Innovation Projects Intern

FIRST; New York (NY); On-site; USD 28,000 - 34,000; Part time

Job summary

FIRST is seeking an Innovation Projects Intern to support FIRST’s AI transformation program within the PMO. You will assist in coordinating AI initiatives, documenting progress, and helping leadership prepare reports and governance materials.

You’ll gain hands-on experience in AI project management, strategic research, stakeholder engagement, and organizational change at a leading agency. On-site Wednesdays at the New York office are required.

Qualifications

• Strong organizational and project coordination skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication abilities.
• Proactive and curious with genuine interest in AI and technology.
• Ability to work independently and with a team in a fast-changing, creative environment.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate and track AI initiatives across FIRST, tracking milestones and priorities.
• Maintain project documentation, action logs, and governance updates.
• Attend PMO meetings, capture actions, risks, decisions, and follow-ups.
• Pull information from diverse sources to build reports and leadership materials.
• Conduct foundational research on AI deployment and benchmarking insights.
• Support mini-projects and AI sprints developing prompts and tools.
• Document outputs and compare AI approaches to inform the roadmap.
• Liaise with internal teams to support smooth program delivery.
• Identify simple improvements to accelerate AI adoption.

Skills

Organizational skills

Project coordination

Written & verbal communication

Research & analysis

Interest in AI & technology

Independent & collaborative work

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree candidates

Job description

FIRST is a leading global brand experience agency providing Content, Creative, Digital Technology, Management & Delivery, and Data & Insights services. For 30 years, we have utilized three flexible delivery models: Embedded teams, Corporate Campus operations, and a Full-Service Agency.
Managing over 37,000 events & projects annually across 110 countries, FIRST serves 130+ brands, specializing in Fortune 500 companies within the Financial Services, Technology, Healthcare, Media, and Professional Services sectors.FIRST is part of the broader Encore family of companies. Encore is a global leader in event production and technology.
Consistently recognized for excellence, recent honors include 2026 Chief Marketer Agency of the Year, the Ad Net Zero Award for sustainability, and more.

• Dates: January 18–April 16, 2027 (12 weeks)
• Hours: 20–25 hours per week
• Availability: Minimum 4-hour blocks during standard business hours, Monday–Friday
• Onsite: Must be available to work from the FIRST New York office every Wednesday

What You Would Get To Do

The Innovation Projects Intern will support the coordination and delivery of FIRST’s AI transformation program. Working within the Project Management Office (PMO), the role provides project, research, and operational support to ensure AI initiatives are effectively monitored, communicated, and progressed across the business. This role offers an excellent opportunity to gain hands-on experience in AI transformation, project management, strategic research, stakeholder engagement, and organizational change within a leading agency environment.

• Support the coordination and tracking of AI initiatives across FIRST, helping the AI Taskforce keep sight of progress against activities, milestones, and priorities
• Keep project documentation, action logs, and program tracking tools updated throughout the project lifecycle
• Attend key PMO meetings, capturing clear actions, risks, decisions, and required follow-up activities
• Pull information from a variety of sources to help build and format professional reports, governance updates, and leadership materials
• Conduct foundational research into AI deployment, innovation, and adoption across competitor agencies and adjacent industries to support benchmarking insights and help inform the FIRST AI roadmap
• Support practical mini-projects and short AI sprints focused on developing, testing, experimenting with, and refining approved AI tools and prompts
• Document outputs and compare effectiveness across different AI approaches, offering basic recommendations on how prompts, workflows, or tools could be improved
• Liaise with the FIONA team (FIRST Innovation & AI) and internal stakeholders as required to support smooth program delivery
• Identify and share simple opportunities to improve ways of working and help accelerate AI adoption across the business
• Act as an ambassador for the FIRST brand, leading by example and displaying the company’s core values (Ambition, Creativity, Excellence, Integrity, Teamwork)

What We Are Looking For

• Robust organizational and project coordination skills
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent research and analytical capabilities with an ability to gather data from multiple sources
• Genuine interest in AI, technology, innovation, and business transformation
• Proactive, curious, and comfortable working in a fast-changing, creative environment
• Ability to work independently on tasks while collaborating well with a team

Benefits: Interns are not eligible for company benefits during the internship. Eligibility may be reviewed if the internship is extended or converted to a part-time or full-time position.

United States Residents: Bachelor's degree candidates (current students or graduates) are eligible for $20/hour, and Master's degree candidates (current students or graduates) are eligible for $25/hour.

FIRST is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. FIRST is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees and to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications without regard to race, color, religion or belief, national, social or ethnic origin, sex (including pregnancy), age, physical, mental or sensory disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital, civil union or domestic partnership status, past or present military service, family medical history or genetic information, family or parental status, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate. We stand firm: FIRST will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics. If any candidate feels that they are unable to meet the requirements of the role, please get in touch to discuss adjustments or other suitable roles.