In August 2025, the Dayshape Product team welcomed a Product Intern, Caitlin Macnab, to join them for one month. Below, Caitlin shares her thoughts on her internship experience at Dayshape.
Firstly, I'd like to say that having the opportunity to dive into the technology sector (often unexplored in academics) was amazing. From the get-go I was shadowing teams who were either working on designing and refining new feature ideas, conducting user surveys, responding to customer support tickets, or on the brink of exciting technological developments.
My internship also introduced me to all the tools I might need to progress in the field of product management. Those tools included Jira, Slack, and Miro. All of which I was using for the first time, which was definitely daunting as it showed me just how much there was to learn!
Speaking of tools, I was also set a personal task to identify areas where AI could be implemented in product management and present this to the team during my final week at the company. This initially challenged me as I had to broaden my mindset away from the preconceptions of AI as a bad essay-writing tool and instead diversify my knowledge of AI to consider how it could be used in the realms of business-minded development strategies. From this project, I've a new understanding of nuances (reaffirming the need for understanding research and development before adopting preconceived or one-sided mindsets and opinions) which I'm sure will stand me in good stead moving forward in my career.
Ultimately, I identified several key use cases throughout this project, many of which tied directly to the work I'd been involved with throughout the month. And the feedback from the team was positive, with a focus on identifying the need for using AI combined with self-awareness of the socio-environmental aspects and debates ongoing globally.
In all honesty, the Dayshape working environment was quite a culture shock compared to my expectations of company life. The culture is open, friendly, and there's a real willingness to discuss ideas. Not to mention the ever-filled snack basket and fancy coffee machine in the office! Truly this was worlds away from what I expected a 9-5 to look like which was a relief because dull and repetitive work in a stagnant office environment is a fear of mine.
I was also grateful to be able to set up 1:1 meetings with members of the Product team to hear about their journeys and backgrounds. This is where I found out that everyone was equally interested in learning about my own experiences, thoughts, and goals.
Outside of 1:1 meetings, the office is designed for collaboration, and although I was coming into a tech company from a social science background, I never felt that I was asking silly questions. The sheer variety of backgrounds within the company made it even more welcoming, from traditional paths in computer science to experience in social sciences, data analytics, and customer services. This combination makes for a dynamic workplace, which both excites me moving forward in my journey and makes me sad to leave!
Dayshape is an easy company to become connected with, both because of the people and the many opportunities to get involved outside the work context – from keen runners to company touch rugby leagues and Slack channels dedicated to pet pictures. There's a focus on building relationships with coworkers across all departments, something which is so instrumental in making a workplace stretch across specializations and roles to feel complete and whole.
Being strongly environmentally and socially focused coming into Dayshape, becoming passionate about tech development was never part of my plan. Yet, I find myself now open to exploring product management, software development, and the technology sector more broadly in my future working endeavours.
This experience has bridged the gap between my academic experience in research and real-world experience of working for a company with a common goal, finding the perfect balance between exploring future career possibilities and still being given space and understanding as a new learner. I am grateful to have been able to flourish, contribute, and grow throughout this internship, learning that the corporate world is not as scary as it often seems as a new graduate! I would recommend working with Dayshape to anyone, particularly those who seek to understand, discuss, and collaborate on exciting new ideas.
From internships to placements, Dayshape is committed to offering early career opportunities. To view our current openings, visit our careers page.