Intern in the spotlight: Deepika Misra

With such a varied background, what motivated you to join Signify?

D: Aside from being a big brand, and a household name, I was aware of Signify through school. We have quite a large Rutgers community at Signify. In fact, upon joining, I created a group for all Rutgers Alum to network. In the short time I was in the office, we went out to lunches together and even planned a bowling event! I believe the biggest motivator for me then was that at the time already many of my friends worked for Signify. Additionally, working for the market and industry leader as a Product Marketing Manager was extremely exciting and I knew it held so many learning opportunities! Especially as someone that grew up thinking lighting is not much more than a simple light bulb it was very exciting to get to know the many things that Signify is involved in. Fun fact, my name actually means light, and I was born on Diwali, which is the Festival of Light in India. So of course, I was intrigued by this different facet of lighting which I'd never experienced and some I never even thought about, like LiFi and UV-C!

What are some of your most memorable moments at Signify?

D: From day 1, I felt like I belonged at Signify. Starting with my team, who are all very different and unique in their own ways, and who form puzzle pieces to make one team. We all balance each other on strengths and weaknesses. From one of us being extremely technical, to another having that creativity, I loved working with them! While the Covid-19 crisis has been challenging to us all, our two times a week breakfast calls keep us all going and close to normalcy. I am literally counting down the days when I can get back to the office again, be with my team, be with all my colleagues who organically became my friends.

Signify seems to have left an impression on you, do you have any advice for future interns who are interested in having a similar experience?

D: You should not categorize a job according to what’s on paper. Don’t think, “This is what my responsibilities will be limited to.”, “oh, that's all I am going to do”. No, there's always opportunities to expand and create value beyond your role. In my case, my internship wasn't what I expected initially as it was not as marketing oriented as I had thought it would be, being I had worked as a Product Marketing Manager previously. I was used to having a set of marketing duties and working in my silo, which Signify jolted me out of. Working here, I learned the ins and outs of pricing, of demand planning and forecasting as well as the importance of finished goods. It was not an easy transition, but I kept going and kept trying, and I am so happy that I did because I was able to learn beyond measure. Yes, I got to work on creative “marketing oriented” goals for the team, but I also got to learn a few nifty excel tricks I would have never known had I not worked at Signify. I was able to get involved in so many more things and meet so many more people with different skillsets than I would have expected, nor would I have imagined! I think that is the main takeaway for me and anybody who is considering working at Signify. The title does not mean that you have a set list of responsibilities - it's a little bit like working at a startup, where you are always wearing several hats. Just be open to the experience. Work hard to learn things that make you uncomfortable, and all the opportunities will present themselves to you, while making you more well-rounded and informed in what goes in to the business in its entirety. Be prepared also, because you will meet so many intelligent, hardworking, and helpful people on this journey, and they will also end up being the friendliest!