Meet Shay!

 Name: Shay Bahner

Position: Leadership Development Program

College: The Ohio State University

Company: American Home Shield

Tell the readers a little bit about yourself.

I am a recent graduate from The Ohio State University where I studied Marketing. I was born and raised in Cincinnati, OH. I enjoy playing golf and basketball, watching sporting events, and attending concerts. I also enjoy playing Fortnite on my Xbox, watching The Office, Friends, and Game of Thrones (like a lot of other people). My favorite sports teams include: Ohio State Football and Basketball, Cincinnati Reds, and Cincinnati Bengals. I lived in Japan for five years and got to travel to many different Asian and European countries. I have even been to Australia and New Zealand! I will do any activity that involves competition (bowling, ping pong games, really any game).

Can you talk a little about your internship and your current position?

In the summer of 2017, I worked as part of the Product Team for Terminix Residential. I am now in the Leadership Development Program for American Home Shield. My current rotation is in Contractor Relations. This department is allowing me the opportunity to learn how American Home Shield manages and works with all their contractors.

What is your favorite part about living in Memphis?

TBD, I’ve only been here 2 weeks. But, my apartment is across the street from Loflin Yard, which appears to be a fun place to hang out.

What attracted you to ServiceMaster originally as an intern? What attracted you to stay?

I didn’t know anything about ServiceMaster. After working here for one summer, I knew that I really enjoyed the people and loved the environment.

The Leadership Development Program is an incredible learning opportunity that allows you to gain experience in five different departments. I think getting to learn about many different aspects of a business, while also obtaining experience in all those areas, played a huge role in why I came back. The five rotations that I get to experience include: Marking, Sales, Product, Process Improvement, and Contractor Relations.

What does a typical day look like for you?

TBD, I’ve had a lot of learning to do since I’ve started. My daily routine and work will change as I learn more and dive into different projects and responsibilities.

What was your first impression of the new building? 

It is big and easy to get lost! It’s such an amazing building to work in that provides its employees with many resources to be productive.

What has been the most challenging part for you in the transition to a full-time employee? 

Moving to a new city where I don’t know anybody. I am adjusting well and meeting new people every day which is great.

What is one word you would use to describe your workplace environment? 

Innovative.

Meet Miriam!

Name: Miriam Chung

Intern Title: Branch Operations

College: The University of Tennessee Knoxville

Company: Terminix

Tell the readers a little bit about yourself.

I am a third year at The University of Tennessee Knoxville studying Supply Chain Management and Business Analytics. I was born and raised in Collierville, TN. In my free time I enjoy hanging out with friends, watching movies, and cooking.

Can you talk a little bit about the steps you took to land this internship?

I knew that Terminix was going to visit UT for the career fair. At the time I found out, I did not have a resume. I worked on creating one, and then perfecting it, before meeting with the recruiters at the career fair. Following the career fair, I had two phone calls and now here I am!

What attracted you to ServiceMaster? 

I liked the idea that it is near my hometown and I can commute from home. Staying in Memphis allows me to still be familiar with the area that I am working in, and not in a completely new environment, which is something I wanted for this summer.

What was your first impression of the new building? 

I thought it was amazing. I was so surprised by how they could make it look so professional, with keeping some of the designs from the mall. In general, it looks clean and modernized.

What has been your most memorable moment this summer? 

My most memorable moment has been being able to go on ride a-longs with technicians and sales professionals. I have been out in the field, which allowed me to gain some hands-on experience. This opportunity is something that corporate life does not see on the daily basis.

What is one word you would use to describe your workplace environment? 

Goal-orientated

Rose’s Trip to Philly

Recently I had the chance to fly out to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to take my first business trip. I performed two unannounced branch audits in the outskirts of the city along side Chelsea Beech. This was my second week of my internship and I had no clue what to expect!

This trip was the first unannounced branch audit trip the internal audit department has done and I was lucky enough to be on the trip and experience it. The first branch we audited was a residential branch. When we arrived at the branch the branch manager was very surprised when we told him we were here for an audit. He was very welcoming and we were able to receive all the information we needed to perform the audit. Since I have never seen an audit performed, this branch was an incredible learning experience for me! Chelsea showed me the ropes, and step by step, I was able to comprehend the reasoning behind the branch audits.

On Tuesday we finished the branch audit  and headed into downtown Philadelphia for dinner and to explore. I have been to Philadelphia once before, but seeing it for a second time made me love the city even more. We acted like tourists and visited all the landmarks in Philadelphia including: The Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Reading Terminal, and the “Rocky Steps”.

The next morning, we headed to our next location to audit, a Commercial Branch. This branch was very different than the residential branch due to servicing companies and facilities rather than homes. The branch was also much larger in revenue and employees. The branch manager at this location was also extremely surprised when we walked up to the front door of the branch. He was very friendly and willing to help us in any way possible. This branch had a lot of experience which I noticed made a huge difference with how a branch is managed. It was very organized and was ran at an expertise level.

