The Beginning

I started my internship at the Greater Phoenix Convention and Visitors Bureau two weeks before the start date of this class, on May 17th. To my surprise, I was not nervous at all about my first day, just very excited to jump into the business world. My position at the GPCVB is the Housing Intern. The Housing Department, specifically what I do, deals mainly with making and modifying reservations for people who are coming to Phoenix for a convention/conference, etc. For instance, in three weeks the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners is having a conference at the Phoenix Convention Center. The six main hotels that the attendees are staying at are the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix, the Wyndham, the Hyatt, The Buttes, the Arizona Grand, and the Legacy. Other tasks that I have done so far, and will continue to do, include filing, data entry, attend meetings, and keep track of voicemails and emails. I definitely have noticed that it is a job that takes an enormous amount of organization and attention to detail, but fortunately those are two of my biggest strengths.

My first week at the GPCVB consisted mainly of training and observing so that I could learn about the Housing Department and about how to do the things I will be doing. It was very rewarding when, after I had modified a lady's reservation for the first time on my own, to receive the thank you email from her. It was a great little boost of confidence and reassurance! The other ladies in the Housing Department do what I do, along with much, much more. For example, they speak with meeting planners and hotels in order to set up reservation blocks and websites that are made available to people so that they can make their reservation online. They also handle some of the money aspects involved, as well as many other things that I have not been made aware of yet.


On the first day of my very first week, both of the ladies in the Housing Department were gone. I was very nervous about that at first, but everyone at the office was willing to help me out with any questions and assured me that everything will be okay. I have always believed that the best way to learn things is to be "thrown into the dogs" as my supervisor called it on Monday when I was talking to her, although it was not her intention to do that to me. Luckily, my supervisor's assistant was able to answer all of questions and solve the list of issues Monday morning. On that Friday when I was "by myself", I even got to learn a little bit about and help out with another position, Services, which was interesting. For this, I ran an errand to the Hyatt to deliver two amenities.

All in all, my first two weeks at the GPCVB were very busy and exhilarating!