Madeline Roper: Career Progression and Key Skills Learned
My early interest in technology and marketing led me to teach myself website design, a key moment in my career because it was the first time I had a chance to combine creativity with technical skills. I sharpened these skills by working as a freelance website designer for a real estate company, MileHiModern, an opportunity I found through networking. This period taught me skills such as HTML, graphic design, and SEO, and also how to manage clients, negotiate contracts, and market myself as a professional. After building experience in freelance design, I sought out an internship that would help set me on my path as a young professional. I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted my career to look like, but I knew I was called to the creative side of things and loved working with people. After three rounds of interviews and submitting a creative portfolio, I started at Trimble Inc., a construction software and technology company, as a Marketing Communications Intern, continuing this work into the school year as a freelance employee.
Most recently, I worked for Adobe as a Business Development Representative. The recruitment process started a year before the internship start date and spanned over two weeks. I was tested on Adobe software, role-played a sales call in front of Adobe employees, and then went through three rounds of interviews. It was very anxiety-inducing, but I found success through preparation, understanding the company’s goals, and being my authentic self. Working for a multi-billion dollar company on-site in New York was completely different from any of my previous work experience, but it showed me what to expect after graduation in an office environment.
While my career development and progress are starting to become more linear and oriented towards a specific field, each internship or freelance job I’ve previously had has taught me invaluable lessons. From MileHiModern, I learned self-reliance, time management, and belief in my ideas. From Trimble, I learned self-confidence in an environment that had hesitancy toward change, company branding, and workflow organization. Finally, from Adobe, I learned technical skills such as lead qualification and outreach but also created strong relationships with clients, honed my interpersonal skills, and was lucky enough to receive a return offer due to my personal and professional growth.
Without any of these experiences, I believe I would be lacking in integral areas that make me the young professional that I am, and I know that every experience from this point onward will continue to help me grow as an individual and a businesswoman.