A BYU–Hawaii senior turned a summer internship at Hawaiian Electric into a career-defining discovery.
For Hyeongjin Choi, a senior business major from South Korea, his summer internship was a chance to put newfound passion into practice.
With an emphasis in organizational leadership and human resources, Choi spent ten weeks as an HR intern on the Organizational Development and Learning team at Hawaiian Electric. Working both at the company’s office in Honolulu and remotely, he contributed to three different projects, gaining hands-on experience in a field he had previously only explored through his studies and other jobs.
Getting Plugged In
Choi explained his interest in Hawaiian Electric began before his internship. Two years ago, when a hurricane caused power outages across Hawaii, he shared how he noticed employees continuing to work with determination.
“There was a passion and sense of responsibility while they were working, which led me to research their company and their programs,” Choi explained.
That experience eventually led him to an internship where he saw the same commitment firsthand.
“Hawaiian Electric has a special vision for their company, which is to maintain a strong, resilient, and sustainable Hawaii for the future generations so our community can thrive together,” Choi said. “It impressed me how passionate my coworkers were in that vision, and it motivated me to hone that kind of passion for my own future career.”
Learning by Leading
One of Choi’s main projects was redesigning Hawaiian Electric’s exit interview and exit survey process. He updated the questions, moved the survey to new software, and helped automate the process.
“As a project lead, I helped create the project plan, manage the timeline, facilitate meetings with the stakeholders, and research best practices for our exit surveys,” Choi shared.
The project gave him an opportunity to take what he had learned in the classroom and apply it to an actual workplace.
“I’ve had previous experience doing this while studying here at BYU–Hawaii and working at the Polynesian Cultural Center, but it was my internship where I truly learned to apply my skills,” he said.
Taking Shape
As an international student, Choi quickly learned that working in a professional environment came with its own language challenges. Coworkers used terms and expressions he was unfamiliar with, making it difficult to follow some conversations and meetings at first.
Instead of allowing that to hold him back, Choi made improving his communication part of his daily routine. “To improve, I studied my English daily, as well as took detailed notes in each meeting,” Choi said. “I tried really hard to make my communication skills clearer.”
The internship also gave him opportunities to connect with other interns through weekly networking activities. As he became more comfortable communicating and working with others, he began to see how much he enjoyed the people-focused side of his work.
By the end of the summer, Choi gained more than experience in organizational development; he found a field he could visualize himself building his career in.
“I’ve found that HR is a field that I’m truly interested in after realizing how rewarding it is to help employees create a better work environment, thus improving the employees’ performance.”
