Hi everyone! My name is Jules Smalis and I am a Pittsburgh local! I am a sophomore double majoring in Finance and Marketing and pursuing a certificate in International Business and Leadership and Ethics. Outside of my academics, I am in Delta Sigma Pi, a professional business fraternity on campus, and the Club Tennis Team, both of which I am the social chair. I also work in the Global Experiences Office at Pitt Business, where I help advise students, create promotional materials, and conduct research projects! Working in the office is what inspired me to participate in this program, and I am so glad I did. Aside from all of this, I am a huge foodie, so you can definitely count on me for any recommendations around the city! I am especially looking forward to trying Trinidadian food, hopefully in Pittsburgh before they depart to Trinidad.
Choosing to participate in this program was easy. I love to travel and the Pitt Business study abroad programs I previously went on were all amazing, so I knew I would enjoy this course. My personal goals for this program are simple; to explore new cultures and help a community. Trying new foods, exploring new art, and being exposed to people from all different backgrounds is something I enjoy being exposed to. Also working with Nature Seekers on this consulting project to improve their back-end systems will help to improve customer volunteer experiences! Doing this program helps me achieve all three of these things.
Academically, I am looking to use this experience to complete my certificates. This experiential learning opportunity will help fulfill most requirements. Aside from the certificates, I am excited to learn more about consulting for non-profits. Thus far in class, we have talked a lot about productive team management and how to form strong relationships with our clients. these discussions are not only beneficial for the purpose of the class, but in real world settings as well.
Professionally, this program is helping me to gain more real-world experience as a consultant. Before my freshman year started, I participated in the Global Haller Honors Fellowship, where a small group of us took Managing Complex Environments in preparation for a consulting project with an international client based in Dublin, Ireland. This program gave me a lot of insight into international business practices, which led me to do the Plus3 Netherlands program as well. After my freshman year was completed, I realized I wanted to pursue international consulting after graduation. In hopes of building a strong portfolio, the Global Service Learning course will help me gain the hands-on experience I need.
In the next coming weeks, our team is working hard to complete our scope of work so we can begin researching for Nature Seekers. Our project is mainly about finding a reservation and booking system that is accessible for all currencies, as well as recommendations for the website to increase customer engagement. I am very excited to see where the project takes us, and how our final deliverables turn out!