NAME: Carla Martinesi
NATIONALITY: Swiss/Italian/Hong Kongese
PROGRAM: BBA in Hospitality Management
With a thoroughly international background, a love for photography (and food), and a Glion education, Carla Martinesi, has a lot to offer to employers. No surprise then, that she received three internship offers in her fourth BBA semester, from Mandarin Oriental Milan, Maana Travel Morocco and BMF Media. But which did she choose? We caught up with her once she came back from her internship.
How did you choose between your three internship offers?
“It was very hard to decide where to go. My first gut feeling was to choose based on location, but again that was almost impossible to decide with three amazing countries to choose from. I knew I wanted to focus on Marketing, and again all three positions offered that!”, Carla said.
“However, the determining factor was specifically what kind of Marketing I would work with. BMF Media offered a range of responsibilities I would have, including classes taught by management level people e.g. Contract Reading, Analysing Analytics and other close personal time with Department Heads.”
How did you secure this particular internship?
“I applied through the Glion Internship platform and was shortlisted for an interview when they came to visit.”
Carla’s placement is an example of the access Glion students have to leading brands around the world, providing unrivalled real-world experience and opportunities.
What were your main responsibilities?
“As Admin Assistant to the Art Directors in the Design Department, my main responsibility was to make sure the timeline of events was always updated. I scheduled meetings and also worked on designs for invites, floor plans and went on-site to style events.”
What did you like most about your job?
“As you’d expect for a photographer, the thing I liked most was the exposure! I worked on projects and events for clients like W Hotels, Renaissance Hotels, Google, BeautyCon, Stillhouse Whiskey and Dell.”
Carla experienced first-hand the successful application of a hospitality education in different industries. Both her classroom knowledge and self-taught photography skills came in useful.
“I had friends here and there that loved taking different types of photos, so I learnt how to shoot different things through different people. Editing is a key aspect of photography, it changes a photo, I learned by watching Youtube videos and mimicking editing styles from creators on Instagram”.
How did you apply what you have learned at Glion?
“I believe some of the classes I learned before my internship proved to be useful during my internship. Particularly classes like Marketing and Intercultural Management, as I had never worked or lived in the US before, so understanding their work ethics and the office culture was important before starting my internship.”
What have you learned from the internship?
“I learned how to use basic design software like Photoshop and Illustrator, worked on proposals for pitching to clients and became more confident to share ideas with such a big group of experienced people”, Carla said.
“I also learned that I set very high standards for myself, I wouldn’t leave the office if I hadn’t finished my task exactly the way I wanted it done!”
Has this experience changed your career ambitions?
“I didn’t even know about Experiential Marketing before I started at BMF Media. But now, after spending six months completely immersed in the industry, I’m looking to build my career in this field. I knew I loved the Marketing classes and in my spare time I worked in events both back and front of house, so to find an industry where events blend consumer experience and marketing, is perfect.”
Can you sum up your internship in a few sentences?
“I started by not knowing the industry nor the structure of an experiential marketing agency. I was given small admin roles and as I got more confident, I worked on expanding my design skills in Photoshop and Illustrator, on projects with bigger clients, more mood boards and more styling onsite.”
You can learn more about the exclusive internship opportunities and real-world experience available to Glion students on our career development page.
