When people think of internships, they often imagine graduates hired temporarily to do scut work. That’s not how we do things at Rydoo.
Interns bring fresh perspectives, energy, curiosity, and enthusiasm to our team. Our goal is to help them channel that into meaningful work, collaborating on real projects and gaining experience they can carry into their next adventure.
No coffee runs, no endless paperwork. Just time working as part of the team.
This summer, Mark O’Brien joined our marketing team in Lisbon for an eight-week internship, where he quickly learned what Rydoo’s “work hard, play harder” motto really means. Here’s his story.
Finding Rydoo
I walked into the Rydoo office in Lisbon last June, completely unaware of what the next two months would look like. I prepared myself by reading about expense management and touching up on the corporate jargon I was expecting to hear.
What I could never have prepared for was the vibrancy and infectious positive attitude that I was met with every day when I walked through the door.
“Culture” is a popular word to throw out there when describing the energy surrounding a team or workplace, but a single word will never be able to encapsulate what the Rydoo Lisbon office is and represents.
Routine celebrations of each other’s accomplishments and maintaining a shared space that breeds innovation, teamwork, and trust characterise the team I had the pleasure of working with throughout the summer.
“Culture” is a popular word to throw out there, but a single word will never be able to encapsulate what the Rydoo Lisbon office is and represents.
As an American university graduate with no real job leads or concrete plans after finishing school, I was unsure of what my next steps were. I knew I wanted to travel and gain professional experience, but it was tough to fulfil both at the same time.
Not too long after graduating, a connection I made during my time in school invited me to apply for a program that helps college students find internships abroad. This quite literally checked both boxes. I was accepted into the program and soon started interviewing with startups and small businesses across Lisbon.
I had three interviews before my call with Pedro Ferreira, Rydoo’s VP of Marketing. When we met, it became clear which company I wanted to intern for. Pedro essentially conducted a 10-minute personality assessment before taking me through Rydoo’s website and showing me potential projects I could work on.
Then, we transitioned into my favourite part of any interview: asking about workplace culture to see which angle the interviewer takes. Most companies like to give a vague TedTalk-like speech about “being part of something bigger”, while others ramble off a few corporate culture buzzwords, hoping it’s enough to impress. But Pedro answered this question as if he had been waiting to talk about the Rydoo lifestyle.
He talked about the company’s values of working hard and playing harder, and I can now attest to how true and accurate that business model is. When the marketing internship was offered, I accepted it immediately.
Life as a marketing intern
As part of the marketing team, I worked directly under Ana Gordo, Marketing Content Manager, and Antonio Carvalho, Head of Brand and Comms. My tasks mainly focused on content writing, preparing and uploading content from the drafting stage into the CMS for publication.
Everyone at Rydoo knows how lucky I was to work so closely with Ana and Antonio. They gave me many opportunities to work on projects that challenged me, taught me new skills, and kept me genuinely engaged.
Despite the differences in titles, duties, and seats, this is an interdependent and selfless group of people who understand the main priority of growing this company.
Tasks were never really repetitive, and I was given real responsibilities, not just busywork, that evolved as time went on. I worked on content that ended up getting published on CFO Corner and contributed to significant campaigns.
People throughout the office, even those not on the marketing team, checked in with me regularly to make sure I was doing fine and happily invited me to shadow them and their work, just so I’d learn more about Rydoo’s operation as a whole. That essentially summarises this company’s attitude. Despite the differences in titles, duties, and seats in the office, this is an interdependent and selfless group of people who understand the main priority of growing this company.
Everything I learned
I left Rydoo feeling incredibly proud of my limited time here. For eight wonderful weeks, I experienced what being a part of a growing, innovative, and fun-loving team truly feels like.
Beyond the project management tools I became familiar with, and now knowing what OKRs, KPIs, and ICPs mean, I learned what teamwork in the office truly looks like. How communication and teamwork among different divisions lead to shared success, and most of all, working hard to play even harder truly works.
Tasks were never really repetitive, and I was given real responsibilities, not just busywork.
And the best part, I experienced all that without being micro-managed!
My inexperience before interning at Rydoo led me to believe companies can either be fun or they can be successful, but never both. In eight weeks, that preconceived notion of mine fell very flat. On top of the marketing team’s very busy summer schedule, Ana and Antonio added another project to their plate: teaching me how to work hard and play harder, the Rydoo way.
Not a goodbye, a see you soon
I am leaving Lisbon incredibly satisfied and forever thankful. Beyond the new proficiencies I can add to my resumé and the Portuguese foods that I got to try, I am most grateful for the sense of belonging I was met with from day one, and the lasting connection to the Rydoo family that won’t soon be forgotten.
My inexperience led me to believe companies can either be fun or they can be successful, but never both. In eight weeks, that preconceived notion fell very flat.
Saúde to a summer very well spent, and to countless more Rydoo milestones ahead!
