It's been a good ride this summer and with just over a week left my internship is coming to a close. I've learned so much this summer about what I want to do with my career, office culture, and the sports and entertainment industry in particular. Since I feel I have learned so much, I feel it is my duty to impart my new found wisdom upon you with my 3 simple easy tips to making the most out of your summer internship.
1. NETWORK- This may seem extremely obvious but it is often done wrong or not enough. I think I have done a pretty good job, but may have not done enough. Some ways to network wrong are:
- Start asking about jobs or connections your superiors have too early in the internship.
- Ask people for a recommendation when you do not have a lot of experience working with this person.
- Suck up. This is my biggest pet peeve. I hate when interns make it a competition with other interns to get on the good side of the boss. And to be honest your boss will recognize this as well.
One way to make sure you do enough networking throughout the summer is to get your immediate supervisor on your side early in the summer. Get them to help you set up with meetings in the company. Also when you see someone you have never met in the company don't be afraid to introduce yourself. Lastly always have your elevator pitch ready. This will allow you to be always ready even when caught off guard.
2. Have fun. Make friends, laugh, and always have a smile on. If you have a positive outlook on your job or at least portray that to your co-workers and superiors, the people in the office will enjoy working with you. This can lead to my first tip which is networking. Because if you are happy people will open up to you and want to help you. No one wants to help the debbie downer of the office.
3. Dress for the job you want. This is a motto that I have stressed time and time again. Appearance and hygiene are two of the most overlook aspects in the office. Wearing a tie or something equivalent for girls if it is not required goes a long way. People recognize it and will remember you. It is subtle touch that separates you from the rest of the pack. Remember, and summer internship is just a 10 week interview. Doing the little things and showing committment will get you the recommendation or job offer you covet.
Best of luck in the future.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Work-Life Schmalance
Balance, schmalance. Let me start off by saying that work-life balance as an investment banking analyst or associate is next to non-existent. Given the harsh demands of the job, we spend an inordinate majority of our waking hours in the office cranking spreadsheets, memos and pitchbooks.
Our schedules are not our own. We live and breathe at the mercy of work's ebb and flow. Your time is never yours. Carrying a blackberry around may seem cool, but it virtually connects you to work 24/7 and puts you at the beck and call of your superiors.
As analysts right out of college, the hours are still manageable. Young and energetic, ready to pour our souls into our careers, we are fully committed to performing the best we can at work. The story is a little different for associates. At a later period in life, associates are looking to start families, commit to relationships and build a home for themselves. Associates who are thinking of having children, or who have just had children, find little time to give to their families because of their work.
So why do so many people still fling themselves at the industry? Firstly, and I loosely quote a VP, you have to be greedy for money to be in the industry. Compensation is obviously a major draw for most joining the industry. Secondly, and I quote another analyst now - "you get in and you get out". People join for the exit opportunities, whether it be to hedge funds or PE shops. The experience sets you up for life (arguably).
It is a tough decision. I think when you choose investment banking, you are not choosing a job but a lifestyle. You must think about whether you are willing to cede control of your schedule, whether you are ready to lose touch with a few friends along the way, and whether you can handle a family/relationship in addition to work.
Our schedules are not our own. We live and breathe at the mercy of work's ebb and flow. Your time is never yours. Carrying a blackberry around may seem cool, but it virtually connects you to work 24/7 and puts you at the beck and call of your superiors.
As analysts right out of college, the hours are still manageable. Young and energetic, ready to pour our souls into our careers, we are fully committed to performing the best we can at work. The story is a little different for associates. At a later period in life, associates are looking to start families, commit to relationships and build a home for themselves. Associates who are thinking of having children, or who have just had children, find little time to give to their families because of their work.
So why do so many people still fling themselves at the industry? Firstly, and I loosely quote a VP, you have to be greedy for money to be in the industry. Compensation is obviously a major draw for most joining the industry. Secondly, and I quote another analyst now - "you get in and you get out". People join for the exit opportunities, whether it be to hedge funds or PE shops. The experience sets you up for life (arguably).
It is a tough decision. I think when you choose investment banking, you are not choosing a job but a lifestyle. You must think about whether you are willing to cede control of your schedule, whether you are ready to lose touch with a few friends along the way, and whether you can handle a family/relationship in addition to work.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Box Checked!
