Summer Internship with Small Business and Technology Development Center
Steve Valladares, Daytime MBA 2026
This summer, I interned with the Small Business & Technology Development Center (SBTDC) as a Technology Commercialization Summer Consultant, where I partnered with innovation driven startups to advance their commercialization strategies.
I was drawn to this program because of my long standing interest in entrepreneurial ventures. In college, I launched a direct to consumer pet apparel business, and while serving in the military, I built a house hacking side hustle that generated positive cash flow. While those experiences gave me a foundation for building ventures independently, this internship gave me the chance to support founders in a professional setting and apply my MBA toolkit to real world startups.
My project responsibilities included conducting customer discovery interviews, building a market sizing model, developing a pitch deck, crafting a go to market strategy, and synthesizing secondary research into actionable insights. These deliverables allowed me to contribute directly to founders’ decision making while giving me the autonomy to own a workstream end to end.
The experience reinforced the boldness required to build something from the ground up. Both startups I supported were tackling complex industries, yet their founders’ commitment to impact was inspiring. Personally, I discovered a budding interest in the biotech space—an area I had not previously considered but now find deeply compelling.
Going forward, I plan to leverage these learnings by continuing to pursue opportunities where I can blend entrepreneurial thinking, strategy, and innovation. The SBTDC program reminded me that stepping into uncertain spaces with creativity and resilience is not only rewarding but also where the most meaningful growth happens.
This internship was supported by the Summer Internship Fund, which enables first-year Duke MBA students to learn about the rewards and challenges of using business to drive positive impact without making a significant financial sacrifice. The program enables organizations that otherwise could not afford to hire MBA student interns to benefit from students’ expertise. Funds are raised through student fundraising and from donors who believe in the mission of the program. If you would like to contribute, you can donate online using your credit card.