Meet Team UPS

Q&A with Raven

What attracted you to UPS?

Knowing how big of a company UPS is, I knew there had to be a lot of opportunities here. I went to a career fair and knew I wanted to talk to UPS. After hearing about the Industrial Engineering department, it sounded like something I could really enjoy doing. I learned I wouldn’t be just sitting at a desk as an intern, but rather taking field trips and looking at the production. That really attracted me because I like to be more involved in what I’m learning.

At a high level, can you tell us about your internship role?

As an Industrial Engineering intern, I am currently looking at a facility that is only open during peak season. They want to open it full-time to help alleviate some of the stress from surrounding facilities that are over package capacity. Basically, I’m looking at a lot of the map work—redoing the maps and cleaning them up, making sure that the route is running smoothy. I’m trying to see how we can save miles, which would save money. We’re figuring out the most efficient way to run these routes trying to incorporate interdisciplinary work between the drivers to help with route flexibility.

What has your internship/co-op given you the opportunity to learn so far?

My internship taught me a lot about the internal programs that UPS uses to make everything work. I’m currently using a program called DPS which is a Dispatch Planning System. It’s been really interesting to see all of that—I can see how the route goes, how many routes there are in an area, how many drivers run that route—it’s just been really cool to see the inner workings of how UPS actually makes all of this happen. The meat and potatoes of UPS is delivering packages and that relies a lot on this program so it’s really important work.

Share some tips for making the most of your UPS internship, such as networking with other interns and learning about the company's culture.

My biggest tip is try to talk to as many people as you can. If you see someone new in your office that you don’t know, introduce yourself to them. When you have the confidence to go up to someone, people do actually remember that. Plus, when you ask them about their job and what they do you might learn something new. Overall, it really helps you expand your knowledge but also your network. That’s definitely my #1 piece of advice.

What do you enjoy the most about UPS’s company culture?

The thing that I enjoy most about UPS’s company culture is how willing most people are to help somebody learn. I haven’t run into anyone who wouldn’t help me or talk to me about something. Everyone is so willing to answer your questions, to show you how to do something, to tell you company history, to explain why something is happening. I think that’s really nice and very welcoming, especially as an intern. You don’t always know what’s going on and that can be scary. So, it’s really nice to have welcoming people who are super experienced and willing to share their knowledge.

In what ways has your work felt meaningful thus far in your internship?

The thing that has made my work feel so meaningful this summer so far is seeing the work I’m doing is already going into effect. We’re working on cleaning up the maps and making them more accurate so drivers can run their routes more efficiently with fewer problem areas so that every stop is where it’s supposed to be. We’re immediately improving the routes—the work that I do on that map goes into effect the next day. It’s cool to think that I’m hopefully making these drivers’ lives easier. They deliver so many packages in a day and everything that we do in Industrial Engineering needs to be accurate so that the drivers can do their jobs efficiently.

What are your career goals? How do you feel your internship will positively impact your career goals?

My biggest career goal is to do work that is meaningful. I don’t want to be doing a mundane desk job that doesn’t feel like anything special. I want to do work that affects people in a positive way. My internship is helping me with that because it shows me how work I do in the office helps people outside the office. All the work that I’m doing this summer is really aimed to help the drivers. That’s a really good feeling to me because I like to know that my work is positively affecting somebody else. In my career I don’t want the work to stay between me and the computer—I want it to have an impact on other people.

What separates UPS's internship program from the other internship opportunities you looked into?

What makes UPS’s internship opportunities unique to me is the variety of learning experiences. You’re not typically just sitting at a desk doing work. There’s so much opportunity for getting out of the office and doing other things. You get to visit other buildings, you get to see how they sort the packages—some people go on driver ride-alongs—to see what needs to be solved in person. So, you’re not just hearing about it, you get to see it in action. I’ve visited so many buildings and seen the different technology in each. It’s just a much more diverse learning experience than other companies.