Internship Opportunities at Synnefa

Role Overview:
The Business Development Interns will support Synnefa’s growth and partnership efforts by focusing on B2B outreach, partner development, and sales support. This role is ideal for recent graduates with studies in business, agriculture, or related fields who are looking to kickstart a career in agritech sales/partnerships. Under the guidance of the CEO and growth team, the interns will help expand Synnefa’s network of partners and enterprise clients, with a special emphasis on scaling our FarmCloud platform’s reach. The interns will gain hands-on experience in market research, lead generation, relationship management, and the inner workings of a fast-paced startup driving agricultural innovation.

Key Responsibilities:

• Partner Scouting & Outreach: Research and identify potential strategic partners,such as agribusiness companies, microfinance institutions, input suppliers, agro-dealers, and export-focused farms, that could collaborate with Synnefa or integrate into the FarmCloud ecosystem. Proactively reach out to these prospects via email, calls, and networking events to introduce Synnefa’s offerings.
• Lead Generation & Qualification: Generate a pipeline of B2B leads by cold-calling, emailing, and leveraging LinkedIn to connect with decision-makers in target organizations. Qualify leads by assessing their needs and fit (e.g., interest in greenhouse projects, use of farm management software, financing needs) and prioritize high-potential opportunities for follow-up. Maintain a leads database with key contact information and status updates.
• Relationship Management Support: Assist in managing relationships with prospective partners and clients throughout the engagement process. Schedule and coordinate meetings or product demo calls between potential partners and Synnefa’s leadership. Prepare meeting briefs and take notes during partnership discussions. Keep the CRM system up-to-date with all interactions and ensure timely follow-ups, nurturing each relationship professionally.
• Partnership Onboarding Assistance: Once a partner shows interest, support the onboarding process – help draft or tailor proposal documents, partnership briefs, or Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) for review. Coordinate internal resources (e.g., scheduling technical demos or pilot installations) to meet partner requirements. Work closely with the partner through initial setup, ensuring they understand how to utilize FarmCloud or other Synnefa services as needed. For example, if an agrodealer is joining as a distribution partner, assist in organizing any required training or introductory sessions.
• Market Research & Strategy Input: Research market trends and identify new opportunities for Synnefa’s expansion. This could include mapping out potential partners in new regions (e.g., East African countries we plan to enter) or new sectors (such as floriculture exporters, co-operatives, or NGOs running farmer programs). Analyze competitor partnerships or initiatives in the agritech space and provide insights. Use this research to contribute ideas to the team on partnership strategy (e.g., suggesting an approach to engage a newly identified agri-processor network).
• Sales & Demo Support: Work closely with the sales team and technical agronomists to support product demonstrations and trials for prospective B2B clients. For instance, help organize on-site or virtual demos of FarmShield IoT devices and the FarmCloud software dashboard. Coordinate logistics for demo units or presentations (e.g., ensuring equipment is ready, setting up meetings). While the technical team leads the demo, the intern ensures the process runs smoothly and collects any initial feedback from the client. Demonstrating Synnefa’s value proposition effectively will be key to converting prospects.
• Reporting & Administrative Tasks: Prepare weekly reports summarizing outreach activities, status of leads, and any deals in progress. Track key metrics (as outlined in the KPIs below) and flag any bottlenecks or notable successes to the team. Additionally, handle various supportive tasks such as drafting emails, updating sales collateral (presentations or one-pagers), and liaising with the Marketing team to get customized materials for specific partner pitches. Essentially, ensure the business development process is well-organized and data-driven by providing administrative and analytical support.

