1) Academic Course on Corporate Social Responsibility

This past week we watched the movie Erin Brockovich and analyzed how it was linked to what we had talked about in class previously. It reminded me of the movie “A Civil Action” that we had watched before as it talked about lawyers taking on big corporations who had been guilty of causing harm to the local communities in the areas where they operated. Wednesday we did not have class and instead worked on finishing our final essays and presentations that are due on Monday, July 3rd. Our group has been making good progress towards finishing our essay and is now working on finishing up our presentation as well which will mark the end of our time with Professor Gupta in Milan.

(2) Practicum in Milan with an Italian Company

This week my boss was on a work trip to New York which meant that we would be working on a project remotely. I researched how Italian companies could optimize their supply chains to be as efficient as possible to help reduce costs and increase production times before writing a paper and presentation to submit at the end of the week. In the middle of the week we went with the other interns and another company employee to get pizza as a way of saying goodbye as this will likely be the last time we see them in person before I leave. I have enjoyed my time working at Gen-USA and am glad I was able to meet the people I did and gain valuable experience through my time with the company.

(3) Social and Cultural Immersion through travels in Italy and Europe

Last weekend I spent my time exploring Milan and getting to see parts of the city that I had never seen before. Even though I have been in Milan for 5+ Weeks I feel as though I’ve rarely been able to spend time visiting new places as most weekends I have been traveling around to different places around Italy. This weekend a big group rented a villa just north of Florence for our last weekend together in Italy. We have also planned a dinner in Florence at a nice restaurant known for their steaks that I went to a few weeks ago while I was in Florence before. It is crazy how fast time has flown by and that we are already nearing the end of our program in under a week.

 

1) Academic Course on Corporate Social Responsibility

This week in class we looked at a case study done on Apple which shed light on their suppliers’ spotty track record in human rights violations. After looking at the case study, two groups debated each other on if it was reasonable for Apple to apply different ethical standards to different countries based on their respective laws. I believe that as an American company with a set of company-wide values, it’s important to apply those same set of values to all countries regardless of what might be legally allowed there, but it was interesting to hear what the group arguing against that had to say on the topic. Next week we do not have any in-person classes as our presentations draw closer and we have extra time to work on perfecting them.

(2) Practicum in Milan with an Italian Company

This week I saw some of the work I’d been doing for the past few weeks come to fruition as my boss presented me with a list of 10 job candidates that he had selected out of the spreadsheet of about 100 I had given to him the week prior. Alongside a couple of other interns, our job was to find their contact information and reach out to them via a wide variety of social media platforms to gauge their interest in a new job opportunity located in Minnesota. I have a greater appreciation for the jobs of recruiters as finding personal email addresses and social media accounts for the candidates was a challenge.

(3) Social and Cultural Immersion through travels in Italy and Europe

This past weekend I was able to visit the towns of Cinque Terre for the first time, and I was very impressed. We used La Spezia as a home base to travel out of, and were able to visit four out of five of the towns, my favorite being Vernazza which we spent the most time in over the weekend. I also learned that there was a Disney movie based off of Cinque Terre that used the main square of Vernazza as inspiration so it was cool to watch that for the first time and see the colorful houses animated into the movie. This upcoming weekend I will be taking time to explore Milan, as for every other weekend before this I have been visiting a different city and want to get the chance to see more of Milan before we leave in less than two weeks.

(1) Academic Course on Corporate Social Responsibility

This week in class, we watched a movie with John Travolta where he played the role of an injury lawyer going after 2 big corporations for polluting a small towns water supply. While Jan (the character Travolta plays) ultimately goes broke in this pursuit, it was interesting seeing his character development throughout the movie as he became more attached to the case. The movie was based off of real life events, and I’m sure there are countless other examples of corporations getting slaps on the wrist for completely ruining the environment of small towns around the US. To me, the film really speaks to just how powerful these corporations are as they have massive legal teams ready to defend them against any allegations which makes it extremely hard to get any meaningful change in small lawsuits.

(2) Practicum in Milan with an Italian Company

I spent the majority of my week continuing my work searching through LinkedIn to find a Sales Engineer located in Minnesota for an Italian printing company that was looking to expand into there. Outside of the office, we had homemade lasagna made by my boss Mauro at his house, which was delicious. Even Jimmy finished his whole plate which impressed me as well as my colleagues at Gen-USA. Towards the end of the week, I briefly researched sponsors for a J-1 Visa in the US that worked with Italian companies, and I’m sure that next week I will continue my work doing this. I am excited to see what my boss cooks for us next week, and he mentioned that it might be ravioli this time which is something I am looking forward to trying.

(3) Social and Cultural Immersion through travels in Italy and Europe

This Sunday, we traveled to Florence for a day trip which was a couple hours away by fast train. I had remembered going there with my family years ago, and there was a hot chocolate place that stood out in my memory as being good, so even though it was upwards of eighty degrees we still went and got a cup of hot chocolate. While the hot chocolate was more rich than I had remembered, and was also very expensive at five euros a cup, I am glad I went and tried it again as it was nice to revisit places I had been to before. After walking around / shopping all day, we had a nice dinner at a restaurant in Florence where we had a back room reserved for a table of eight. While initially we all wanted to get a steak for ourselves, our waiter told us that would be too much food so we ended up splitting five steaks among the eight of us. The steaks were very rare, however I enjoyed them and it was great getting a classic Florentine dish while we were in Florence.

