SUMMER INTERN SERIES: Ryan Chappell – PepsiCo
“Welcome PepsiCo Interns!” is the first thing I see walking into the Frito Lay headquarters day one of my internship. All the warm welcomes from my fellow interns from Harvard, Kellogg, NYU, and Duke let me know I am in the company of talented individuals across the US. I felt confident I could fit right in with my first year at Goizueta under my belt. Having the opportunity to shift my career in marketing as a Shopper Marketing Strategy Intern here made me feel this is only the beginning. Nervous and excited at the same time, I remembered something that is etched into every Goizueta students’ brain; Day one Readiness. We always talk about “day one readiness” here at Goizueta but I didn’t really know what that meant until after my project download from my manager, the Director of Shopper Marketing for Walmart, another great Emory alumna. Reviewing a presentation with my project being the key question at the end showed me this is a real project with real deliverables which is to unlock granular growth at Walmart. From my experiences at Goizueta in classes like Goizueta Marketing Strategy Consultancy and Marketing Intelligence, I knew I was ready.
I began to sit down and understand the situation very well prior to jumping in with what may not be the right solution. Utilizing the tools we learn about understanding the core issues, how to address them, and plan the work paid off. Within week one, I was able to break down the project into manageable issues that can be addressed in a variety of different ways. Presenting this project plan to my manager and her manager, they were impressed and confident in my ability to proceed and win on this project. Looking forward to learning lots and delivering solutions Frito Lay can leverage in their business.
