Intern Spotlight: Emma Pfohman

By Emma Pfohman, FCLC '13

"Thank you for calling Zerve, this is Emma, can I help you book an activity?"

I've been working at Zerve since September 2012 and it has been a fantastic experience. I've met some incredibly smart, hard-working people that still can take a night off to go sing karaoke. Zerve at its core is all about helping people find and book awesome activities to do all over the United States, and helping the companies that run those activities manage and grow their businesses. One important note about Zerve is that it is constantly growing and evolving. Our Account Management team works hand in hand with existing companies and helps make the setup process easy and painless for new ones. We end up adding about four new companies every week!

We have offices in New York and in San Francisco (newly opened!) that operate 365 days a year to provide world-class customer service and ticketing for the hundreds of companies we represent. Just this fall, we released www.zerve.com where one can find comprehensive lists of everything from snorkeling excursions to food tours in cities all over the U.S.

On a bike tour!

 Here at Zerve, I work as part of the Customer Service team with a group of about 30 other interns. When people ask what I do at "that job in Soho," I explain that every day it’s different and I have to seamlessly transition between a few different roles. Some days, I have to be a personal GPS for someone trying to find Taliesin West in the Arizona desert or explain what a segway is to someone that has never seen one; on other days, I have to be a party planner for a frantic maid of honor planning a booze cruise or comfort poor Groupon buyers who discover that the only time they can go is sold out. Its never the same!

We are basically ninjas with headsets - our tongues are like swords, our wit is like throwing stars, and we drink more coffee than I care to admit. Our job requires us to be quick on our feet, and respond to all kinds of situations with ease and a friendly demeanor. We hold ourselves to a high standard, but we enjoy helping our customers.

When I’m not answering phones, I work with the Content Team, affectionately called “The Lair.”  I started by doing market research about potential companies to add to the Zerve family. I currently get to use some of my sailing experience helping with SEO - which means “search engine optimization.” Without trying to explain spiders and search algorithms, the goal of SEO is to make our awesome Zerve pages appear higher in web searches (Google, Bing, Yahoo!). To do this, I reach out to sailing-related sites and explain what a great resource Zerve is for sailors in the hope that they will share our site with their audience. This was my favorite page to show... how cool is that??

I have really enjoyed my time at Zerve and they are always looking for passionate, smart, and enthusiastic interns. You can apply on their site or from their CareerLink post if you’re interested!

Just as we finish every call we take, remember.. “If you're looking for any other activities around here or all over the U.S., www.zerve.com is a great resource!”

Interested in working at Zerve, like Emma? Check out the available internships today.. Looking to be filled ASAP.. so apply today!

Paid Part-Time Intern

Apply here for a fantastic internship at our vibrant, growing company, and see why past and present interns have been so thrilled with their experience at Zerve.  Zerve has been offering Fordham students an invaluable internship opportunity for several years, with many students using their experience at Zerve to propel their career elsewhere, and some even staying at Zerve post-graduation, finding the perfect place to launch a fast-track career in business.

Job Requirements

The internship provides exposure to all facets of running a successful business, and has a primary focus on the following:

- 50% in phone customer service and ticketing; we take great pride in this area of our business, and strive for world-class service on every call

- 50% in project-based work focused on growing the business, with examples including market research, business analysis, sales research, working with the Account Management group, technology testing and more.

- All interns work closely with the company's management, and other full-time and intern staff.

- Will work part-time (20 hours per week) until January 1st, 2014. We are open 7 days a week, and a flexible schedule with the ability to work weekends shifts is a necessity. Please also note that we would establish a set schedule throughout the fall.

Qualifications

This is NOT a job for someone who just wants to make some extra money and spend their day filing papers. This is a challenging, rewarding internship geared towards high-achievers who want to learn new skills, work with a great team, and contribute in a major way to the success of a rapidly growing, fun business. This is a very unique internship, with exposure to all levels of the business, and as a result, interns must:

- Demonstrate academic excellence and achievement

- Possess excellent analytical skills and the ability to apply them to diverse challenges

- Understand how to communicate professionally in writing, on the phone, and in person

- Want to join a hard-working, dedicated team of phenomenal professionals

- Demonstrate a desire to challenge themselves and take on significant responsibility

- Be able to work with all types of people and bring a sense of humor

- Possess strong computer skills (including Microsoft Word, Excel and proficiency at using the Internet for research)

- Be a college or graduate student

- Be able to commute easily to lower Manhattan

- Be able to work fluently in English (bilingual a plus, not necessary)

- Possess a flexible schedule with the ability to work weekends

They also offer a full-time internship (40 hours per week) for recent graduates. The internship pays $10 per hour.

The office is located on Hudson Street, just south of Houston, and is easily accessible by the 1, 6, A/C/E, B/D/F/V and R/W subway lines.

For more information and to apply today, head to CareerLink, Job ID# 23291.