The year 2020 has been about facing new and life-changing events and while our daily vocabulary has changed significantly to include 'unprecedented', 'quarantine', 'lockdown', and 'work'-from-home', the batch of 2021 MBA graduates heard and experienced a rather new noun,
a virtual internship.
Cut to a year back, when I joined IIM Indore, I was clear that I wanted to work primarily in the Consulting/ Finance domain. Coming from a commerce background and having worked in a Big 4, these seemed relatively familiar to me and I was more confident about excelling in these domains. A few weeks into my MBA, I dived into my prep for the summer placement which did not seem far off.
The Preparation Stage
My prep in the first semester began with multiple rounds of case interviews practices and solving guesstimates. I formed groups with my peers to address different types of cases and also did a few sessions with my seniors for more inputs. Additionally, I referred to Victor Cheng's books and videos to better understand the structure and format for solving a case. You can also go through 'The McKinsey Way' by Ethan M. Rasiel, which was a fun read for me to understand the life of a consultant better.
Tip: Prepare variations of your resume wherever possible to increase your visibility when applying for a particular domain.
Selection Procedure
After multiple rounds of resume iteration and case-prep sessions, the D-day was finally here. I had a pre-process for GEP which included a telephonic interview round before they arrived on campus. This was followed by the final campus interview round. I was given a guesstimate problem followed by a case-problem. The interviewer discussed the various kind of projects that the company engages in, which were in the Supply Chain and Procurement domain. It also helped me better judge if I would be the right fit for the role. There were a few HR questions towards the end. The interview went pretty smooth and I made it to the final selection list.
The Internship (now virtual)
I was very excited about my internship and the bonus for me was an opportunity to explore Mumbai, something I had been looking forward to for a while.
All of this was interrupted by an unknown situation that no one was prepared for, the Covid-19. The few weeks before the internships were scheduled to begin were full of uncertainty for every student. LinkedIn pages were bombarded with posts from students looking for alternative opportunities after their initial offers had been revoked. I was grateful and relieved when I received the communication from GEP with the final dates for my virtual internship. They gave us timely updates about the entire scenario which was a relief and much assurance in those times of uncertainty.
My internship, now shortened to a 6-week duration due to the pandemic, began with a virtual onboarding and induction session. The team at GEP ensured replicating the entire experience as close to as it would have been in office. We were allotted a buddy to help us ease in and not feel lost in a new environment. After the two-day induction, I was given my work plan and introduced to my team.
Let's talk work: The Projects
I was working on two separate projects and the challenge was to balance time and meet the deadlines for both of them. Additionally, my primary project flowed from the US-based team, which made it even exciting to be working with an overseas team. I had to assist the client in increasing their efficiency for their facility management services and select the suppliers for providing the same. The secondary project was an internal assignment where I had to propose an improved employee conveyance system for GEP basis their existing demand.
I had a tinge of nervousness as supply chain was a relatively new domain for me to work. Additionally, consulting requires you to collaborate with other people in the organisation for knowledge-sharing, which was tricky with the virtual set-up. With the new work-from-home setup, much of the face to face communication had now shifted to Teams calls. The internship core team arranged multiple ice-breaking and fun sessions to help us know our fellow interns better. We also had interactive and Coffee chat sessions with the senior leaders in the organisation who gave us insights about the work culture and to substitute for the knowledge we would have gained from an in-office experience.
My mentor was of immense help throughout the internship. We had multiple rounds of discussions to help me understand the project background and bring me up to speed with what we would be focusing on during my internship. She was of great support in the execution of the project with suggestions on improvements and regular two-way feedback. I used to look forward to connecting everyday with the entire team and my mentor, who extended a helping hand whenever I hit a roadblock or needed a fresh perspective. There was a lot of focus on understanding the reasoning behind every analysis or step being taken in the project, which was highly valuable. It contributed a great deal in increasing the value of my inputs and make me appreciate the bigger picture when working on my deliverables. I had weekly updates with the team leader as well for additional support and feedbacks.
Tip: Do not hesitate to ask questions to your mentor/ guide and ensure that you understand why a particular step is being taken in the project and its impact in the larger scheme of things
Towards the End
Throughout the internship, I got a lot of opportunities and the freedom to use what I had learnt during the first year of MBA, from the basics of supply chain to advanced tools in MS Office for breaking down raw data and conducting analyses.
After six weeks, my internship concluded with the final review, where I presented my findings and learning during the six weeks. We had a virtual farewell session to conclude our internship. Life threw lemons at us with this unannounced pandemic but the internship team managed very well to ensure that we do not miss out on the experiences we would have in the actual set-up. It was an immensely satisfying and enriching experience and I optimistically look forward to being on my beautiful campus of Planet-I again, hopefully soon.