A Week in Walton

My name is Conor McCarthy, I was appointed as the Business Development Intern in the TSSG Technology Gateway at Walton Institute in December of last year. The role commenced on the 17^th of January 2022. I came into the role as a 3^rd year student in the marketing stream of the level 8 Business degree in South East Technological University.

In this article I will outline what a week working at Walton Institute entails. The week starts by checking in with my two supervisors in the Technology Gateway. A discussion takes place where the week’s tasks are brought to the table and any potential opportunities are investigated. As the intern I was tasked with approaching companies who had been approved for Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation Vouchers. I drafted emails tailored specifically to each client’s needs, in the hope that they would get back to me with an interest in working together. As well as this, I met with the Head of Divisions within Walton Institute. By setting up these meetings, my supervisors were able to give me a greater insight into the projects carried out by the various departments within the organisation. By being exposed to new people I was then able to extend my reach within Walton. Having that exposure meant that later in the coming days I was brought in on multiple new projects that were of interest to me, not only as an intern, but also as a person. The Institute made me part of their team. When colleagues and I jumped on a zoom call with a promising client, I was immediately welcomed into the project and given the task of carrying out some market research to explore the demand for our client’s product, which for me was beneficial due to my chosen stream of marketing in my course.

Podcast

When Wednesday comes it is my job to upload the Institute’s insightful podcasts onto Anchor Fm, so the Marketing Manager can push it out to the various social media platforms with the aim of attracting potential customers to listen and gain insights into the various divisions within Walton. It is hugely beneficial to have been given this task as it continues to enhance my computing skills. It is my job to put the audio together and ensure that there is a clean flow from the intro right through to the conclusion of the podcast.

Marketing the Gateway

Wednesday evening sees the weekly meeting between my business development supervisors, the marketing team and myself to discuss what we can do to promote new products and services that have entered Walton Institute. This meeting is important as it gives us an opportunity to engage in marketing. My supervisor, Carol with a little help from myself, were able to showcase technology such as the Botscan 3D Scanner and the Tesla Suit to the public through a newspaper article. 

Innovation Voucher

Through working in Walton I have learned to deal with rejection, an important element of any career.  When approaching Innovation Voucher holders, I was immediately told by my supervisors that I would be met with silence from the majority of those that I reached out to. This unfortunately turned out to be my experience. However, I was approached by one client who informed me that they could potentially have an interest in working with us in Walton. It was my job to ensure that a meeting was scheduled for my client to meet with my supervisor Jim, and myself to further discuss the potential project. This was very exciting for me as the Institute had given me the responsibility of approaching and being the first point of communication for the client. Upon discussion with Walton Institute, it was determined that a project was in the pipeline, and I had in fact secured my first client as an intern.

Expos

Being a Technology Gateway, Walton Institute was invited to be part of the Cobots event which would be taking place here in Waterford. This, with the help of my supervisors, allowed me to be present at the event and experience what it is like to showcase your product or service to a live audience. By taking some photographs throughout the presentation, I was able to capture the Walton team in action at the event talking to over 40 prospective clients.

Working at Walton Institute has helped me to grow as an employee and understand certain roles within a business. I also believe that the role has given me an insight into what life will bring beyond my college years.