Over the course of the summer, Fluent and AdParlor onboarded 15 unique and talented individuals to join our remote internship program. The 10 weeks of the program flew by, but the interns made astounding achievements and built strong connections during their time here.
Meet Our 2021 Summer Intern Program Participants
Below, check out a few fun facts about each of the interns, along with some insight into what they learned in their roles across the organization. Congrats and thank you to these amazing interns for everything they have accomplished. We are so excited to see where their professional journeys take them and are happy to have been a stepping stone on their career paths.
Gibbes Tighe
Performance Intern, AdParlor
Economics Major, Wake Forest University
What is your life’s anthem?
Althea by the Grateful Dead, one of my all-time favorite songs.
What is the funniest thing that has happened to you?
“I was leaving a restaurant in NYC and passed Jonah Hill on the way out and turned to my friend and said “Wait that was Jonah Hill,” which he heard and gave me a very dirty look for a few seconds, probably upset that I may have brought attention to him out in public.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I learned how to navigate/efficiently operate Facebook Ads Manager and how to build out ad campaigns on various social media platforms.”
Olivia Leonard
Account Management Intern, AdParlor
Strategic Communications Major, University of Kansas
If you were a potato, how would you be cooked?
“I would want to be Freddy’s or McDonald’s french fry because they are so good and Freddy’s sauce is the best.”
If you were a Microsoft Office program, which program would you be, and why?
“I would be Outlook because I love the calendar, it keeps me super organized.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I learned how to build campaigns on Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I also worked on creating a creative analysis for our client.”
Sam Campbell
IT Intern, Fluent
Information Security Major, Sheridan College
If you were a Microsoft Office program, which program would you be, and why?
“I would be the Microsoft Office ClickToRun Installer Service because I find myself having to troubleshoot Office problems all the time.”
What is the funniest thing that has happened to you?
“Too many to choose from, but I can answer for this week. Definitely playing a game of Catan with some friends and spending 15 minutes trading all of our cards in one turn just to slowly realize we’d basically only traded 1 card we actually needed.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“One thing that I learned while working throughout the program was the application development deployment process. In school, I never really got to work with full-scale programs, so being able to go through the entire process of development, to sandbox, to testing, to production was very informative. I’ve never used GitHub to manage application changes collaboratively among other developers through branches before, so this was also a great exercise in learning to work as a development team.”
Adam Bloom
Legal Intern, Fluent
Political Science and Philosophy Major, Syracuse University
What kind of food truck would you work at?
Probably a BBQ food truck!
What three items would you bring to a deserted island, and why?
“A sound system, because music is my life. A notepad! Being deserted would be a perfect time and setting to write a novel or autobiography (not that my life is that exciting). And lastly, a Tempurpedic bed…if I am on a deserted island, I might as well live luxuriously.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“This summer, I assisted Fluent’s General Counsel by analyzing the newly-passed Florida Robocall bill, which is modeled after, but more restrictive than, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. We informed the Winopoly team of the changes to the law and offered suggestions on modifications to its business practices. As advertising law continues to evolve, myself and other members of Fluent’s legal team ensure that the company, its affiliates, and external marketing partners comply with its demands.”
Lexi Theilemann
People Intern, Fluent
HR Management Major, Elon University
If you were a potato, how would you be cooked?
“I would love to be a Chick-Fil-A waffle fry, they are so good and so yummy. They have the perfect ratio of salt to the potato.”
What kind of food truck would you work at?
“If I could have a food truck, it would be a salad truck. It might seem kind of basic but one of my favorite foods is salad. The key to a good salad is that everything is bite-size and proportional, so I’d definitely make that happen if I worked at one.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“This summer I had the opportunity to get exposure to recruiting and on-boarding in HR. I was able to observe and participate in various interviews of candidates hiring for different jobs, and recently I was able to lead my own interview.”
Sofia Pathan
Sales Intern, AdParlor
Management and International Business Major, University of Toronto Scarborough
What is your life motto?
“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. This saying reminds me to look at the positive side of things when things don’t always go the way you thought they would. It keeps me motivated and reminds me of the importance of persevering despite any obstacles that may appear.”
What three items would you bring to a deserted island, and why?
“First, I would bring coffee. I always feel something is missing whenever I skip it in the morning. I would then bring a pen and a journal. I always wanted to write a novel, but I always say I will start the next day and never end up writing anything. I feel being on a deserted island would definitely help me stay focused on this task as there wouldn’t be many distractions.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I recently learned how to write a sales prospecting email and customize it to align with the brand’s current marketing efforts. I also had the opportunity to create an elevator pitch about AdParlor’s value proposition and practice it with my team. This assignment allowed me to work on my communication skills and better grasp what it’s like to pitch to a client.”
Alyssa Cohen
Graphic Design Intern, Fluent
Graphic Design Major, University of Wisconsin-Madison
What kind of food truck would you work at?
“An ice cream truck! It passes my house twice a day during work and I always have to fight the urge to go outside and buy something.”
What is the funniest thing that has happened to you?
“Being on HGTV Beach Hunters was really funny because the entire thing was scripted and planned out. I had to watch my parents try to act while on camera and I had to act which we are horrible at. It was impossible to film a single scene because anytime we would make eye contact we would burst out laughing and have to start over.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program
“The first thing I learned is to have a more professional design eye. I also learned how to use new (to me) design software, Adobe After Effects and Figma.”
