Week 1 at Sears Holding Corporation

Hi Readers,

Last time I wrote, I was preparing for my summer internship in Chicago at Sears. There’s been a lot happening since and I am already into my second week of work as a Finance Senior Analyst intern. I have been assigned five projects within the Jewelry business unit. It is a unique and fresh experience working in retail

With my architecture background I find the work experience very different in lots of ways. What I am most impressed by is the volume of data that is processed through the company systems every day and the level of complexity of thought, skill and experience that is required to maintain the smooth running of the companies thousands of stores.

I spent the early part of my first week getting oriented – both at the organizational level and in greater detail within the Jewelry business that I am supporting. I met many of the senior leadership within the Jewelry business unit. I met both my project manager and divisional VP to discuss goals and expectation for the 10 weeks I will be interning. I attended ongoing lectures on the Jewelry business. I caught a glimpse of our CEO while walking past him in the corridor. I attended a lecture / Q&A with the chairman of McDonalds who is visiting. I also spent a good amount of time investigating the different aspects of operation of the Jewelry business. I spoke to the VP of inventory and the business unit Controller to learn about the accouning methods employed. I also sat down with the systems expert to understand the various data systems used to organize the massive amount of complex data used by the finance team on a daily basis. I also met the entire team of Jewelry buyers to gain an understanding of their product lines, vendors, the various aspects of their role and what was working well for them and what their areas of challenge were.

My goal is to pinpoint various areas of improvement for the Jewelry business unit, where financial analysis can help quantify and validate these improvements. I am looking forward to providing valuable input to my team from a fresh perspective that my non-finance background allows me.

I am also juggling running a home and eating right as I anticipate the end of my pregnancy alongside the end of my internship. I make up for lost time spent at doctor appointments by working through lunch hour and staying an extra hour or two late each day. I’d encourage anyone in the position of having to do more that one large task at a time to take it on and rise to the challenge. The achievement of finding you can do more than most people would think is a reward in itself!