Key Performance Indicators:

• New Leads Contacted: Number of new B2B or partner leads contacted per month (e.g. outreach to at least X new organizations each month). This measures the volume of prospecting activity to expand our pipeline.
• Qualified Partnerships/MoUs: Count of partnership agreements or MoUs initiated or signed with new partners in a month. Targeting at least 1 new partner onboarding per intern per month will indicate progress toward our FarmCloud partner expansion goals.
• Meetings & Demos Arranged: Number of substantial engagements scheduled, such as partner meetings, pitch presentations or product demo sessions with potential clients. (For example, Y meetings or demos organized per month as a result of the intern’s outreach efforts.) This reflects how effectively leads are being moved forward in the funnel.
• Pipeline Progress & Conversion: Progression rate of leads in the sales pipeline e.g. percentage of contacted leads that advance to proposal or negotiation stage. This can be tracked as a conversion metric month-over-month. Additionally, maintaining a healthy active pipeline (with a certain minimum number of active interested partners at any given time) is expected.
• CRM & Reporting Compliance: 100% completeness and timeliness of updates to the CRM and weekly reports. All new contacts, follow-up notes, and status changes must be logged, and a concise report submitted each week. This KPI ensures discipline in documentation and allows the team to monitor activity aligned to our 2025 growth targets.

Required Qualifications & Attributes:

• Educational Background: Bachelor’s degree (or higher diploma) in Business, Marketing, Agriculture, Agribusiness, or a related field. Must have graduated within the last 1 year (recent graduate) to qualify for the internship program.
• Communication & Interpersonal Skills: Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Comfortable interacting with corporate clients and partners via email, phone, and in-person. Able to craft professional correspondence and presentations.
• Analytical & Research Skills: Strong ability to conduct market research (online and via networking), analyze data to identify promising leads, and gather insights about potential partners or market segments. Proficient in using tools like Google Sheets/Docs for tracking and analysis.
• Self-Motivation & Organization: Proactive, self-driven individual who can take initiative in contacting leads and follow up diligently. Should be highly organized in managing tasks, able to juggle multiple prospects and deadlines without dropping details. Experience with or willingness to learn CRM systems is a plus (ensuring all interactions are logged methodically).
• Interest in Agritech: A demonstrable interest in agriculture and technology. Candidates who understand farmers’ pain points or have familiarity with agricultural value chains will have an easier time relating Synnefa’s value to partners. Passion for Synnefa’s mission to improve smallholder farming through innovation is essential.
• Adaptability & Teamwork: Comfortable working in a fast-paced startup environment where priorities can shift. Able to collaborate closely with cross-functional teams – including Marketing (for coordinated outreach campaigns) and Technical teams (for arranging demos). Should be eager to learn from feedback and adaptable in approach.
• Integrity & Professionalism: Must uphold Synnefa’s values of integrity and fairness in all dealings. As an intern reaching out externally, the individual will be a representative of Synnefa; professionalism, reliability, and ethical behavior are paramount.

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Role Overview:
The Marketing & Social Media Interns will be at the forefront of implementing Synnefa’s 2025 marketing strategy by creating content and managing our digital presence. This role suits recent graduates in Marketing, Communications, Journalism, or related fields who are creative storytellers and digitally savvy. The interns will work closely with Synnefa’s marketing lead (and cross-functional teams) to produce engaging content (from blog articles and newsletters to social media posts and simple graphics/videos) that educates our audience and promotes Synnefa’s brand. They will also handle day-to-day management of social media channels and assist in running campaigns. This internship offers the opportunity to shape the voice of an innovative agritech startup and to learn growth marketing tactics in a hands-on setting.

Key Responsibilities:

