Getting to know datacenter interns: Kayla Blick
Microsoft’s success depends on our people. We are proud to introduce some of the talented folks in your community who work in our global datacenters. Discover what inspired them to pursue a career in the tech industry, the different pathways they pursued, and what a day in the life of a datacenter intern looks like.
Introducing Kayla Blick
Microsoft Datacenter Technician Intern
Boydton, Virginia
Intern since August 2024
Early days
Born and raised in southern Virginia, Kayla grew up homeschooled and was taught early on to work hard and respect others. She is the eldest of three girls and would not trade that role for anything. Her parents raised them in church and worked hard to get her where she is today—her father working long hours as a truck driver and her mother being a mom and teacher. Kayla was the type of person who was never afraid to get her hands in a new project and explored many different avenues from military to crochet to farming.
The path to technology
In community college, Kayla was introduced to cybersecurity in the Civil Air Patrol, and thought, “Why not?” In August 2022, she started working to earn a cybersecurity certificate at Southside Virginia Community College. While it was difficult going from no technical background to studying for CompTIA certifications, she persevered and succeeded!
A Microsoft internship was originally offered to Kayla in early 2023, but she had to decline because she had already committed six months to serving as a missionary in Norway and Albania. When she returned to the United States in early 2024, the dean called her and said the offer still stood. After preparations and interviews, she was selected and has worked as an intern with Microsoft since August 2024.
Superpowers
Kayla likes to think of herself as a sponge, the way she loves soaking up information. She strives to learn and try everything. During her internship, she was constantly looking for work, searching for something new to learn, and asking the other technicians if she could tag along with their tasks. Throughout her life, Kayla has also upheld the notion that no job is too small, and she was always willing to do whatever job her senior needed her to do, from printing notes and counting cables to working on tickets and assisting in audits, continuously doing her best and with a smile. Working hard and proving her worth is important to Kayla. She likes responsibility, but she also knows it must be earned. That made coming into work each day fun, knowing she had 12 hours to learn, work, and prove herself as a capable technician.
A day in the life
Most days start with having morning meetings. When she was with Logistics, she prepared for several rack deliveries first thing in the morning. In Site Services, tasks were assigned and she gathered her spare parts and headed out to work on the repairs. She also deployed a lot of devices, printed labels, made maps, and fine-tuned many small but important background details. In Critical Environments, she assisted with inspections on the numerous machines that supply the datacenter with power. Each team brings new tasks, and every day provides her with something new to learn and take note of.
Favorite childhood food
On birthdays, each family member gets to choose what they have for dinner that night. Almost every year, Kayla chooses tacos. She loves packing hers with many ingredients—meat, lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, lime, cheese, onions, sour cream and salsa. Yum! Dinner is important to her family, as it is the one meal they eat together every day. Family time is great, but family time with tacos is even better!
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