I am the Marketing and Online Travel Intern at Accord Italy Smart Tours and Experience. The company is a travel agency that offers activities and excursions around Florence and Tuscany. Because I am working in the tourism industry, one of the key skills I need to be successful is cultural awareness. Our clients are from all over the world, so when crafting social media posts or communicating with our target customers, I need to be respectful and understanding of the mannerisms and attitudes in other cultures. This thought process has also helped me build my communication skills, as I need to be mindful of how I speak. I’ve also learned the importance of non-verbal communication and how to use my body language to show professionalism and respect.

One thing I am noticing about Italian professional culture is the priority of creativity. When given assignments, I am often provided with general guidelines of how to accomplish my work, but not specific instructions. I’ve learned that because Italian culture values artistic and intellectual innovation, most Italian workplaces and academic settings don’t set strict rules and provide many opportunities to use personal expression. I have also noticed in my internship that the dynamics of the office are very laidback and social. Instead of an individual desk, I work at a conference table along with other members of my team. When employees from other office rooms are arriving or leaving for the day, they poke their heads into our room to say good morning or goodbye. I have been greatly enjoying my internship because I’m discovering the unique qualities of a professional Italian culture.

For my classes, I am taking Beginner Oil Painting, Italian, International Marketing, and the Global Internship course. Like my workplace, the academic environments also prioritize conversation and working with others. They are smaller classes, so most lessons involve group discussions and collaborating in groups. There are also opportunities to be creative in class assignments. Most of my homework and projects are similar to my internship assignments, where I have a general prompt to fulfill but few instructions on how to accomplish it. With this dynamic, I use similar skills as in my internship, like communication, but I also use other skills like collaboration, when working on group projects and participating in class discussions. By comparing my academic environment to my professional setting, I have been able to realize the traits of Italian culture.