Business Development & Commercial Strategy Intern (MBA) - Summer 2023

WillowTree is an award-winning digital product consultancy driven by innovation grounded in strategy and user-centered design. We create long-term partnerships with the world’s leading brands to design and build digital flagship products crucial to their core business. We are one of the largest independent digital firms in the US and some of our clients include FOX Sports, Hilton, Charles Schwab, Anheuser-Busch, and PepsiCo. We are also one of a few firms globally to be certified partners with Apple, Google, SAP, and Microsoft.

Our Business Development & Commercial Strategy organization rallies around three distinct areas in the client journey map: Prospecting, Pursuit, and Expansion. A few responsibilities across our team include: identifying new relationships and digital opportunities across multiple verticals, nurturing ongoing relationships with client partners, contracting agreements, writing proposals, pitching our services to prospective clients, helping to shape the client's digital ecosystem, and more. Our summer program gives current MBA students the chance to innovate by contributing ideas and adding a new perspective to real client projects. To make sure you’re advancing in your craft, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to learn from fellow team members by discussing the latest trends in tech or gaining insights about creative methods of client engagements. 

• Hands-on experience by working on real client work -- you'll collaborate with a team to identify opportunities and build digital visions that excite prospective clients and  make technology decisions that consider client needs and WillowTree’s in-house capabilities. Work with potential and existing clients to define digital products and develop creative solutions -- help frame business/technical needs, project scope
• Conduct and analyze desk and secondary research, interview users, and collaborate closely with Designers, Engineering and Strategy team members to ideate on and identify unmet needs, competitive whitespaces and craft comprehensive digital strategies
• Combine technical plans and creative concepts into written proposals (RFP, etc.) for submission and presentations for pitches to C-level executives of Fortune 500 companies
• Synthesize opportunities and solutions into compelling narratives through storytelling
• Facilitate client workshops to extract and clarify business needs and product opportunities
• Contribute to business case modeling and "what would need to be true?" exercises to connect the dots between product vision and business impactWork alongside and be mentored by members of our executive leadership team

• Currently pursuing an MBA and graduating in Winter 2023 or Spring 2024
• 3+ years of professional experience working with software and technology, ideally in management consulting, within an agency or in go-to-market functions (sales, etc.) 
• Exposure to digital product/software strategy engagements
• Experience working with external clients and stakeholders — including consulting, solutioning, and strategizing
• Can clearly articulate business goals and link to digital or product vision
• Dynamic experience and skill making presentations and pitches to stakeholders, preferably at the executive level
• You have a genuine enthusiasm and an eye for creativity that helps you craft solutions for brands and clients
• Managed and facilitated project workshops, check-ins, timelines, and presentations
• Gifted client relationship builder with a focus on communicating clearly, confidently, and tactfully with clients.

• A technical undergraduate degree
• Significant mobile and emerging technology industry knowledge
• UX Research or ROI/metrics-informed design experience
• You've led sophisticated, high-profile digital projects
• Expert Keynote skills

P.S. Even if you don’t have expertise in all of the qualifications listed, we value new perspectives and encourage you to apply. We’re committed to building a diverse company that reflects the diversity of our users. If you feel confident about a good amount of the bullet points above, we’ll ramp you up on the rest.

Our MBA interns will be an integral part of our team at WillowTree. To help retain our deep culture of collaboration both among ourselves and our clients, this role will maintain an in-office presence in a hybrid (Work From Near) capacity in our Charlottesville, VA office. The internship program will run for 10-weeks.

We offer a place to be yourself.

Our differences, both visible and invisible, benefit our teams, our communities, and the products we craft. That’s why WillowTree strives to build a team with diverse backgrounds, skills, and perspectives. You’ll work hard here; however, we’ll balance that with a culture that supports your growth and cares about your well-being. We’re committed to creating an environment of inclusion — a place where every Tree can thrive.

Our summer internship program is an opportunity for you to work on real client projects and make a real impact on our organization all while receiving one-on-one mentoring from our full-time team members. Not only that, but you’ll have weekly paid lunches, snacks galore, and plenty of chances to socialize with your fellow interns — including fun outings during work hours. We’ll have you with us full time (think 40 hours a week for 10 weeks) and yes, it is definitely paid. Not a bad gig, right? 

WillowTree upholds our core values in every aspect of our work. We promote safe and inclusive work environments and maintain a drug-free workplace. We celebrate our differences and provide equal employment opportunities to all team members and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. Diverse teams build better products. We acknowledge that the tech industry especially lacks opportunity for those who are of non-traditional backgrounds and in underrepresented groups. In order to create the best products for everyone, we know that it's important for our team to reflect the diversity of our users, and we are committed to being the change we want to see.