We often tend to forget our inner strengths and give in to peer pressure or insecurities over the success of others. In a crisis situation like the one we are facing currently, the anxiety around careers going twofold is quite natural. But, you need to trust your skills and stop comparing yourself or your situation with others, when it is time for you to take the plunge into the corporate world.
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Amidst the global lockdown, when most companies are letting their fresh summer interns work from home, we at InsideIIM decided to have a chat with one of the Tata Steel summer interns from last year. Arushi Sood, a XUB graduate, takes us through her b-school journey, learnings from her summer internship, challenges she faced, and how she learned that it is of no use to compare yourself with others.
Find excerpts of the interview here:
Fresh out of your commerce degree you opted for MBA. Despite having a commerce background, you choose Human Resource in your MBA. How did this shift happen?
While my decision of pursuing a Bachelor's in Commerce was certain, my decision of pursuing an MBA HR wasn’t. During one of our classes in the MBA coaching class, the alumni working in the HR domain in different companies apprised us about what working in the HR field is like. It got my attention & I decided to explore more about the domain.
How different was XUB for you both academically and culturally? Was it difficult to adjust to the conditions? How did you manage?
Getting into Xavier’s meant that I would have to leave my hometown and stay away from home for the first time. It also meant a big cultural change from the north to the east. In the first few days after joining, I felt a little out of place as the majority of the students belonged to Bhubaneshwar, but once the ice was broken, some of them became my closest friends. Just a few days into the campus and we were introduced to various committees and how things happen with these.
During your HRM degree in XUB, what were the core learnings that stayed with you?
- Planning is very important, but so is agility. You need to be flexible enough and be on your feet at all times.
- You need to be a multi-tasker.
- How to be a team player & make connections, understand different types of behaviors & act accordingly.
Of all the companies that were visiting on campus, what made you opt for Tata Steel for your summer internship?
Before applying for the summer applications, I interacted with a few of my seniors working at Tata Steel who helped me get more clarity about the kind of workplace Tata Steel provides. To be honest, I think the name Tata speaks for itself. The goodwill that it has, the credibility as an employer, and the leading company that it is, when it comes to HR policies, were some of the major reasons why I wanted to opt for the company.
What were some of the major learnings during your summer internship at Tata Steel? How was the first taste of corporate work culture?
I got the opportunity to have interactions with leaders, managers & shop floor employees and all three were very different experiences. I learned about the organisational structure of Tata Steel and the structure of HRM. There’s a different set of teams deployed to take care of each and every aspect related to HRM and they all work in collaboration. I learned a great deal about how a manufacturing plant operates and the different types of roles HR play in it.
Tell us a bit about the project that you took up during your summer internship. How did it help you know the organization and its people better?
My Summer Internship Project was around creating a ‘Career Development- Value Proposition’. I was assigned 2 Guides and 1 Sponsor. While the sponsor would review my project every now and then, most of my interactions took place with both my guides. The project was related to working on a platform wherein we could capture the career aspirations of the officers working within Tata Steel, which would help in chalking the development of their respective careers. As a part of my project, I got the opportunity to interact with the employees working at different levels in the organisation, to understand their aspirations, their future plans, their thoughts about their own career progression, and take feedback as well from them. It provided me a well-rounded perspective of the organization.
You got a PPO from Tata Steel based on your performance in the summer internship. Tell us three things that worked in your favor to bag the PPO?
I think what worked for me was my curiosity. I would always get into the details and try to understand how the pieces fit. Being a quick learner also turned out to be handy given the size of the organization I was working in. Also during my interactions with the employees, I got a chance to grasp the pulse of the people in the organization, which in turn, helped my project move in the right direction.
What were the crucial elements that you liked about Tata Steel that made up your mind that you would like to be a part of such an organization and accept the PPO?
Tata Steel has been a pioneer when it comes to people's policies and during my days of internship, I got a glimpse of that. The huge set of policies that the company has built to ensure that each and every employee is being taken care of in all ways possible is commendable. It is not just in theory and papers; the company does a great job when it comes to implementation as well.
You recently celebrated your work anniversary in April with Tata Steel. How does the day to day work look like for Arushi Sood now and what are some challenges that you face on a daily basis?
As the Business Unit HR for one of the Long Product Mills at Tata Steel, I handle end-to-end tasks for human resources for all the employees in the department. The workforce is divided into three categories, Officers, Non-Officers, and Contract Labours. Each of them has their specific requirements and challenges. For these sets of employees, everything ranging from Training & Development to handling daily Grievances, to Employee Engagement is looked after by me.
What would be your message/tips for students with no work experience but want to work in the HRM sector for an MNC like Tata Steel?
Don’t compare yourself with anyone or your peers who have prior work experience. Your performance at work is dependent on the initiatives you take to grasp every opportunity you get to learn, your enthusiasm towards understanding how the company works, and your ideas on how you can make a difference in the organisation.