-on and helping her and her fellow data engineering intern, Joy Wang, with any questions and problems they have encountered.
In terms of the overall virtual integration of the interns into Cardinal, in comparison to being in the office, it is safe to say that Cardinal has done a fantastic job. According to returning intern, Aidan Haskett, although it was a “bummer” not to get to meet everyone face to face this year but Cardinal did a great job while keeping everyone safe. Additionally, returning intern, Megan Knapp, said Immersion Week was just as successful online as in person.
The global pandemic has changed all of us. It’s changed the way we live, work, and the way we will work in the future. New skills and navigating life’s changes are being learned first-hand. We feel that our interns are not only learning about Cardinal, but they’re finding out for themselves that THEY are adaptable and open-minded to whatever life may throw at them. Matt Kontra, an intern from the GCS team stated, “My on-boarding experience and brief time with Cardinal has been nothing but enjoyable. When adversity brought on by the pandemic struck, Courtney (Senior HR Generalist) was extremely clear about all that was going on, and how the internship program would progress. I found this to be very reassuring.” He was later able to say, “Everyone I have met and worked with has been welcoming. The GCS team has been extremely helpful and willing to take the time to talk with me and teach me the correct way to resolve client requests – which I have found greatly valuable.”
Stay tuned for more on the adventures of the virtual summer interns. It promises to be a fun summer!