How has your interaction with the team members and colleagues been like? How will you make sure to leave the best impression on your supervisors by the end of the internship?
In all honesty, an online internship felt weird initially, but the 1st interaction with my mentors put my mind at ease. They were super supportive and despite their busy schedules, they did manage to find time to just enquire about my progress or challenges faced if any. The team members were also very supportive. The best way to leave the best impression is to be a part of their day-to-day work. Basically, that would involve getting to know how things work and try to get involved in those even if it is not a part of my project description. The objective shall always be to learn as much as I can from every person I can connect within a short period of time.
Tell us in brief, about the project you are currently working on and how is this project going to help the company?
Though I am not at liberty to divulge the details of the project I was extremely excited by the fact that all those projects were already being worked upon and it was very much live. On a daily basis, I was not only involved in understanding data for my project but was also involved in many smaller projects with various team members who were very happy to explain to me the progress so far and the impacts of it. I had 3 projects in all and I was super excited when my 1st project got implemented in the organization. The other 2 required a longer chain of approvals but it always gave a real energy boost to see that my recommendations were being heard and put forward.
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Give us an overview of how you prepared for your summer placement season.
The preparation for summer placements starts from the day you join a b-school. The very first step is to create a perfect CV. By perfect CV I mean one which showcases your achievements, abilities in tandem with the domain in which you want to apply for internship. Apart from that I also made sure that I was prepared with basic HR questions like why HR, tell me about yourself, strengths, weakness etc. College seniors help a lot in this part of the preparation. They also have an idea on how much technical stuff in your domain would be asked during interview and what are some major points in your CV that might attract attention. Lastly I also had a group of friends who practiced online GD together. That was an entirely new experience-time lag, varying loudness as per headphones etc. So those mock GD s helped a lot. And finally I made sure that I know about the company as much as I can- their CSR activities, mission,vision,new iinitiatives etc. Knowing. these generally gives an edge during PI.
Based on your internship experience till now, what are some necessary skill sets one must be prepared with before starting an internship?
The only thing that is really necessary to excel during an internship is great interpersonal and communication skills and a tenacity to learn. Apart from that, a complete command over Microsoft office- Excel, PowerPoint, Word etc is also required. You should know how to analyse and represent data in a crisp yet effective manner because many times you will be addressing senior leadership and they would not have the bandwidth to listen to the whole story always. A knowledge about research methodology, statistics also helps a lot in this too.
What are some new skills that you have developed while working in the company?
The internship has been a really great learning opportunity for me. The 1st thing that I realized was how minutely each document is scrutinized before being implemented. The line of questioning that I faced initially during each presentation made me realize how shallow my knowledge was actually. The way the leadership thinks and asks questions, changes the way you think in your next project. I became more mindful of the nuances of each policy implementation, the problems that might actually arise. Needless to say, I learned a lot in my own field as well during the long hours of research, benchmarking, etc. It widens your overall view of the industry.
What are some of the challenges that you have faced in your internship and how have you overcome them?
The common problem in the case of an online internship is the initial connection with mentors and team members. During the initial days, it was difficult, though my mentors were very supportive in work from home scenarios, it is difficult to create such a rapport. The only way out is to keep trying, and once you take initiative on your own, connect with other stakeholders, take on various projects and become an integral part of the team, things fall into place. I needed the 1st one or two weeks for this. The other problem I faced was adapting to changing scenarios. Sometimes the allotted project takes a back seat and a new project comes up. Adaptability becomes a key skill at that time. As long as I was willing to learn no matter what the project I had a fun experience. Also in online mode, it gets difficult to understand the ground level scenario and the only way out is to connect with as many people as you can and learn from their experiences. But the onboarding team was super helpful and helped in taking care of any challenge that I faced once I reached out to them.
Tell us about a situation where you were complemented by your Manager for your work.
I was lucky to have an extremely supportive manager who appreciated every single effort I made. However, I shall always remember the day when a part of my project was approved and was ready to be implemented. My manager and I had spent countless hours in perfecting the reports etc, each and every step was understood from multiple stakeholders and was compiled together. It was a great experience and also brought about a load of compliments from my manager.
What have been your major learnings during the internship?
One of the major learnings for me during the internship was the ability to present data in a concise and effective manner. In other words, sorting of what is important and what can be skipped. It taught me to look into matters more deeply and think if it is a feasible recommendation and what problems can arise during implementation. The internship also taught me that it's always good to be open about concerns and ask freely. Almost everyone was very supportive and tried to explain whatever doubts I had. It also sharpened my research skills. Again, once the thought process changed I was able to carry out research in a much more targetted manner and address the key issues effectively
Tell us about your final presentation of the project to your manager in brief. What was the toughest question asked during the presentation and how did you answer it?
The final presentation was basically a representation of all the works that I had done during the internship, my analysis of the problem statement, my recommendations on the same, and my learnings. There were no such tough questions asked to be exact. Most questions revolved around the implementation of recommendations given. I had to be perfectly clear as to why I recommended the said point, what will be its impact, how feasible they were, and which recommendations can be implemented.
Some advice that you would like to give to your juniors based on your internship experience.
The best way to go about an internship is to keep an open mind and grasp as much as you can over the 2month period. Connecting with as many people as possible and getting a pulse of the organization is great way to go about any project. Also, a thorough knowledge of excel, PowerPoint and a great connection with peers and seniors helps a lot during internships.
What was one of the best moments according to you during your internship?
The internship had several "best" moments. One such moment was the monthly HR meeting which involved the CHRO, the CDO, and all other HR at the organization. Another moment, was when a part of my project was implemented. The internship was filled with such moments and one cannot be ranked above the other. There were fun times too like the Zumba day or the weekly meetups of interns with the onboarding HR.
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