Caitlin Kirk '21

Sales Development Intern at SurveyMonkey

Major: Psychology, Spanish Minor

“For the Sales Development Intern role, SurveyMonkey was looking for self-motivated and competitive students with high social intelligence. As a student-athlete I naturally am a very competitive person and this aspect of my personality crosses over into all parts of my life including academics and work. As a psychology major I have learned a lot about relationships and how to effectively communicate and understand others, so I was excited to apply since I seemed like a good fit.

I have learned a lot of different sales techniques like the Sandler methodology, which is based in the psychology of human behavior. Sales representatives with Sandler training act as a trusted adviser to prospects rather than a typical salesperson. We were taught to focus on asking the right questions to get to the prospect’s pain points, instead of simply providing answers that might not even be relevant to their needs. Through this training, I am able to approach conversations in a helpful manner and engage in conversation about prospects’ challenges and needs instead of just forcing the product on them. The prospects I call are also all working in various departments within an organization such as HR, IT, Marketing, and Sales. Since these departments all have different focuses, I have been able to learn about what matters most to them and it’s increased my knowledge of how businesses work as a whole. Since the internship is 100% virtual, I have also learned how to work from home productively and how to build relationships with coworkers, managers, and mentors remotely. SurveyMonkey is so supportive of their interns so I have been blessed to learn that even as an intern my input matters. Through speaking up during meetings I have learned how to use my voice to contribute to the conversation.

My favorite moments have been sharing successful calls and sometimes bad ones with my team. Everyone is so supportive and welcoming. It is amazing how helpful everyone has been, and I’ve really enjoyed how we collaborate even while working remotely. SurveyMonkey has core values of staying curious, trusting the troop, and making it happen. All these values were present in my favorite moments, allowing us to learn, trust one another, and be productive. At SurveyMonkey there’s an emphasis on having a growth mindset, so I’ve enjoyed all the learning moments this summer. In previous jobs making a mistake was something I feared, whereas at my internship we are able to learn from our mistakes and one another which makes it a lot easier to push ourselves and be courageous.

I believe internships are important because they give undergraduate students an opportunity to try something new. This opportunity gives us perspective about what we want to do long term in our careers. Internships are also a great opportunity to get to know a company’s culture and what types of company culture we will want to look for in future jobs. SurveyMonkey’s company culture is amazing and has shown me how important it is to work with a team that is supportive and provides opportunity for your growth.

After I graduate, I am hoping to find a job in Portland and continue to discover what I’m passionate about. I am interested in applying for Ph.D. programs in clinical psychology after taking a gap year or two to gain work experience and travel.”