Emmy Zorn, a fourth-year student majoring in Public Relations, utilized her professional talents, explored the automotive industry and even had a brush with fame during her summer internship.
Zorn interned for INNOCEAN USA, specifically on the Hyundai Brand Team. She completed a variety of tasks such as proofreading radio ads, creating job requests and budgeting sheets. She even contributed to the advertising and launch materials for the 2023 Hyundai Palisade.
Operating on a hybrid schedule from her home in California, going into the office once a week and rotating between different tasks not only allowed Zorn to fully commit to her internship, but also to her life outside of it.
“I loved this because I got to have a great work-life balance,” Zorn said. “I was able to spend time with my family and dogs outside of work.”
Due to the nature of her schedule, she came to realize the importance of prioritization and task management throughout her time at INNOCEAN.
“Time management was absolutely key,” she said. “Since I worked remotely for most of the week, I had to balance my work calls and tasks with my own personal responsibilities at home and my other virtual graphic design job at MSU. I would have coworkers from different teams reaching out to me and asking for help on different tasks all day. My amazing supervisor taught me that it’s completely okay to say no if you really don’t have the bandwidth to take on another task or help with a project that isn’t part of your job.”
Even though she used skills related to public relations, advertising and writing during her internship, she also got a glimpse into the world of the automotive industry — a field she was delighted to navigate.
“I learned so much about what goes on behind the scenes in launching a new vehicle,” she said. “As someone who is really interested in cars and the automotive industry, it was fascinating to learn about how print, digital and radio ads for cars are all created.”
Beyond exploring the automotive field, Zorn’s favorite experiences revolved around interactions with important company figures like the CMO of Hyundai and the CEO of INNOCEAN, while also seeing her work come to life through actor Jason Bateman.
“My favorite task was probably coordinating with the legal and creative teams to write and proofread radio scripts which were then recorded by Jason Bateman,” she said. “I’ve since heard the ads that I helped produce on the radio and saw a video ad that I helped approve on TV.”
Zorn noted that all of this would not have been possible without making connections.
“Networking is so important,” she said. “I got this job through networking and tried my best to make a point to get to know as many people at INNOCEAN as possible during my time there. So many people are willing to help you as long as you make a point to reach out and connect with them.”
Though Zorn’s ultimate dream career is to hold a brand management or marketing position for a tech giant such as Meta, Google or Amazon, her next steps to climbing the industry ladder don’t stray far from her roots.
“For now, I’m focusing on graduating with my B.A. in Public Relations this spring,” she said. “I will be reaching back to the recruiters at INNOCEAN in hopes of landing a full-time brand management position on the team I was with this summer. I really loved my coworkers and my time there and would be so excited to work for them.”
By Stella Govitz