My experience as a Warehouse Process Intern at Coca-Cola Consolidated has been nothing short of fantastic. I have learned so much in these past two months that I am sad it is coming to an end so quickly in these next couple of weeks. In being a part of the Applied Learning Experience here at Coca-Cola, the interns are given the unique ability to branch away from their project focus, and shadow other areas of the business that pique their interest for a potential future career route. This is a very helpful characteristic of the internship, and one of the key reasons I worked so hard to get hired on for the summer as an intern, for it allows me to experience real life work in all different focuses under my Supply Chain Management major.
The internship role was especially competitive to get, with Coca-Cola Consolidated only accepting 4% of all the applicants who applied, there are 22 of us in total. My project is also unique in the fact that the problem I am trying to amend touches so many different departments at Coca-Cola Consolidated.
It revolves around out-of-stock scenarios in the warehouse, which can affect all of the Supply Chain departments, from logistics, procurement, planning, manufacturing/production, and, of course, warehouse. I am designing a software platform tool that gives the warehouse clerks/supervisors an easier decision-making process of what to do when a product, that is supposed to go out on a shipment today, is out-of-stock. From being able to shadow many different functions of the business, as well as with my project being linked to many other Supply Chain departments outside the warehouse, this internship role has truly helped me gain knowledge and experience in many of the topics that fall under my Supply Chain Management major.
I have been privileged to attend Anderson University (SC), where my professors care so much about equipping their students to better perform in the real-life work environment upon graduation. At Anderson University, you are not considered a number in a classroom like you might be at a larger university. You are a part of a family, where the professors and faculty truly take you under their wing to make sure you learn and succeed. In the Supply Chain Management department in particular, my professors like Dr. Kim Whitehead and Professor Matt Ball truly provide a challenging, yet rewarding, educational experience that has prepared me well for this internship and my future career.
Due to already being used to a smaller, family type of learning environment, this internship experience has been an easy transition. This is due to Coca-Cola Consolidated being such a family-oriented company, where you are considered more of part of a big family, surrounded by peers and employees who truly care about you. In attending a university that is grounded in Christian beliefs, it sets its’ students up perfectly to get on with a company like Coca-Cola Consolidated, who shares the same beliefs and mission statement.