Today we had the privilege of hearing from Jim Donofrio, VP of Strategic Partnerships for the NBC Sports Group. He spoke to us on a wide array of topics from his role at NBC, including the deals he’s made and tips for aspiring sports business professionals such as ourselves. My biggest takeaway from Jim’s talk was to make relationships as personal as possible, and one easy way to achieve that is through hand written notes. Yes, these might be little things that take a lot of time, but they go a long way in describing who you are as a person and the extra effort you put in. He concluded by giving us five important questions to ask ourselves throughout our career:
- Are you celebrated in your job?
- Do your co-workers inspire you?
- Are you given the tools to succeed?
- Do you have the chance to leave a legacy?
- Are you maintaining personal happiness?
Back at Foot Locker, the pace has picked up tremendously. We are slowly being transitioned from the intern mindset to that of a full-time employee; all the tasks and projects given to me now are reflecting the responsibilities of a full time Replenishment Analyst. My co-workers drive me to push my boundaries every day with my assignments and I relish the challenges that are put in front of me. I have begun analyzing and allocating pairs of shoes to stores across the US by looking at comparable shoes and using their past sales data as a starting point. Next, I follow through and execute these orders by transferring the product from either the warehouses or the vendors across the country and into the stores. Oh, and did I mention the perks of the job? Three free pairs of shoes and two free tickets to the Yankees game (all within the last week mind you!). Yes you guessed right, I am pretty much the envy of my fellow interns and my classmates.
“It is those mere 2-3 hours every day listening to a speaker, grabbing a quick snack before our Workshop or riding the packed subway to our next event that really builds our relationships. Looking back, it’s the little memories that will survive the test of time.”
In less than two weeks, most of the friends I have made through MSBA 2016 will have finished their internships and be moving back to their homes or heading back to college. Meanwhile, I still have four weeks left of my internship and will continue to live in NYC. However, the thought of continuing to live in this city without the friends who I have grown so close and attached to is preposterous. Normally, you would think six weeks is a short amount of time to get so connected with numerous like-minded individuals, especially with each of our busy internships. However, it is those mere 2-3 hours every day listening to a speaker, grabbing a quick snack before our Workshop or riding the packed subway to our next event that really builds our relationships. Looking back, it’s the little memories that will survive the test of time. Moving forward, I am sure we will stay connected with each other and get to meet again at some point in the near future. I accept and understand that I may not be able to meet a lot of these people who I cherish quite fondly for a while, particularly considering I’m from India, but I know that when I do, we will pick back up from the exact place we leave off at the end of this summer.