Literally posting this 32 minutes after I delivered my final presentation to senior management and with one week to go, it's really impossible for me to realize how time has flown by. I guess just by looking at my presentation, I can see the time I've spent on strategies and executions from day 1 till this morning. And it ended with a lot of drama as the presentation has been rescheduled 5 times (3 times today).
Since it's time for me to wrap up my internship and start thinking about vacation before returning for my final year, I feel blessed for the experience I've had business-wise. Developing a promotional strategy for two top products, leading subsets of programs that are actually being executed, and gaining exposure to business planning processes as a marketing intern is more than I'd ever expect. Of course it all came with a lot of hard work and long working hours but the feeling at the end is that I did my best.
Something I really wanted to stress and there's not enough to say about its importance especially for international students coming is the MAP project. As I mentioned in my early posts, because of that I got a shot at interviewing with Hill's Pet Nutrition and ended up working for and impressing them. If it wasn't for that I would still have a job but not something that I would like or get paid for. Yes it would be a free internship! Times are hard and coming from a different country to start a new career requires sacrifices and strong will. Everyone was telling me that it was impossible to get consumer goods internship because I didn't have the proper experience. And yes people got jobs on campus while I was struggling to even get an interview. But in my opinion, that doesn't mean anything. Work hard and go after your dreams, and you will succeed. MAP was my shot at succeeding and I made sure I took full advantage of it. If you think about it, I ended up having a 5 month internship... 2 months working on the MAP project and 3 months working as an intern.
So for all you incoming MBA's out there consider my point of view and see how you can leverage it because time flies and before you know it you will be at the end of your first year still trying to figure out what's going on.
Take care everyone! Enjoy the summer and see you in September.
Since it's time for me to wrap up my internship and start thinking about vacation before returning for my final year, I feel blessed for the experience I've had business-wise. Developing a promotional strategy for two top products, leading subsets of programs that are actually being executed, and gaining exposure to business planning processes as a marketing intern is more than I'd ever expect. Of course it all came with a lot of hard work and long working hours but the feeling at the end is that I did my best.
Something I really wanted to stress and there's not enough to say about its importance especially for international students coming is the MAP project. As I mentioned in my early posts, because of that I got a shot at interviewing with Hill's Pet Nutrition and ended up working for and impressing them. If it wasn't for that I would still have a job but not something that I would like or get paid for. Yes it would be a free internship! Times are hard and coming from a different country to start a new career requires sacrifices and strong will. Everyone was telling me that it was impossible to get consumer goods internship because I didn't have the proper experience. And yes people got jobs on campus while I was struggling to even get an interview. But in my opinion, that doesn't mean anything. Work hard and go after your dreams, and you will succeed. MAP was my shot at succeeding and I made sure I took full advantage of it. If you think about it, I ended up having a 5 month internship... 2 months working on the MAP project and 3 months working as an intern.
So for all you incoming MBA's out there consider my point of view and see how you can leverage it because time flies and before you know it you will be at the end of your first year still trying to figure out what's going on.
Take care everyone! Enjoy the summer and see you in September.
All That Glitters is not Gold
Cliche title for an oft misunderstood metal... but one that has held, and continues to hold tremendous importance to man. As you can guess, I'm on a desk dealing in precious metals, chiefly gold; I will try to explain the mysteries of investing in the metal.
On a simplified basis, gold demand can be split into two broad categories: investment demand and commercial demand. Both names are self explanatory, but to give you a more specific definition, investment demand is comprised of buyers from the financial community - hedge funds, pension funds, mutual funds, anyone looking to speculate or hold gold for the long term. Commercial demand consists of buyers from industry, namely from dental services and car makers. Another important part of this category is made up of individual buyers - India is a huge retail market for gold due to its important uses in their culture, namely in dowries and numerous festivals they celebrate.
Considering both parts of the demand picture for gold, it becomes obvious that it is viewed both as a commodity as well as a store of value. This stands in contrast to other metals which are mainly used as industrial materials. Consider as a short example gold's main rival - silver. Silver is constantly mined and consumed as an industrial metal, and this can be observed in its price, which trades in double digits, compared to gold which trades in triple digits. Also consider that gold is hardly ever consumed as most of it is held physically as jewelry or in bars, to be converted into value later. This means its supply is mostly fixed, while demand fluctuates according to investment and commercial demand.
