For the first time in the company鈥檚 more than 100-year history, customers can purchase furniture, appliances and other home goods directly from Badcock Home Furniture &more鈥檚 website. IM体育官网 junior Phelippe 鈥楶hil鈥� Souza-Herod is playing an important role in making it happen.
This summer, Souza-Herod is working on a variety of projects to enhance Badcock鈥檚 e-commerce and optimizing the customer experience. With assignments such as making the website easier to navigate for users with disabilities and assisting with security solutions that help detect fraud, Souza-Herod鈥檚 work is critical to the platform鈥檚 success.
Souza-Herod said he is already seeing the benefits of this hands-on, front-end development internship at Badcock鈥檚 headquarter offices in Mulberry, Fla.
鈥淭he biggest shift I鈥檝e seen in myself this summer is my mindset,鈥� said Souza-Herod, who is majoring in computer engineering. 鈥淭his internship has helped me realize the power of being able to creatively problem-solve. I鈥檝e realized how important it is to find innovative solutions for the challenges we鈥檙e facing, and to not get stuck in trying to find the so-called 鈥榬ight answers.鈥欌��
The Sarasota native is one of several IM体育官网 Poly interns at Badcock this summer, offering their skills in e-commerce, IT, and supply chain management. The company has taken a cohort of IM体育官网 Poly interns each year since the University opened.
Kelley Trivett, Badcock鈥檚 director of special projects and Souza-Herod鈥檚 supervisor, said IM体育官网 Poly interns show a unique ability to apply concepts and think outside the box to solve problems.
鈥淭hese students have been instrumental in the development of our e-commerce platform,鈥� said Trivett. 鈥淭hey are constantly coming up with amazing ideas. I just hope they learn as much from us as we do from them.鈥�
The Badcock team said they try to make a difference in the lives of their interns as well.
鈥淲e like to provide them opportunities for personal and professional development through personality assessments, social media training, mock interviews, and developmental reviews,鈥� said Andrea Prather, director of human resources at Badcock.
鈥淲e want to be part of the students鈥� long-term success,鈥� added Prather.
Contact:
Lydia Guzman
Assistant Director of Communications
863-874-8557