Since May of 2018, I have been an Internal Corporate Communications Channels Intern at Xcel Energy. As my focus is on internal communications platforms, my role primarily centers around our company intranet, our print magazine, and analysis on the effectiveness of these communications channels. 

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I have strengthened my writing, editing, management, and critical analysis skills through the work that I have done. Because I spend a majority of my day updating and managing the intranet, I have acquired unexpected - yet valuable - skills in web mapping and even simple coding. By learning the ins and outs of site trees and web page formats, my critical thinking has strengthened. I have learned how to thoughtfully approach trial and error, along with how valuable it is to challenge myself. On the intranet, I manage, edit, and publish all news articles that are submitted.

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For both the intranet and print magazine, Xtra, I have also written four of my own articles for the company. I have grown in three specific ways: my interviewing, writing, and editing skills. In particular, my two-page spread for Xtra tested my journalistic skills, from the interview technique to the specific writing style.

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Beyond my daily exposure to the intranet and company news, I have also participated on a team that researched the effectiveness of our communications channels. Overall, this experience taught me the importance of measuring the effectiveness of communications channels and always focusing each channel on the audience's wants and needs. This experience opened up an opportunity to explore Google Analytics - I now have collected and assisted in analysis of metrics for a handful of departments within Xcel Energy.