I noticed one of the large accounts the branch serviced was the Philadelphia Eagles (my family is HUGE fans) and mentioned it to the branch manager. He made a few calls with connections since Terminix is an Eagle’s sponsor, and he set up a tour of the Nova Care Center practice facility! I was ecstatic for the opportunity to see my favorite NFL team practice!!!

On Thursday we finished up the branch audit and I had the chance to be involved in almost all the audit process and gain a deep comprehension of the fieldwork audit process. I was very happy with the knowledge I would take back to the corporate office at ServiceMaster. Later that day we headed down to the Eagle’s practice facility which was the highlight of my trip. Later Chelsea and I headed back into the city for a real Italian dinner at a restaurant suggested by the branch manager called Ralph’s. The best part was when we sat down for dinner we signed release forms to be on the Travel Channel! Andrew Zimmern from “Bizarre Foods” was filming a new show at this cute Italian restaurant in Philadelphia. Not to mention the food was fantastic.

Overall, my first business trip was an absolute success. Not only did I learn so much about internal audit and why we audit out branches, but I experienced my love for traveling and exploring places!

 

Rose Borcky, Internal Audit Intern

Meet Jeff!

 Name: Jeff

Intern Position: Financial Planning and Analysis  

College: Florida State University 

Company: American Home Shield

Tell the readers a little bit about yourself.

I attend Florida State University, where I am double majoring in Finance and Economics, and will begin my senior year. I am from Tallahassee, FL, which is around thirteen hours from Memphis. I really enjoy doing all things outdoors and played baseball for thirteen years.

Are you enjoying living in Memphis, TN?

Yes, I really enjoy the city! It is a great experience getting to live in a new city this summer and learning all the ins and outs.

Can you talk a little bit about the steps you took to land this internship?

I attended a Career Fair at my school, where I first learned about the program. From there, I went through around three to four interviews. Flash-forward four months and here I am!

What attracted you to ServiceMaster?

The thing that initially attracted me to this company was the idea that they just moved into a brand-new space. Also, the idea that American Home Shield was spinning off into its own publicly traded company was very interesting to me. I was intrigued by all the change and wanted to be a part of it.

What does a typical day look like for you?  

A typical day for Jeff includes collaborating with my manager on various projects. I work on a lot of Excel models, run reports on different software platforms, talk to my coworkers quite a bit, and go on a lot of coffee trips to the kitchen.

What was your first impression of the new building? 

It is HUGE. It was kind of overwhelming at first, due to the size. During our first day of orientation we took a tour and after that, it became very manageable. I am very lucky that my department is easy to get to!

What has been the most challenging part for you, so far? 

The most challenging part has been learning directions and how to get around the city. Basically, just figuring out where to go for certain things.

What is one word you would use to describe your workplace environment? 

Collaborative

Wait, It’s Already Week Four?

The interns have completed three (yes, three) weeks of the summer internship program. At this point, projects are in full swing, daily routines have been mastered, and we are officially getting into the hang of corporate life. This past week, interns got to experience two new things: our first New Memphis Institute Summer Experience and our first Lunch & Learn.

On Monday, New Memphis Institute hosted their first event at Old Dominick called the “Summer Experience Kick-Off”. This was the first event of the summer and allowed our interns to meet other college students, local businesses and community leaders, and spend some time together outside of the office. It gave us the opportunity to learn more about New Memphis Institute and the upcoming events they are hosting, along with learning more about the city of Memphis.

Interns, Reagan and Emma

“It was a great time to get to know a few of the other young adults in Memphis and hear about their internships” said Reagan Morris, who is assisting in Product Analytics for Terminix. “Personally, the best part was finding that I was not the only one who battled the first week awkwardness and confusion.”

On Thursday, we got to attend our very first Lunch & Learn over Microsoft Excel. This allowed us to better understand some features that this program offers. Almost all of us use Excel daily, so this was a very helpful topic to get more insight about. Our first lunch and learn was very beneficial and we cannot wait to have these throughout the summer (the great food was another bonus).

 

“The Microsoft Excel Lunch & Learn was very beneficial,” said Zach Khan who is interning in Finance for American Home Shield. “It was a great experience to have senior leaders in the company take time out of their day to teach us skills that they still use every day.”

Intern, Kevin Gonzalez

Kevin Gonzalez, who is interning in Application Development/IT for American Home Shield this summer, summed up the first three weeks perfectly: “From networking at the Redbirds game to watching the Warriors devour the Cavs with other interns in game four, my time here has been great.

 

During week one we were given tours of call centers and training areas, which to me was very interesting. Since I am interning at American Home Shield as an Application Developer, I got to see how the call centers use the software built by my team.

Last week marked the end of week three. From meetings to assignments to choosing what type of coffee I want to drink, adjustment has been interesting. A lot of information, a lot of time training, a lot of fun on this team. Now, time to get back to work … this microservice won’t code itself.”

The first three weeks have absolutely flown by here at ServiceMaster. We are all learning so much through our projects, our managers, events like the ones we had this week, and each other. If the next seven weeks are as good as the last three, we have a lot to look forward to.