 

(1) Academic Course on Corporate Social Responsibility

We started off this week by watching a documentary on the dark sides of corporations and the common types of things that they do in their quest to earn a profit. This documentary was very interesting and after class, I thought a lot about the content of the documentary and the future of the US business system. I was previously unaware of the extent to which these corporations use underhanded tactics in order to keep themselves safe, and it reminded me of an organized crime organization. On Wednesday, we spent a good portion of class talking about the dilemma that CEOs face when aligning (or not aligning) their companies with various social issues, and it was nice to hear multiple opinions on the subject to better expand my own viewpoints.

(2) Practicum in Milan with an Italian Company

The highlight of this week at Gen-USA had to be going to my boss’s house for lunch and helping him make carbonara. Not only was the food delicious but it was also nice to be with my boss and colleagues outside of a work setting in a laid-back atmosphere where everyone could get to know each other better. It is clear that Italians take a lot of pride in their cuisine and are passionate about their traditional recipes and cooking style. I am hoping that I get the chance to cook alongside my boss again, as I had a great time and am interested to learn more about Italian dishes and how they are prepared. Most of the actual work I did this week revolved around working on mailing lists for the companies and opening emails, but toward the end of the week, I worked on a new project looking for Sales Engineers in Minnesota. I am excited about what next week has in store!

(3) Social and Cultural Immersion through travels in Italy and Europe

Sunday Night we went to the AC Milan game which was something I had been looking forward to for a while, and it did not disappoint. Unknowingly, we chose to go to a game where star player Zlatan brahimović announced his retirement, which made the experience that much better. Monday and Tuesday night I got dinner with my Mom who was still in Milan. On both nights we went to traditional Milanese restaurants and tried foods like risotto which are staples of their cuisine. I’ve noticed that Milanese food is very hearty and would be a great option in the colder winter months as a home-style type of dish. On Friday we traveled to Genoa and just lounged on the beach, but unfortunately, I got a pretty bad sunburn so I’ve definitely learned my lesson on neglecting to put on sunscreen. Saturday’s trip to the Alps was a lot of fun, and I’m very glad I got a late ticket and was able to go as seeing the mountain ranges and the villages in the valleys below was a spectacular view. Lastly, the Champions League Final was Saturday night, and even though Inter Milan lost, it was still fun to be among the Inter Milan fans watching the game on the canals, which is an experience that I’ll remember for a long time.

 

 

(1) Academic Course on Corporate Social Responsibility

This week in class we looked at the ethics behind corporations and debated if certain actions were ethical. For instance, my group and myself were told to debate another group on the argument that banks should not be responsible for the mistakes of their customers, which was a fun experience that I enjoyed preparing for. Debates such as this (where my position was arbitrarily chosen for me) made it more interesting as I had to be prepared to argue both sides which gave me a broader perspective of the issue. We also touched on the structure of a corporation and how the ecosystem of stockholders, executives, and the general public all played a role in the decisions of a corporation.

(2) Practicum in Milan with an Italian Company

In our first full week working at Gen-USA, my fellow interns Jimmy, Kat, and I settled into a daily routine and begin to feel more comfortable at the office. We also met the 3 other interns working at the office, all of whom were members of the main IES Abroad program, and who went to schools all around the country. Almost every day this week we were able to go out to lunch alongside our bosses, which was a nice experience that let us get to know them outside the work environment in a more personal setting and is something that I look forward to each day. Throughout the week I was given various small projects to work on, such as researching how a business could register in Washington DC or compiling lists of emails for the company newsletter. I look forward to seeing what projects the company has for me in the weeks to come!

(3) Social and Cultural Immersion through travels in Italy and Europe

The highlight of this week was getting the chance to see the Last Supper in person, which was a phenomenal experience and one that I am grateful I was able to see. The main place that we traveled to was Verona on Friday, which was a beautiful town that seemed much bigger than I had anticipated. My mom, who has been traveling around Italy for about a week beforehand, met me in Verona, and we stayed there for the weekend while exploring the city during the day and getting excellent food for dinners. I have also been walking around Milan a ton every day and am beginning to feel more comfortable getting around by myself. I am still looking for the best Cotoletta in Milan, and predict that I will be trying many more places before my trip is over!

(1) Academic Course on Corporate Social Responsibility

After arriving in Milan earlier this week, we had our first class with Professor Gupta. We picked up where we had left off from our last class before we left by watching the second part of a documentary on Adam Smith, which focused more on his book The Theory of Moral Sentiments. Additionally, we also talked about how the class responded to the survey questions that Professor Gupta had given last class, and it was interesting to see the results. Personally, I realized that some of the answers I gave contradicted themselves so I did some reflecting on what caused me to answer the way I did and changed my perspective on the reasoning behind my answers.

(2) Practicum in Milan with an Italian Company

On Thursday we had our first meeting at Gen-USA, an Italian company that helps businesses expand into the US. I am working alongside 2 other Lehigh students, which is nice as it means that I will have some company at the internship. Based on what was said in the meeting, it sounds like the majority of the work we will be doing revolves around market research, as well as various other projects that the company has as well. I am excited to gain experience by working with a business such as this one, and also to get to know my co-workers better by going out to eat with them which is customary in Italian culture.

(3) Social and Cultural Immersion through travels in Italy and Europe

As I have never been to Milan before, I have spent this week trying to get acclimated to the city by trying to do as much walking as possible. It has been great trying all different types of restaurants, and I think that I am beginning to get a feel for which spots are my favorites that I will go to frequently. On Saturday there was an IES-led trip to Lago Maggiore, however I overslept my alarm and had to figure out transportation to Stresa on my own. While this was a good learning experience for getting around Italy and using the train system on my own, I will be a lot more diligent in making sure I don’t miss an early wake-up like this again. When I did get to Lago Maggiore, I was amazed at the natural beauty of the islands and the mountains behind them, and am very glad I decided to try and get there on my own instead of just calling it a day.