Interning at Eaton Corporation

By Jill Golden
My internship experience at Eaton Corporation has been very positive. Not only have I gained beneficial experience related to public relations, but I have also learned general knowledge about how world-wide corporations function, the many different roles and positions that exist in these companies (there’s a lot) and how professionals function and work together in the workplace. It’s been fascinating to see how everything happens behind the scenes. I think what I am loving most about my internship is that I am included in everything. I am invited to important meetings with our senior leadership officers, I’m writing documents and posts that important people in the company read and use and I’m designing shirts, signs, menus, etc. that our CEO sees and wears. I feel that I am truly being included in the work here and not just being given the “easy stuff” because I am an intern. 
            My responsibilities include helping plan events, acting as a contact for other employees with questions about things my department is doing, doing fun design work, writing memos and letters regarding the donations we give and many other things. The event planning is probably my favorite part of my internship so far. What’s exciting about it is the events we put together are for hundreds of people, at multiple locations and ones that our CEO attends, so it’s important that they are organized and planned accordingly. It’s been fun to be included and be given such important roles when planning. I’ve learned a lot of small event planning tips too that will be helpful in the future. I also am the one to post on our internal social media channel, Yammer. It’s been interesting to see what posts do well and which ones don’t get as much attention. I definitely have learned a lot that I will carry with me throughout my public relations career. 
            Advice I would give to other student interns is to take advantage of the opportunities you are given at your internship. We have a lot of great opportunities here that I am able to be a part of. For example, yesterday I met one of Ohio’s congressmen. Every additional opportunity that comes my way I try to take part in to broaden my knowledge. I would also recommend to try to go above and beyond when it comes to your internship responsibilities. Each day I try to do more than I am asked or take charge of something on my own to show how important the job and work is to me and that I am capable of completing things on my own. I think this leaves a good impression with your boss which can be beneficial for a future reference or for possibly getting hired. 

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