The World Came To A Halt…but Learning Didn’t!- Summer Of 2020 At RB

This lockdown, World came to a halt! But the learning didn’t! Here is my SoaRBeyond internship experience at Reckitt Benckiser for the Summer of 2020. “Challenging times are what differentiates the best from the rest”

Despite the distance and roadblocks due to the current COVID-19 situation, RB revamped their summer internship for 2020 into a virtual format in a very short time. This exemplifies the compass that drives RB towards excellence.
The campus team at RB had put in heroic efforts to facilitate a virtual onboarding in these unprecedented times.

From a smooth on-boarding process to the different sessions as part of the Induction series had key takeaways about different facets of the business. While the leadership address gave a sense of belongingness.

What to expect?
At RB, the learnings you got out of the summer internship project are phenomenal as they give you projects that matter to them, both in the short and long term. A relevant project with the freedom to drive the project with your own creativity is something rare to find and RB is known for it. While my project had one of the best learning experiences as it was a strategically critical project.

Besides the project work, the campus team came to the rescue with creative activities- surprises, quizzes and coffee catch-ups so that we don’t miss being on the office floor and miss the ‘Chai Chit—chats’.

Project journey
This wonderful experience wouldn't have been possible without the continuous guidance and empowerment by the people I worked with. They understood my dilemma of not being on the shop floor for such a critical project and supported me all along. While my guide, even though being in a senior role took out the appropriate time to show me the right path which further accelerated my learnings during my stint.

Learnings
This helped me strengthen my functional knowledge of the supply chain and gave me a broader understanding of the working of FMCG companies. Moreover, besides the key takeaways in terms of learnings, I created some great connections that will outlast an internship.

Making a remote internship work
Pulling off a Supply internship in a virtual scenario was tricky. But staying connected with all the stakeholders and having a virtual tour of the process through proper guidance helped me understand baseline practices.

Summing it up, a summer internship at Reckitt Benckiser has been a dream come true. It was a full package, despite the challenges that came with a virtual setup. I am honoured that I got an opportunity to be part of such a wonderful journey. These 8 weeks of the Summer of 2020 were like no other and will remain an unforgettable experience for me!

A tip to future aspirants
To work with the best, you have to give in your best. During the internship, RB entrusts you with critical projects, so performance is crucial but rest assured, the learnings you get out of it will be phenomenal. RB is very proud of its values and compass, so make sure you are completely aligned with them. Proper guidance will be provided, but you need to own your project and drive it to success!