Simply how far can an internship at Cisco take you? Meet a former intern nonetheless right here 26 years later.

Cisco hosted 1700 hundred interns this summer time as a part of its dedication to creating rising expertise that may sooner or later work at Cisco. The intern program has been round for many years, which Chris Harrison is aware of very effectively. He began as an intern and is in his twenty sixth 12 months at Cisco. We celebrated Nationwide Intern Day by sharing his story.

Deal with the Total Internship as an Interview

As Program Supervisor, Position Technique and Enablement, Chris Harrison manages instruments and packages to assist staff leverage the talents that they’ve. It’s a becoming position for somebody who obtained his begin due to pure curiosity, a capability to attach the dots between jobs and take dangers to study new issues.

Born and raised in New York Metropolis, Chris studied electrical engineering expertise at Rochester Institute of Expertise in New York the place college students had been required to finish co-ops (internships) as part of their sophomore/junior and junior/senior years. His first internship was with Motorola.

“At Motorola, I used to be turned on to Cisco as a result of I used to be within the buyer help group trouble-shooting their modems, and each name I obtained was, ‘I’ve a Motorola modem linked to a Cisco router’ so I wished to study extra about how this Cisco router labored with the Motorola modem,” mentioned Chris.

How Chris Selected Cisco and Vice Versa

Recruiters got here to Chris’ school campus in search of interns. Chris interviewed with Cisco after his curiosity was sparked interning at Motorola. Quickly after, Chris was flown to San Jose to satisfy the hiring supervisor and three check engineers who drew on the whiteboard and requested how he would clear up completely different conditions.

“After I landed [in New York], I already had a voice message saying, ‘Congratulations, you’ve been chosen for this internship,’” says Chris. The intern place was a check engineer on Cisco’s Restore Operations crew. Chris had the chance to return to Motorola, however he was impressed that Cisco flew him to San Jose for an interview and nonetheless remembers the totally stocked break rooms with free drinks, popcorn, and sweet – completely different from something he’d skilled on the East Coast. It appeared definitely worth the threat to attempt one thing new somewhat than going again to Motorola.

“Individuals had been strolling round in shorts and flip-flops,” mentioned Chris. “In my thoughts, this was so California, a bit laid again. Northern California and Silicon Valley within the 90s had a distinct vibe, and that was one thing I used to be fascinated about.” He moved to San Jose and lived within the dorms at San Jose State College for the summer time.

Connecting the Dots Between Work and the Classroom

The Cisco internship was completely hands-on. The Restore Operations crew needed to handle gadgets in for restore from the second they arrived till they had been shipped again out. “Earlier than, I sat within the cubicle,” mentioned Chris. “With this job, I went to the manufacturing unit ground.”

They had been answerable for the stream, the check scripts to ensure issues had been working appropriately, and for updates. Chris would rotate each two weeks to study completely different components of the method. Additionally they developed a check line on the manufacturing ground and typically simulated a failure and requested the place the issue was.

“Studying find out how to discover the place issues had been damaged helped me learn the way they labored, and my internship expertise was excellent,” says Chris.

Chris rapidly made the connection between the restore work he was doing at Cisco and the technical help work from his Motorola expertise and tied all of it again to what he was studying for his Electrical Engineering Expertise diploma. All of it got here collectively, and he may additionally apply what he discovered on the job to the speculation he was learning in class.

Shock on the Job

One Saturday, Chris stunned his boss. “It was Saturday, all my associates had been, out and I had nothing to do, so I made a decision to go to Cisco, go to the lab and do some work,” he mentioned. “I put collectively some check racks to take to the manufacturing unit, blasted the music, and closed the doorways behind me. Then swiftly, the music stops,” mentioned Chris.

It was his supervisor, who checked out him and requested, “What are you doing right here?” Chris defined after which requested his supervisor the identical query. His supervisor mentioned his household was away tenting and invited Chris to the films after which dinner. It was an sudden second that left an impression on each of them.

Chris returned to highschool across the Thanksgiving vacation. Weeks handed. Then, on January 5, Cisco’s recruiter phoned Chris. “How’d you want to come back to Cisco full-time once you graduate?” requested the recruiter.

Chris was shocked at how early the provide arrived, as full-time gives are often made within the spring. In accordance with his supervisor, “Any 20-year-old prepared to come back in on a Saturday is somebody I’d like to have on the crew.”

Chris doubts that this one incident was answerable for his touchdown the job however insists that it was the serendipity of this occasion and the optimistic impression he made with crew members as somebody straightforward to work with that contributed to this end result.

Twenty-six years and lots of roles later, Chris continues to be having fun with the alternatives at Cisco, and far of his work at the moment entails leaving a legacy for future generations to develop and develop satisfying careers.

He attributes longevity at Cisco to the power to have a number of alternatives and completely different careers and the help of leaders and mentors all through the corporate.

“It was life-changing for me to return to varsity after the internship,” says Chris. “It was plenty of work, however I didn’t consider it as a job. It’s at all times been about enjoyable and studying. This is the reason I’ve stayed so long as I’ve.”

His recommendation for these looking for internships and job alternatives?

“If you’re right here [in the job or internship] it’s at all times an interview, even once you don’t suppose others are paying consideration. The chance to make a great impression isn’t once you get the internship. It occurs the minute you stroll by means of the door.”

Consider the whole expertise as an interview, since you’re not simply interacting together with your crew and different groups.

Chris says this expertise gave him his first glimpse into what professionalism meant, how folks interacted and engaged, and helped him mature in his profession as he returned to varsity.

“Even in case you’re there for 3 months, you don’t know what [others] will suppose,” says Chris. “Regardless that chances are you’ll be categorized as an intern, consider it as an interview to see how you’re employed in that atmosphere.”

Chris’ Recommendation for Interns

-Don’t be afraid of the chance; the employer doesn’t count on you to know every little thing.

-Employers need recent views from a school pupil – recent concepts and new set of eyes.

-Don’t be afraid to interact and meet new folks inside new organizations and this may occasionally broaden your community inside that group together with together with your friends. (Chris continues to be associates with members of his co-op group from school, lots of whom at the moment are administrators and VPs at different corporations.)

-Networking is vital with group and together with your friends as effectively. Be taught as a lot as you possibly can throughout and after the internship.

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