My name is Liliana Mason, I’m going into my third year in political science with a double minor in African studies and Canadian studies. My main interest are Canadian politics, public policy, and global affairs, and following undergrad I hope to complete my Master’s in public policy. This summer I took part in a remote internship with Synergos, an international NGO based in New York. Synergos is a global organization with ties in Africa, Asia, the Arab World, Europe, Latin America, and the United States. Synergos aims to tackle some of the most urgent and complex issues plaguing the world, using their pioneered bridging leadership approach. Bridging leadership is a practice employed both by individuals and organizations that enables diverse stakeholders to address systemic challenges as a collective. The founder of Synergos, Peggy Dulany, recognized that issues of poverty and inequality require collaboration at all levels of stakeholders and, therefore, that we needed to shift our mindsets to ensure that all available insights, experiences, and resources are brought to the table when addressing social challenges. Synergos currently has active programs in South Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Brazil, Bangladesh, Egypt, and around the MENA region, with a variety of initiatives including supporting social entrepreneurship in the Arab world, preventing child drowning in Bangladesh, and supporting agricultural transformation in Nigeria.
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I wanted to take part in the Synergos internship because their mission and goals really spoke to me, and I wanted the opportunity to be involved with an organization that truly values the people it aims to help. Synergos’ bridging leadership approach exemplifies their commitment to working from the ground up and prioritizing the needs and expert knowledge of those intimately affected by these issues. My objectives throughout this internship included learning more about the day-to-day operations of a non-profit organization, strengthening my research and presentation abilities, and expanding my knowledge and skills into the realm of HR. Furthermore, I hoped to continue improving my ability to work both independently and with a team.
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As an intern, my main responsibilities included conducting and presenting research and a wide range of topics (such as labour law compliance requirements, virtual assistant providers, and grant-based consulting agencies), categorizing and scheduling candidates for interviews, brainstorming potential updates to the Synergos website, and updating employee data. Furthermore, I was responsible for communicating and updating my supervisors with my work in an efficient manner. Overall, I was responsible for completing HR, IT, and financial work, as well as research and presentations, all of which provided me with plentiful opportunities to both strengthen and expand my existing skillsets.
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I experienced many highlights throughout my time as an intern, both individually and alongside my supervisors. Some of the biggest highlights for me came during the various hiring processes that I was involved with. During the internship, we were hiring for a couple different positions, including a Communications Associate, a Philanthropy Partner, and even another intern. I found it extremely rewarding to be involved in this process from start to finish, beginning with going through all the applicants and ranking them on their experience, to scheduling interviews with the top applicants, to finally inputting the new employee data into our human resources management system once the hire was made. This not only taught me a lot about the hiring process, but it gave me a sense of accomplishment that I made a tangible difference in the organization. Although there were many positives to my experience, I also faced some challenges during my time at Synergos. The main issue was due to the remote nature of the internship, as it made communication much more difficult. Because I had to rely exclusively on emails, teams messages, and zoom calls to both give and receive information, it sometimes took longer than it normally would to complete my assignments. As a result, it could become frustrating having to go through a lot of back-and-forth in order to get projects finished correctly.
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This internship has already had, and will continue to have, a profound impact on my university experience. This is the first time I have had the opportunity to work in a field that I am interested in pursuing eventually (non-profit work), and it gave me extremely valuable insights and expertise that I hope to be able to apply to future opportunities. Furthermore, it gave my important experience in working on a team with different levels of management, in a situation where communication is somewhat more difficult than most (working remotely). I would like to extend my most sincere thanks to the Hurley family for funding my internship award, as it allowed me to fully dedicate my time to my internship. It made my experience all the better, and provided me with an opportunity I will never forget. Thank you to the McGill International Experience Awards founders, and Dr. Robert M. Hurley and Mrs. Brenda Hurley for making this experience possible.
