TrouDigital has seen huge success with its internship programme. From Marketing and Sales to technical writers and operations roles, over the years, we’ve welcomed a number of bright students to join our team. A strong link with the University of Southampton has allowed us to work with some of the best students universities have to offer.
Internships at TrouDigital are like no other. You are never stuck making teas and coffees. We love to get you stuck in with meaningful projects that truly add value to your development.
We sat down with our latest summer intern Pietro and asked him all about his time with us.
Name: Pietro Cespoli
Position: Technical Writing Intern
Internship length: 6 weeks
Year of study: Final year
Favourite food: Ham and mushroom pizza
Fun fact: Well, I like pineapple pizza and oat cappuccino! Most of my Italian friends would not (and do not) approve of that.
A bit about Pietro: My name is Pietro Cespoli – nice to meet you! I am currently studying for a Philosophy Research course at University College London. I hold a BA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of Southampton. I grew up in the green countryside of Tuscany in Italy before moving to the UK for my university studies. I am curious, hard-working, and have an adventurous approach to life – so I moved to England to do Philosophy!
How did you find out about the internship?
I found out about the internship through the University of Southampton Career Service. They do a great job connecting students to educational work opportunities that can empower them for their future career journey.
What made you choose TrouDigital?
TrouDigital offered me the chance to apply my writing skills in a different context from academic essays. I was interested in seeing how I could use my writing for business purposes, and TrouDigital’s position as Technical Writing Intern was perfect. I also intended to explore tasks related to diverse business areas to understand how a business works in a broad sense.
What jobs did you do?
My primary responsibilities at TrouDigital included research and writing for our blog and knowledge base. I also worked with our marketing manager Alistair to review our website interface and content.
I suggested working more on sustainability since the company had recently welcomed solar panels on the office roof. The idea led to an exciting internship task: setting up a long-term sustainability strategy for TrouDigital. TrouDigital established an exciting partnership with Ecology to offset part of its carbon footprint. I also developed a sustainability roadmap through the government-backed SME Climate Hub to start working on reducing the company’s total emissions.
Alongside these main tasks, I helped with smaller assignments as needed by the company, such as conducting grant research, creating templates for our design software, and providing customer assistance.
What projects did you complete?
At TrouDigital, I worked towards writing our knowledge base articles and blog posts for our website. For what concerns the knowledge base, my articles needed to explain the many functionalities of our digital signage software clearly and concisely. Blog posts had an additional research element, as required for creating high-quality material that can attract prospective customers. My other project consisted of elaborating a sustainability roadmap for TrouDigital. I did this with the help of SME Climate Hub, a net-zero transition resource centre supported by the UK Government. I also wanted the company to take immediate action towards partially offsetting our carbon footprint, and we achieved this by establishing a partnership with the offsetting platform Ecologi. Alongside these two main tasks, I also helped my colleagues with minor assignments such as grant research, template designing, and customer service.
Here’s a quick video we caught of Pietro Cespoli helping out one of our global manufacturing clients. 🌎
What was your favourite thing about the internship?
My favourite thing about the internship was my work on the company’s sustainability plan. Despite being a relatively small contribution in the face of global climate problems, leading a company to take more action to help the environment filled me with great satisfaction. I am thankful for receiving the chance to work on such a project!
What is the most important thing you learned?
I learned that we do have the potential to leave an impact in the place where we work and that this can happens! I also realised that I like intellectually challenging tasks which require research and analysis.
What does a typical day at TrouDigital look like for you?
It would start with a very nice bike ride! South East England is not very rainy in the summer. I had the fantastic opportunity to ride my bike alongside green trees with a fresh breeze on my face almost every morning. After getting to the office, I would get changed and head straight to work. I prefer doing heavier tasks in the morning, which is my most productive time at work. Around 11 am, I would get a protein bar or a snack from the company snack shelf (!) and offer some to my colleagues. I would usually have lunch at 1 pm, with a lovely espresso afterwards. At 5 pm, my work day would be over, with me hoping to avoid a rain shower on my ride back home!
Top 5 takeaways
- I should not underestimate myself. I can often do more than I imagine!
- I love tasks in which I can employ my research skills and connect with different people.
- Approachable and friendly colleagues are a plus in the office.
- It is essential to be free to raise questions on different business matters at any time, as it was at TrouDigital. It teaches you a lot!
- There is always more to learn.
Plans for the future
I like to see my life as an adventure open to new possibilities. I can see myself working towards a Philosophy PhD, but also employed in a research or consulting role in Business. I will be looking for the perfect opportunity!
If you’re interested in an internship with us, please email info@troudigital.com.
