After discovering this internship, one of the first things I did was dive into all of the newsletters on the Ellery Partners website. As I read through each person’s experiences, insights, and reflections, anticipation built up in me, envisioning the possibility of being in their shoes. Being here today feels surreal, and after reaching the halfway point of my internship, I can confidently say that this program has exceeded all of my expectations.

Each day starts with a team meeting where we gather virtually via Zoom. Frank kicks these sessions off with fun icebreakers, fostering a welcoming atmosphere that allows us to connect on a personal level. His tangents leave me wishing there was more time to listen, and it’s always a blast getting to know the team. 

After our small talk, we shift to the core of the meeting, where Frank introduces the day’s tasks and objectives. His approach to training – sharing his screen, walking us through the details, and asking us questions, ensures that we fully comprehend our assignments. Thanks to his clarity and openness, I have never felt confused or hesitant to speak up during these sessions. Overall, the environment and company culture has been incredibly supportive and encouraging.

At the beginning of the internship, our focus was on personalizing outreach emails to owners. We had to research the owner, company, and geography, and put all these pieces together into an interesting and engaging email. This felt overwhelming at first, but with Frank’s guidance, I’ve learned the best practices involved with outreach and feel comfortable customizing personalization for anyone and everyone – which has helped tremendously with my own personal networking. After getting comfortable with outreach, Jerry (my fellow intern) and I were introduced to our next big responsibility – the deposit project. This also seemed like a monstrous task when I started, involving going through and updating thousands of rows in Excel. But working through it, I picked up valuable skills and improved my proficiency with Excel, which has already paid dividends outside the internship. Beyond these two major projects, we also get the chance to work on mini-projects and attend weekly meetings with the executive team. I thought of this as the most realistic aspect of being an analyst, as it provided me insight into a normal workday and hands-on experience with diligence work. 

My favorite part of this internship has been the education meetings. As many other intern reflections pointed out, these meetings are a fundamental aspect of the Ellery internship. From the very first meeting, I noticed a significant improvement in my understanding of technical questions and the three financial statements. The teaching style in these meetings ensures that what we learn actually sticks with us. Frank constantly engages us by asking questions while demonstrating how various situations impact whatever we may be discussing. Beyond technicals, the education meetings cover various topics like networking techniques, mock interviews, industry analysis, and much more. I genuinely look forward to each meeting because every week presents an opportunity for professional growth and development.

Looking back at my time here, I am beyond grateful to work with such talented people and recommend this internship to anyone interested in private equity.