It is a dream for any budding management apprentice to intern in the company of his/her aspiration in his/her desired stream of management so that the internship experience enriches the dreams further and help in converting dreams into reality. Possessing the same ambition and passion, I started my internship expedition here in IIM Shillong in the 4^th month of my sojourn in the new phase of my life. Soon I realised the path is going to be very adventurous, sheathed with lots of ups and downs.

The life in IIMs is very different than what we thought of initially and totally antithetical to what we experienced in our bachelor’s degree, where there were no shortlists, and anyone could apply and would get a chance to feature in the recruitment process of his sought-after organisation. And also, the placements practices and cultures were totally different in terms of placement policy, placement etiquettes, protocols, quality of competition and especially, the inflexible and hermetic placement rounds of different companies streamlined one after another down the line. The business formal wears became the closest friend during that time and it was discernible that choice of formals among the set present in the wardrobe became an important matter which may bring a good luck and fate in the selection process.

To some, the road was pretty easy, but for most of us it was treacherous where disappointments (for not even getting the shortlist for further round of our dream company or failures at the intermittent stages of recruitment rounds) and delights (in exhilaration for the placed candidates, certainly for two reasons, one for their own selection and the second, for increasing our own prospects for further companies) went hand in hand. I faced about 13 rejections, was constantly getting eliminated in a group discussion or interview rounds and, in that manner, lost the opportunity to secure placement in some revered and reputed organisations. A stage came, where it was becoming difficult to identify the flaws and shortcomings of not being able to crack selection rounds, sometimes losing all hope and then again refurbishing it for the next company. Same was the fate with my fellow friends, for whom the things were going topsy-turvy as well. The life in IIM does not give you a lot of time to contemplate, so one has to be very spirited and conscientious in improving mistakes and rise up for future companies before the things get out of hand. And yes, sometimes, it also felt like, the gods are not in our favour.

But, as it is said, hardships often prepare ordinary people for extraordinary destinies, it came out to be a good learning experience for me as it gave me a chance to improve different aspects of my personality and perceive the life comprehensions. Without struggle, there can be no progress and one’s struggle is well destined, so we have to carve that path according to our own pre-determined fates only. At last, the good news came while I was attending my lecture, from my fellow classmates that I got selected in Shree Cements limited for my summer internship. Since I had a civil engineering background and work experience in the construction sector, I think it proved advantageous for me a bit and my prior exposure to the role they offered was a key success factor.

Now coming to tips or points to be considered for the selection process. The most important thing is that one should be able to maintain his/her calmness and composedness throughout the process. Very much chances are there that things may not fall in our way, so we have to keep ourselves intact, focused and hopeful. This is one of the most important learning I gained which is helping in my customary life as well. Most of the companies follow a uniform selection process with few exceptions. There is usually Group Discussion round/rounds (as per company’s discretion), followed by personal interviews (telephonic, video conferencing or face-to-face, as per company’s discretion). So, soft skills become very important and significant. I am not that good when it comes to soft skills but worked over it to refine myself. One should start working on it from the very first day of his B-school journey. One gets a lot of opportunities to shape up the soft skills through regular presentations, class participation and interactions in a b-school. The soft skills like communication skills and self-presentation skills convey a strong message to the interviewer, so is very substantial. Then comes the interview part. One should be well acquainted with the company for which he is appearing. The company’s vision, mission, culture, values, future goals/alignments, strengths/weaknesses, finances and other associated principal details of the company. Make sure, one is well aligned with the company’s future vision. That one can know from the recent trends followed by the company and the relative trend of that particular sector. The recruiters are in constant search for those who are visionary and are having clarity of thought process, so having the same is quintessential. Few of the companies do have their own tests like written tests/psychometric tests. The best way to approach such tests is that one should be himself/herself, honestly, without any deceit. Any deception or pretence can be easily caught by interview panel at a later stage. Psychometric tests are mostly taken by organisations which are very particular about the candidate’s character as they want the character to fit with company’s character, so any attempt to sham the process will prove suicidal. There is nothing right or wrong in psychometric test, so be yourself at any cost. Along with it, it becomes very important to keep oneself updated with the current happenings around the world, the related industry, the economics of the country and world. In short, any information, which seems to be important should not be untouched. One important point that students forget is that everyone one of them is unique in their personality, so no attempt shall be made to play with it and try to become one who he/she is not. Just polishing and honing the personality along with recognition of flaws will do the job. The mirror should become one’s companion. With all these, and some self-reflection and perseverance, no stone is difficult to be unturned.

My job profile was to overhaul and review the contracts/work orders that Shree cements awards for uninterrupted and hassle-free operations of the company’s cement manufacturing plants across the country. It was distributed in two phases wherein first phase I was to overhaul the contractual terms and conditions in sync with prevalent and newly introduced government policies to safeguard the interests of Shree Cements in unforeseen incidents. The primary point of focus was the newly and untested insolvency and bankruptcy code, which could be used by malicious contractors and sub-contractors against the company to recover their penalties and penance. Also, the other broad headings/clauses like workmanship, payment policies, safety and security, force majeure, statutory obligations, reconciliations/audits, assignments, indemnity etc were looked into and necessary additions/amendments were suggested. The basis of suggestions was the practice of other companies in the industry, the legal compliances to be followed and some personal practical exposure to such situations. Though, the job role didn’t fall into any of the blanket management domains like marketing or finance or operations but required the acumen and know how of each of these domains collectively. I had to go through various government laws (both Center and State Governments) in detail and find the loopholes in current contractual terms and conditions which required attention. The different heads as mentioned above did require prerequisite understanding in the contemporary management domains, so as the terms and conditions are in a blend with practical scenarios and at the same time, legally unobjectionable. It was a totally new exposure for me and a great learning experience. The second phase was to review the civil work orders which Shree Cements give. Though, different types of work orders are given by Shree cements like Civil, mechanical, power, plant maintenance, workmanship and labour force, they made use of my expertise in civil domain, where I was to remodel the prevalent methodology followed in Bill of quantities and measurements, which could prove commercially beneficial for the company, saving the costs if any overlapping and immoderate practices were identified. So, a complete cost-benefit analysis was performed, and the recommended suggestion was tested and deliberated with the operations and civil departments of the company. There, I came to know about the operations of the company in detail and identified the channels which could be improved to save the costs of the company.

Now, coming to the work culture of Shree Cements, it was very accommodating and hospitable. The job was typical 9 to 6 job, with moderate flexibility. Since it was a plant, so was located in the outskirts of the city, Thus, had a township inside the plant campus itself for the habitation of plant employees, having all the facilities like gymnasium, auditorium, parks, guest houses and playing fields. The company had a very strong belief set and great respect and benevolence for fellow stakeholders imbibed in its core DNA, and never made any compromise with the same whenever there came a choice between human entity and profits. Though the plant work life does seem a bit monotonous and prosaic, the interpersonal interactions and rapport among the Shree Cements employees make it lively and engaging. A lot of learning is motivated by the senior management and a constant edification is promoted.

It would be very ungrateful and ungracious if I do not mention the role of IIM Shillong in framing my advancement in the industry. IIM Shillong ingested in me the virtues of professionalism, ethical and propitious approach and most importantly, the business knack and adroitness with its pedagogy and training techniques and recipes.

Overall, it can be well asserted that if there are passion and zeal, one gets a lot of learning opportunities in his/her sojourn in a business school, which can be made into a great use in industry and nation’s overall prosperity.

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Agum Singh Miglani

IIM Shillong (batch of 2017-19)

agum singh

Agum Singh Miglani's Internship Experience At Shree Cements Limited - IIM Shillong