Cultural Funmensions-

I realize what a bad play-on-words the title is but i'm gonna stick by it!

What a crazy week we just had!

This week that just went by we presented the Cultural Dimensions project that we have been working on for 10 weeks! This whole week was packed with us just going over new things, practicing old ones and trying to master our presentation before bringing the internship to an amazing culmination!

Although one of the most hectic weeks, it was one of the best. Our team consisting of Amber, Colton, Valarie, Zach, Sophie, Kaitlyn, Alex and myself became very close in the final weeks, hearing each other's voices almost daily. It was fantastic getting so much closer with the team; we were able to bring up new ideas and constructively work as a team to fine tune the project!

Once we finished our presentation, it was so great to hear all of the fantastic feedback about things the audience learned as well as how impressed they were with the amount of information we gathered / work we put into the project! Getting to learn so much about other cultures around the world was an experience I wouldn't have wanted to get anywhere else. Working with interns from around the world coming from all different backgrounds ... drinking from all different types of milk containers  ... has been great in helping me broaden my understanding of the world!

Milk jokes aside, this internship has been amazing. I couldn't have asked for a better intern team and country partner! Learning about USA as well as UK has made me want to travel even more and with the experience i've gained from working here, I'm confident i'll be successful in my adventures!:)

Now back to my poutine!

Shane Mitchell
Destination Services Intern - Dwellworks
Ottawa, Canada

Projects

     Throughout my time here I have worked and assisted in many projects for our department. Being such a small team (3 + me) I got to see a lot of different sides of HR; the good, the bad and the ugly. I have learned a lot about benefits, compensation, and recruiting.

     One of the projects I just finished up is creating a guide that new hires can follow to make the onboarding process run more smoothly. Right now it’s overwhelming the amount of paperwork and documents we have to keep track of, all due at different times, and requiring different thing. So I’m working to get everything in one place so it’s easier and less stressful for the new hire.

      Recruiting is another big “project” that is ongoing, and is fun, but it takes a lot of time and effort. And this summer has been crazy with the amount of recruiting we have been doing. It starts by screening and finding a resume of a candidate with the right qualifications, then setting up a phone interview with that person to see if they are a right fit for the company, and if so bringing them in for an in person interview interview. It sounds easy, but you'd be surprised at how many candidates we have to go through until we find the right one for the job.

     It’s always so rewarding when you find a candidate that would be perfect for the position. When I first started, Jess would always talk about this gut feeling she got when she was talking to someone, and I never really understood what that meant until I experienced it for myself. As you’re talking on the phone with someone you just know that they are the definition of what Dwellworks is. Their personality, the way they speak, examples they use; everything just aligns with the way we do business here. It’s exciting to get to see the whole process through from start to finish; from the first interaction over the phone to that person’s first day on the job.

- Valarie Reinig, HR

Biggest Takeaway

I definitely learned a lot from this internship this past summer. My biggest takeaway by far was working on our intern group project. My group researched the cultural dimensions of the different countries that Dwellworks operates in. Working on the project for a total of ten weeks was an eye opener for everyone that participated. We all came from different cultures, environments, and schools which lead to somewhat of different opinions throughout the research process. Ultimately, we learned to adapt to one another and found out some interesting facts about each other that we wouldn’t have came across otherwise. The fact that milk comes in bags in Canada still is odd to me… J This project shows that we need to adapt to every day situations in the business world and that the world is becoming more global. Working with our international offices and learning about different cultures is something I will certainly takeaway with me for the future.

-Amber

A Summer's Worth

I can’t believe it! We are coming into the last week of the internship and it is a bittersweet moment.  In the past few weeks the office has been quite busy with a few people out of the office. I am glad that I was able to step in when help was needed. I was tasked with a couple new projects to help with the Supply Chain team in which I was excited to help lower the work load because this summer has been a busy one in recruiting new DSCs for increasing volume in certain metro areas.  The projects included creating scorecards, coverage surveys, and identifying suitable suppliers.  This whole summer has been fun yet productive. That surprises me because usually it’s either a fun or productive summer, but it was both. During the month of July a couple of the newer employees at Dwellworks including Ben and I actually got a tour through our beloved cities of Royal Oak and Birmingham.  The Detroit office has been working diligently in closing the month of June and had a billing prize drawing that Ben and I were included in as well. I was surprised when my name came out as I won a Subway gift card, but it was definitely nice to know that we were included in something like that because I wasn’t expecting anything out of it. Dwellworks is truly something that sticks their values and is expressed in every action.  As the interns are in the closing week of the internship, I cannot thank Dwellworks enough for this great opportunity!

 Also, this coke was sitting at my desk and I thought this was one of the coolest things. Thanks Amber! After a summer of getting to know some of the people at Dwellworks, I can say that they are what makes you come in and enjoy the work you do.

Andrew Tam

Detroit

Intern, Supply Chain

Worthy of a Recommendation (For Some)

Throughout the summer, I have learned that Dwellworks hires people not just based on their skills, but also, possibly even more importantly, based on their character.  For this reason, I would recommend this internship to my friends and classmates, but only those that would thrive in this type of environment. 