Greta Nygaard
Content Marketing Intern, Fluent
Finance and Marketing Major, University of Wisconsin-Madison
You are hosting a dinner party…who are the 3 people you would invite?
“I would invite Lana Del Rey, Seth Rogan, and Quentin Tarantino. These are my three favorite artists that I think would have really interesting stories and perspectives due to their professional pathways.”
What kind of food truck would you work at?
“I would work at a breakfast food truck. Breakfast is so versatile and can be eaten at any time of the day – breakfast food is elite.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“Besides learning about how to do marketing in a B2B landscape and furthering my collaboration skills, I learned how to turn content into material for other platforms through a visual narrative. Coming up with ideas for the blog, social, and email was really fun and experimental, it definitely opened my mind to a lot of creative ideas.”
Marc Scordia
Account Coordinator Intern, Fluent
Business Administration and Italian Language and Culture Major, Ohio State University
If you were a Microsoft Office program, which program would you be, and why?
“Microsoft Word, because it gives you the ability to type or say whatever you want, which is equivalent to talking or telling a story – two things I do a lot.”
You are hosting a dinner party…who are the 3 people you would invite?
“Trying to cover all of my interests here… Joe Namath, Martin Scorsese, and Paul McCartney. I think a dinner party is best when people have cool stories to tell, and I think that is the case with all three of these men. I’m a huge Jet fan and obviously, Joe Namath is a legend and all-around cool dude. I love movies and Martin Scorsese has directed a lot of my favorites, as well as being an encyclopedia of film and filmmaking knowledge. Finally, Paul McCartney has to have some incredible stories about the Beatles and what it was like to be in the most famous band to ever exist.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I would say the two biggest things I have learned or been able to practice are: multitasking multiple projects under tight deadlines, and how to send professional emails to clients.”
Holly Cary
Media Buying Intern, Fluent
Business Administration Major, Gonzaga University
What 3 items would you bring to a deserted island, and why?
“My dog, my phone, and candy.”
What is the funniest thing that has happened to you?
“Making a TikTok before the national championship March Madness game in all our Zag gear… It went semi-viral and we got cyberbullied into the next universe (my personal favorite comment was “this is the exclusive reason they are losing”. Wasn’t funny at the time as the Zags got crushed but looking back it is hilarious to read the hate.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I learned how to build an ad campaign on Snapchat. I also learned how to identify sources of revenue and use that research to make informed decisions going forward.”
Cameron Sprague
Core Ops Intern, AdParlor
Business Major, Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario
If you were a Microsoft Office program, which program would you be, and why?
“If I were a Microsoft Office program, I would definitely be Powerpoint. I love being creative and showing people my fun side, while also being organized and staying at the task at hand.”
What kind of food truck would you work at?
“If I were to work at a food truck, I would work at a taco truck because everyone loves tacos, and handing out little burritos or tacos of happiness just makes me happy. Giving out delicious food creates a really happy and positive environment, which I love.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I learned how to prioritize my time and more about digital media at a granular level.”
Siddharth Chauhan
Data Science Intern, Fluent
Data Mining and Machine Learning Major, Rochester Institute of Technology
What kind of food truck would you work at?
“A pasta food truck! I love Italian food. There are so many variations you can apply to pasta and make something new every time.”
What is your life’s anthem?
“Wonderwall, by Oasis.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“I learned two primary things this summer:
First, I worked on Fluent’s payout calculator migration and automation using AWS SageMaker. I reviewed AWS documentation and built python scripts and batch scripts to automate the ETL process, significantly reducing model development and deployment time and effort.
Second, I prepared the data pipeline in order to provide efficient analysis and find customers converting from free trial to paid membership. By optimizing existing code and data elements using TUNE and internal systems, I helped reduce the time required for data preparation steps.”
Hana Farid
Product Management Intern, Fluent
Computer Science Major, Texas A&M
What is your life motto?
“Intellectual curiosity can’t be fulfilled without humility. Before seeking knowledge, we must ask ourselves: what leads us to ask certain questions and expect specific answers? Lest we get stuck thinking our delusions are the truth.”
What is the funniest thing that has happened to you?
“I ran into a shelf and knocked myself out immediately in the middle of a Macy’s.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“A goal of mine for this internship was to work cross-functionally. I have been able to witness and build perspective just from participating in product-related meetings and discussions with my boss. Working with the user perspective and different teams at Fluent, the PM guides the vision of the product. It’s necessary to take the needs and goals of all the people involved into account. As the product goes from ideation to production, different teams come and go. The PM on the other hand takes care of the product throughout its lifecycle, receiving feedback and making decisions accordingly.”
Mehek Vohra
Graphic Design Intern, Fluent
Graphic Design Major, RISD and Neurology Major, Brown
What kind of food truck would you work at?
“A Middle Eastern food truck because I could eat Arabic food every single day. In particular, shawarmas, kebabs, and tabbouleh.”
If you were a potato, how would you be cooked?
“Sweet potato fries. Not only are they my favorite, but they are a good mix of tangy, crisp, and sweet.”
What is something you learned or gained during the summer internship program?
“Whilst working with the Fluent Pulse team, I learned how to translate data into effective infographics that told a story. I also collaborated with my fellow interns to curate a series of newsletters using HubSpot, a CRM tool.”
If you liked this post and want to learn more about our team, check out our Fluent Voices blog series here.
