Short Summary: Shannon Moran talks about leadership as part of the podcast executive leadership team and shares the four skills she acquired through the Digital Media Engagement VA Internship.
Shannon Moran, a junior at Seton Hall University majoring in diplomacy and international relations, shares the skills she has acquired through the Digital Media Engagement (DME) VA internship as part of the podcast executive leadership team (ELT).
With her past experience of creating a podcast with a small team, as well as the enjoyment of listening to podcasts, Shannon applied for the VA podcast team. With the podcast department being a new addition to the DME VA internship, she stepped up to lead as a department head then accepted a position as an ELT.
Shannon is responsible for leading the DME Interns Podcast, as well as the DME Valor U Podcast, which is an 8-episode series focusing on Native Americans. Her role as a podcast ELT includes coordinating with her team, communicating with institutions outside the internship, interviewing people and scheduling the timeline of projects in order to complete the podcast.
As a DME VA intern, Shannon has acquired these four main skills.
Four Acquired Skills:
• Leadership—As an ELT, she directs her team on projects while understanding the importance of allowing interns to be autonomous. Shannon has acquired leadership through running and managing her team of podcast interns.
• Time Management—To prepare for the podcast being released in April, Shannon has scheduled a timeline in advance. This long-term planning will ensure future success of these projects.
• Communication —As a leader, it is vital to articulate your creative vision for the team to accomplish. Shannon listens to the advice from her team as interns communicate and give input on projects.
• Be Open to Learn— Her advice to interns is to be open to learning and trying any opportunity, including ones offered by the leadership team or in the #moonlighting channel on Slack. In the #moonlighting channel, various projects are posted and interns can join any projects they are interested in. These opportunities will lead to learning new skills and making new connections. Shannon continues to acquire resourceful skills from the internship and learn from her mentors Dom and Tanner.
At the completion of the VA DME Internship, Shannon hopes to create an incredible podcast with her team that will exceed all expectations.
Writer: Hannah Nelson
Editor: Brooke Wolfenbarger
Graphic Designer: Katie Rahill
