Editor’s Note: John Bartee, an SIUE business student, wrote this article while interning at Korte Company in marketing.
Macy Morley worked as a project management intern at Korte Company while pursuing dual master’s degrees in architecture and construction management from Washington University in St. Louis.
It all started with an interest in architecture at the University of Missouri, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in architectural studies. But she wanted to learn more about the practical aspects of building design and construction. That’s why she decided to study both architecture and construction management in graduate school.
“Wash U makes it pretty easy to do a joint or a dual degree, so my construction management degree ended up fitting in nicely with my architecture degree.”
Macy was recommended for the internship by her construction management advisor, who put her in touch with Alex Ayres, the hiring manager for our project management interns. A week later, she got the job.
One of the things that Macy enjoyed most about working for The Korte Company is how the collaborative culture encourages learning and growth. She has benefited from the guidance and feedback provided by the design team, who often invited her to join meetings and taught her how to use software like Revit and Enscape.
“In other roles I was in, you were this specific intern. You never really did anything outside of the scope of your title, but here, everyone is willing to help and teach you new things. It’s very productive and supportive.”
At The Korte Company, Macy has had the opportunity to work on many different projects — and she enjoyed the diversity of the work and the challenge of adapting to different situations and clients.
“One of the projects that I found interesting was the Hurricane Sally rebuilding projects in Pensacola, Florida. You don’t think about disasters as being an opportunity, but they are. They allow you to create something new and better for the community.”
Macy also discovered some of the advantages of working in Design-Build, where architects and project managers collaborate on project details.
“In school, they always talk about how the joint degree will be so helpful because there are two different languages that architects and project managers speak. They’ve always talked about how that causes a huge communication gap, and that the reason that Design-Build firms are becoming more popular is because they try to bridge that gap.”
She learned how to ask questions whenever she felt unsure about something or needed something clarified.
“There’s never a dumb question when it comes to making sure you’re doing something right. Utilizing the internship role to its fullest potential is being comfortable asking any and all questions.”
She also admired the company’s work-life balance.
“Korte allows its employees to prioritize their personal life and their families. It is inspiring to see a larger corporate company that pushes a healthy work-life balance.”
Macy hopes to continue working in Design-Build after graduation and find a role where she can use both her architecture and construction management skills.