Learnings From a Summer Intern

Last summer, we had the privilege of working with a few bright, motivated students who joined us as interns. Their input was invaluable to our work and we will be sharing it with you in the next few months. ?In the meantime, we have asked our interns about their experience working with us. ?As we tend to be the ones asking our clients questions about their work environment, we thought you might want to know what it's like for someone to spend a few weeks/months working with us.

We asked our interns to give us feedback on three questions. Below, therefore, the first of these short insights from?Ella Smith.

1. Describe the nature of your summer internship projects.

Over the course of my internship this summer, with Voice At The Table, I have been fortunate enough to work on a range of different projects. From researching neuro-inclusive techniques for the workplace, to experiencing client-facing listening circles first-hand, it has been a fascinating couple of months. I have particularly enjoyed getting involved with reviewing and developing the digital Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) interventions, as well as exploring all the different aspects of supporting EDI in the workplace.

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2. What have you learnt about yourself whilst working on this/these projects?

While researching diversity, especially neurodiversity, has always been a passion of mine, exploring real-world EDI interventions has expanded my perspective, teaching me to approach EDI more practically. I have witnessed the tangible benefits that a diverse workforce brings to an organisation and have seen how Voice At The Table drives meaningful change to access these benefits. This experience has solidified my desire to continue supporting EDI in the workplace. However, I’ve discovered that I want to be more actively involved in facilitating these practical EDI interventions, moving beyond research alone, to making a tangible difference in promoting inclusion in the workplace. ?

3. What will you take away from this experience into the next chapter of your life?

This experience has shown me the importance of listening and creating a suitable environment that allows for innovation. Having experienced the power of the Thinking Environment? , both with clients and in internal meetings at Voice At The Table, this is definitely something I will take with me into the future. Additionally, I hope to maintain a relationship with the Voice At The Table team, as they have all been unbelievably kind and supportive. It has been a joy to work alongside them over the last couple months, and I look forward to hopefully working with them again in the future.

This blog was first published on the Voice At The Table website ?

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