Over the summer, I had the opportunity to work with Eat Offbeat (a Tamer Fund for Social Ventures portfolio member) as an MBA strategy intern. Eat Offbeat is a catering and restaurant company based in New York City that offers a unique dining experience by hiring refugee and immigrant chefs to prepare authentic, home-style dishes from their countries of origin. I was tasked with leading B2B sales strategy for the company. This project perfectly aligned with Eat Offbeat's mission of empowering refugee chefs to showcase their culinary skills while promoting diversity. My primary focus was on expanding Eat Offbeat’s B2B reach through online catering marketplace partnerships. I also aided in enhancing outreach skills, client meetings, customer service experience management, and operational efficiency. These efforts not only contributed to the company’s growth but also reflected its values of inclusivity and empowerment by nurturing a diverse, multicultural workforce. The project expanded Eat Offbeat’s reach into the business catering sector, allowing more companies to experience the unique value the organization offers, which aligns with the organization's mission to foster inclusivity through food.

My role at Eat Offbeat allowed me to apply a variety of skills learned during the first year of my MBA at Columbia Business School (CBS). Prior to CBS, I had extensive experience in sales, which helped me to drive B2B strategies. The content from the LEAD course helped me to manage conflict, mentor team members, and handle team dynamics effectively. Additionally, I was able to enhance the company's website and social media presence using the techniques learned in the Marketing course. The highlight, however, was applying my learning from the Managerial Negotiations course. Not only did it help me lead conversations with B2B clients, successfully negotiating terms and conditions that benefited Eat Offbeat, but also align teammates with overarching goals. These applications helped me achieve successful outcomes throughout my internship, from leading strategic conversations to improving operational efficiency.

One of the main challenges I faced during my internship was orienting my role within existing teams. While initially challenging to mobilize, I was able to overcome this challenge to address overall goals.

Working with a diverse team, I had to be mindful of cultural nuances in communication and collaboration. There were also occasional delays in delivering tasks related to B2B clients, which added to the challenge of managing timelines. I addressed these issues by holding face-to-face conversations with my colleagues about the delays. I also offered assistance where needed to ensure smoother workflows and minimize delays moving forward.

My experience at Eat Offbeat helped me explore my entrepreneurial mindset and develop my skills in building strategies, where autonomy and ownership are essential to driving sustainable change. In this setting, my managers often gave me significant responsibilities. Despite the challenges, the autonomy pushed me to take charge and be creative in problem-solving. Building strong relationships proved to be invaluable, as it facilitated smoother communication and collaboration. Lastly, I learned that trial and error is a key part of testing new strategies and ideas. This approach along with trust, persistence, and support from teammates and managers fosters growth.