• Content Creation & Copywriting: Develop compelling written and visual content to fuel Synnefa’s content marketing efforts. This includes writing blog posts, news updates, case studies, and farmer success stories, as well as helping to create infographics or short video snippets for social media.
• Social Media Management: Take charge of Synnefa’s day-to-day social media presence. Plan and schedule posts across platforms (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) to maintain a consistent posting frequency (e.g., ~3–5 posts per week, per platform). Craft engaging captions and choose or create accompanying images/graphics. The intern will actively monitor our pages, responding to comments and messages promptly, and fostering conversations with our online community.
• Campaign & Event Support: Assist in executing marketing campaigns and initiatives. This may involve working on digital ad campaigns (helping to draft social media ad copy or coordinating with designers for visuals), email marketing (writing newsletter content or setting up mailing lists), and webinars or events.
• Audience Growth & Engagement Tracking: Work towards growing Synnefa’s online audience and keeping them actively engaged. The interns will use growth tactics like following relevant industry influencers, using appropriate hashtags, engaging in relevant online groups/forums, and encouraging user-generated content from our community. They will keep an eye on metrics such as follower count (aiming for a steady monthly increase), post reach and impressions, and engagement rates (likes/comments/shares per post).
• Market and Competitor Research: Stay informed about trends in agritech, digital marketing, and the broader agriculture industry to ensure Synnefa’s content remains relevant and ahead of the curve. The intern will monitor content from competitors and industry thought leaders: e.g., reading other agritech blogs, following competitor social media pages, and noting which topics or formats garner high engagement.
• Collaborative Content Development: Work closely with other teams to gather raw material and insights for content. For example, coordinate with the Business Development interns/lead to obtain partner success stories or updates that can be showcased in a newsletter. Liaise with Synnefa’s agronomists or customer support for farmer testimonials and technical insights that can be turned into educational content. This cross-functional collaboration ensures our marketing content is rich with real-world data and stories.
• Analytics & Reporting: Track and analyze the performance of content and campaigns using basic analytics tools (e.g., social media insights, Google Analytics for web traffic, Breezy/CRM stats for lead capture if relevant). Key metrics to monitor include website traffic (especially blog traffic and referral traffic from social posts), content engagement (time on page, social shares), social media metrics (followers gained, engagement rate), and leads or inquiries generated from marketing efforts.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Content Output Volume: Number of content pieces produced and published per month. A target is to consistently publish at least 4 blog articles (or equivalent major content pieces) per month, in addition to frequent shorter-form posts. Meeting this target demonstrates that the content calendar is being executed as planned.
• Social Media Posting & Responsiveness: Adherence to a regular posting schedule on all designated platforms (for example, 3–5 posts weekly on each channel). This KPI can be measured by the percentage of weeks in the month where the posting target was met.
• Audience Growth: Net increase in followers or subscribers on key platforms per month.
• Engagement Rate & Reach: Track the average engagement rate (combined likes, comments, shares per post divided by total follower count) and/or total engagements on our content monthly.
• Lead Generation & Web Traffic from Content: Number of marketing-qualified leads or inquiries generated through content channels per month, and/or the volume of website traffic attributable to content marketing.

Required Qualifications & Attributes:

• Educational Background: Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communication, Journalism, Business, or related discipline. Must be a recent graduate (within 1 year) to qualify for the Synnefa internship program (we are looking for fresh talent to nurture). Academic projects or coursework in digital marketing or content creation will be an added advantage.
• Creative Writing and Communication Skills: Exceptional ability to write engaging, clear, and grammatically correct content. Should be able to adapt writing style to different formats, from professional press-release style pieces to friendly social media captions. Strong storytelling ability is key to turning technical Agritech concepts into relatable content.
• Digital & Social Media Savvy: Demonstrated experience or familiarity with managing social media profiles (even if personal or for school projects), including knowledge of platform specifics like hashtags, tagging, and analytics. Basic understanding of social media engagement tactics and trends is expected. Skills in graphic design (e.g., Canva or Adobe Spark) or video editing (for short clips) are a plus, as the role may involve creating simple visuals.
• Organizational Skills: Capable of maintaining a content calendar and meeting deadlines consistently. This includes balancing multiple content pieces at various stages (writing, editing, publishing) and coordinating schedule with the team. Attention to detail is critical, e.g., proofreading content carefully and ensuring branding guidelines (logos, colors, tone) are followed.
• Analytical Mindset: Comfortable with basic data and metrics – able to interpret social media insights and Google Analytics data to derive simple conclusions (training will be provided as needed). Should be curious about what the numbers indicate and use that to inform decisions (for example, noticing a post with above-average shares and analyzing why it performed well).
• Passion and Adaptability: A genuine interest in Synnefa’s mission and the agriculture sector. Given that content will revolve around farming and technology, the candidate should be eager to learn about these topics. Adaptability is important, trends in digital marketing change quickly, and the intern should be open to trying new content ideas and learning new tools. A proactive attitude (bringing creative suggestions to the table) and willingness to receive feedback will help them thrive in our team.
• Professionalism & Team Collaboration: As a representative of Synnefa online, the intern must uphold professionalism and courtesy in all public interactions.