Written by Louis Musto
Risk Advisory Services Intern
New York, NY
When I first heard that I was going to have the opportunity to travel for a client during my internship with McGladrey I was very excited. I was even more excited to hear that I would be spending most of my summer in a subtropical climate. I learned that I would be performing a Full-Scope Internal Audit for a client in two of their locations, and would be able to gain a large amount of experience in a short amount of time.
I just finished my first week of travel which included a trip to New Orleans and Hattiesburg. The weather the first day was a little rainy, but the rest of the week was beautiful and sunny. It was a little hot for dress clothes, but the rest of the country was going through the same thing anyway. Everyone I met in both New Orleans and Hattiesburg was extremely nice to the point that I almost thought they were sarcastic. I felt like I was in a twilight zone the first couple days, but once I got used to being showed some manners it was very pleasant. I am definitely not used to that on a day to day basis in NYC.
Both of my flights each way were smooth and on-time. I was also able to visit Memphis on a connecting flight on my way to New Orleans (and eat some “real” BBQ). New Orleans is a great city. Everyone takes a lot of pride in New Orleans and in their football team, The Saints. I was able to score a mini tour from the hotel shuttle driver on my way to check in. It was saddening to see the water line on the buildings from Katrina and all the remaining debris that still hasn’t been fixed. This city has so much history and it was a shame to see what the disaster did. On a more positive note the city was able to bounce back and rebuild the more historic areas. That night I met my senior co-workers Jason Alexander and Josh LaSov, and we grabbed a bite to eat. I was able to have a “Taste of Louisiana” which included alligator and red drum. We all stayed in the W French Quarter which was only a stone’s throw away from Bourbon Street.
The following day we all met in the lobby. I also met Julie Bertoia, an intern from the DC office; we got in the cars and drove to Hattiesburg, Mississippi where we stayed in the Hilton Garden Inn. The client’s location was outside the city, but only a short drive from the hotel. Everyone was a little scared when we first showed up and it took a couple days for them to warm up to us, but by the end of the week we were all best buds and we even went out to lunch with them. We were also able to tour their facility and go in the test lab and see the steps they take to assure the quality of their products. We were able to sample some ice cream that they made too.
Work was a little tough at first because I really didn’t know what I was getting into. I was asking a lot of questions while trying to be as resourceful as possible and I was able to get in the swing of things by the second day. I feel like when you’re traveling you are more energetic, which helps a lot when you’re also working. The days went by so quick and we were able to get so much done and we worked from 8:30 to 5:30 daily.
The city of Hattiesburg is home to the University of Southern Mississippi (Home of Brett Favre). It is a bustling college town, something I didn’t really expect when I first heard I was heading there. Every day after work we went to eat and had all different types of southern cuisine. My favorite place was “The Shed” where we played trivia on Thursday. Our team name was the McGladriators. We wound up taking a solid fourth (of 12).
By the end of the week I felt like the team was family. It was truly a pleasure to work with them. It was a really great experience for me and I was able to learn so much about internal auditing and client service in one week. I am glad to have this opportunity.
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