In the weeks leading up to my internship at CMA, I spent a lot of time trying to find an outfit that housed these two words: business and casual.  

I walked into the office and became aware the business dress code was most definitely just casual. Jeans, trainers, t-shirts. I was wearing a baby-blue suit.  

I sat down with the previous interns, Grace (who shared my first name), and Noah, who were passing me the intern torch. They’d been working here for the past twelve months, and whatever quality, or energy it was they were emanating—the year didn’t seem quite as intimidating—despite there being a lot to learn.

A little about Grace  

Grace studies Marketing at the University of Brighton. 

She joined CMA as a member of the App Store Optimization team. Despite having no ASO experience, she very quickly went from a fresh-faced intern to helping run complex client accounts, and problem solving and optimizing in the (impressively) short space of 12 months. Grace also happened to fill the office kitchen with all kinds of delicious baked goods as a hobby. Becoming the unofficial office baker.

And a little on Noah 

Noah also studies Marketing, but at the University of Exeter.   

He had worked with CMA before his internship year, during which his stellar performance led to him taking on the role of performance marketing manager; helping to run paid activities for clients at the impressive age of 21. Noah may be the youngest in the office, but his knowledge is reflective of someone who was been working within the mobile marketing industry beyond his years.

“You’re a team member, not an intern.”  

CMA works with a large variety of clients, across multiple industries, all with a unique set of challenges, tasks, KPIs and problems to solve. Consequently, the work being carried out is quite varied. And so I asked Noah and Grace to share some highlights of their time here at CMA.  

‘Working on an app called Driving Test Success’, Noah said. ‘My friends and I used it ourselves to learn our driving theory, so working on an app I was personally familiar with was interesting as I had that customer perspective.’ Noah was also invited to some events with CMA in London, which all made it into his list of highlights.  

Noah continued, ‘It’s a different beast entirely seeing how professional consultants dissect and improve their ad campaigns. That was one of the biggest differences between Uni and working at CMA—one is theory and one is practice. Having experts show you how they do it, and then seeing a campaign in action is an awesome learning experience’.

‘There have definitely been a lot of highlights for me,’ added Grace. ‘I started the year working on a large account and as I gained confidence, I got the opportunity to really contribute to the success of the account, which was quite a significant step, but I knew I was prepared and had the confidence to take it on’.  

”It’s incredible how intricate the whole ASO process is. It’s been an eye opening experience to see how CMA consultants have nailed that process. It really has made me appreciate the experience working here’.

Noah shared that when starting his full-time internship, it was the fast-paced environment that challenged him. ‘I found it quite difficult at the beginning to kind of switch your brain into different modes for different clients.’ 

Both Grace and Noah agreed that starting a placement was a big change, but ultimately, experiencing the working world before graduating was extremely valuable. Working at CMA Noah pointed out that learning how to switch into different kinds of thinking patterns will definitely help when going back to university, whilst having to focus on three or four different modules at a time.

Internships and placements help students determine their long-term career path and build the skills that will help them get there. Grace and Noah each realised how broad the term marketing is while they worked at CMA, and their respective career goals have changed thanks to this.  

“Where do you imagine yourself after university?”

The age old question.

‘Ideally I want to end up as a product marketing manager for a new, exciting and innovative product,’ said Noah.

Grace shared, ‘this experience has made me realize that I want to be my own boss. Being able to work alongside other women who are in senior roles has made me realize I want to aspire to have a job that gives me a high level of responsibility.’ 

For me, coming into the city was a big step, you always hear stories about the mistreatment of women in the workplace, but CMA seems completely devoid of those stereotypes. On my first day, I was greeted by my manager, Rosie, who was lovely and introduced me to the whole team. Almost all of the management I fall under in my role are women—who are hugely respected by everyone in the office. 

‘The people create a culture where you always feel welcome. You don't feel completely out of your depth because people always help you with any problem, big or small,’ said Grace.

Noah added, ‘It’s been nice having people who are a similar age. It means that anything you may be going through, they might have as well recently, so it makes it easy to talk. And that level of understanding among your colleagues helps’.

Grace continued, ‘It has also been really nice to have the dynamic of people that are slightly younger and more relatable but also develop relationships with colleagues who have a lot of experience in the industry.’  

Alongside the general staff being on hand to help with any problems, each intern has a manager who is there as a point of contact for any problems.  

‘She always makes sure I am progressing how I want, and we have regular one-to-one meetings, which is really nice. Having someone who always has an eye on me is really nice’, said Noah about his mentor.  

‘I have a different mentor to Noah, but he is also great.’ Added Grace, ‘Working with someone in such close proximity you create quite a strong bond with them which I think is nice to have when you’re an intern at a new company.’ 

‘You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take’  

This was Noah’s initial inspirational quote.  

On a less TED-talk-esque note, both had a focus on taking initiative even if you feel ‘pushy.’ 

Noah told me to ‘take every single opportunity you can to get involved in a project and be proactive. A lot of the seniors in the company respond really well to you being proactive so it's always good to keep asking if there's anything you can do to help.  That’s a really good way to both improve your professional skillset and get to know the people in the office.’ 

Grace advised; ‘always be pushy with wanting to learn new skills. Even if someone is doing a five-minute task just ask if they could teach you and then in the future that’s another aspect of the job you are confident in.’  

She added, ‘Always get involved in the company culture; always go out and take part in lunches and try and mix and mingle with as many teams as possible in a non-work setting because I think it really benefits you and I think you can have a more enjoyable time. It will also give you the confidence to push yourself in the office.’  

Talking to Noah and Grace gave me a much better idea of the year ahead, more than any job description could. Both quickly became highly valued members of the team and are both staying at CMA part-time as they complete their degrees.   

Oh, and smart trousers and a comfy jumper are my new, personal dress code.