I would recommend Dwellworks to my friends and classmates that are ambitious, friendly, open-minded and team oriented.  This type of work environment is not for everyone; I have some friends and know plenty of classmates that prefer to work independently.  Independent workers have the tendency to have a narrow perspective and are motivated by self-glorifying results; therefore, they wouldn’t fit in here.

This summer, I have seen and experienced that Dwellworks employees thrive when working as a team.  This includes setting high goals for the team, the willingness to be open to and accept different ideas/opinions and the friendly interactions that come before, during and after the business interactions. 

Our cultural dimensions group project was a perfect example of this.  Having only been here for the summer, subconsciously and consciously, we began adapting to this environment and replicating the strong characteristics of our leaders.  This couldn’t happen unless we were open and eager to learn from others, 

which is one of the most important aspects of success here at Dwellworks.  

Alex  

Global Supply Chain

Cleveland 

'Our Strength Lies in Our Differences'

For our multi-national Cultural Dimensions team, yesterday saw the climax of our summer-long intern project. In one and a half short hours, we collectively delivered the culmination of eleven weeks' worth of research hours, conference calls, script-writing and practice presentations.

As its name would suggest, the aim of our project has been to acknowledge and understand the cultural diversity that exists in each of the countries in which Dwellworks operates. From the research that Shane and I have conducted into the USA and the interactions that I have been lucky enough to have with my fellow interns in Cleveland and Ottawa, I can wholeheartedly confirm that this has been achieved.

While working internationally can often prove a little logistically challenging, the minor technological hindrances that we experienced over the weeks were not enough to detract from a premise that was central to our presentation - 'culture only exists by comparison'. Indeed, from all of the countless hours of research and meetings this is undoubtedly the strongest idea that sticks in my mind. After all, if culture can only be defined in relation to other cultures, then how this is defined is not by what is the same, but by what it is unique.

From working so closely with Shane in Ottawa, I can definitely attest to the fact that 'strength lies in differences'. Although we realised quite early on that we have an uncanny amount of things in common, the things that we found the most interesting about each others' cultures were undeniably the things that were different. Let's be honest, I think we were all a little blown away by the fact that Canadians store milk in bags.

But all jokes aside, if there's one thing that I'd like the various teams at Dwellworks to take from yesterday's presentation, it is the idea that global diversity can only enhance and improve a company's prospects. This is something that I have experienced week-in, week-out during my time here at Dwellworks in the UK; I am confident that with this kind of mentality, the company can only continue to grow and expand.

To my fellow team-mates: Valarie, Zach, Amber, Colton, Alex, Kaitlyn and of course, Shane - I'd like to extend a huge thank you for all of your patience, time and hard work. The presentation was pretty killer, even if I do say so myself.

What a great way to spend a summer!

- Sophie Moore,
  DS Intern, UK

Week 11: Why Would You Recommend This internship to your Classmates?: Treehouses

                As this summer slowly rolls to a close (just 5 more days left after today, so that means just one more week), the two prompts I’ve saved til the end are holistically reflective.  This one, particularly, is considerably presumptuous. 

                It’s a bit of a gamble, to set up the intern program with set blog prompts, and have one that outright assumes the internship will be recommendable on the other side.  That gambit, I believe, probably pays off 9/10 times.  Truthfully, it’s hard to believe there are all that many internships aimed at undergraduates that are better than Dwellworks. 

                But therein lies the rub.  My classmates are no longer undergraduates.  I have not been an undergraduate for 5 years.  My eligibility for anything but the legal intern position ran out 6 years ago. 

                At the end of the day, I can whole-heartedly say that I have enjoyed the internship.  I am thankful for the opportunity, for the people I’ve met and worked with, and for the skills I’ve gained.  But I don’t know if I would recommend it to the majority of my classmates.  But I say that, not because there is anything wrong with the internship, but because of the profound differences between what the internship aims to accomplish, and what most students entering their last year of law school are looking to achieve. 

                As I mentioned last time, Dwellworks legal department is combined with compliance.  That’s fine and it works for a company like Dwellworks- but it doesn’t lend itself to stereotypical legal experience.  There’s no filing motions, no going to court rooms, no real negotiations of settlements, etc. etc.  For me, that’s fine.  I spent the last year in a litigation setting and this was a welcome change of pace.  Indeed, it’s a good change of pace, and probably mirrors more realistic legal experience. 

                But it’s likely not what most of my classmates are looking for.  Top that with blogposts and an absolutely un-legal, undergraduate style group presentation, and it’s just not altogether an attractive experience, from the outside looking in.   But not all of my classmates are so cutthroat that they wouldn’t be interested. 

I would recommend this position to those who might not be all that excited about practicing law after law school (the amount of those is significantly astounding).  I would recommend it to anyone who has struggled to find their preferred practice field.  I would recommend it to anyone with a somewhat entrepreneurial streak.  There is certainly real and valuable experience in this internship, but it’s not exactly of the sort most of my classmates are looking for.

And maybe, just maybe, that’s exactly how it ought to be.  Perhaps those who don’t want it are the one’s missing out.

-Zack