Thus, gold essentially becomes a currency - which harks back to the era of the gold standard, or the Bretton-Woods agreement. From that legacy, and the metal's cultural history of being a material valued by all, gold today fills the modern role of a currency of last resort, a hedge against inflation, or a hedge against the US dollar. All three roles are extremely similar and are based in a common line of reasoning - should paper based currencies, as they are doing now, continue to be printed freely to stimulate global economies, the fiat currencies of America and Europe will slowly lose their value, making gold even more valuable as the hard asset holds its value better than the paper asset.
Ultimately, the physical gold custody trade is an armageddon trade and is definitely a tail risk event... but it never hurts to be prepared does it?
On a simplified basis, gold demand can be split into two broad categories: investment demand and commercial demand. Both names are self explanatory, but to give you a more specific definition, investment demand is comprised of buyers from the financial community - hedge funds, pension funds, mutual funds, anyone looking to speculate or hold gold for the long term. Commercial demand consists of buyers from industry, namely from dental services and car makers. Another important part of this category is made up of individual buyers - India is a huge retail market for gold due to its important uses in their culture, namely in dowries and numerous festivals they celebrate.
Considering both parts of the demand picture for gold, it becomes obvious that it is viewed both as a commodity as well as a store of value. This stands in contrast to other metals which are mainly used as industrial materials. Consider as a short example gold's main rival - silver. Silver is constantly mined and consumed as an industrial metal, and this can be observed in its price, which trades in double digits, compared to gold which trades in triple digits. Also consider that gold is hardly ever consumed as most of it is held physically as jewelry or in bars, to be converted into value later. This means its supply is mostly fixed, while demand fluctuates according to investment and commercial demand.
Thus, gold essentially becomes a currency - which harks back to the era of the gold standard, or the Bretton-Woods agreement. From that legacy, and the metal's cultural history of being a material valued by all, gold today fills the modern role of a currency of last resort, a hedge against inflation, or a hedge against the US dollar. All three roles are extremely similar and are based in a common line of reasoning - should paper based currencies, as they are doing now, continue to be printed freely to stimulate global economies, the fiat currencies of America and Europe will slowly lose their value, making gold even more valuable as the hard asset holds its value better than the paper asset.
Ultimately, the physical gold custody trade is an armageddon trade and is definitely a tail risk event... but it never hurts to be prepared does it?
DMB Hits Nationals Park!
(BBA, Washington Nationals Baseball Club)
Hello everyone! So the last time I posted, I explained a typical day at Nationals Park. However, from my last post until now, it has been anything but typical here at the stadium. Last Friday evening, we had the Dave Matthews Band concert here at the Park. Sounds cool, right? Yeah, it was...but it was also a lot of work for my department. This concert was my department’s biggest event this summer. Luckily for us, the Nationals were on the road for 10 days and we had the All-Star Break, so we didn’t have to worry about games and could just focus on the concert.
We put in long hours and worked extremely hard. There were some minor “catastrophes,” but at the end of the day, the concert was amazing and was a huge success. We even got to watch Dave Matthews Band perform in a suite, which was a lot of fun. It was also nice just to sit and watch after a long day of work. But after the concert ended, we were back to work making sure cleanup was on schedule. Besides the 108 degree weather, one of our biggest problems with the concert was protecting the field. Once the concert ended, we had to get the cleanup started right away so we could remove the covering on the field to allow the grass to finally get some air! Sounds funny, but working with a baseball team, the grass is almost like one of the players.
Looking back on the concert, I would do it again in a second. I loved seeing my hard work and long hours help create an amazing show that was enjoyed by 40,000 fans. Now that the concert is over, our department is exhausted, and it is kind of nice to have the team back home for a 7 game homestand. Home games are like a break for my department, because they follow a very similar structure and routine. After a hectic week with the concert, it is nice to have a “Typical Day @ Nationals Park.”
I cannot believe I am starting my 7th week here with the Nationals. After this homestand, I only have about a week and half left of my internship. I guess time really does fly by when you’re having fun. I look forward to updating everyone on my final weeks here at Nationals Park.
PS: check out DMB’s concert schedule…maybe he is coming to your town!Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Wrapping up!
As I get closer to the end of my internship, it’s a good time to think about what I’ve learned during this time. One thing I did well was insisting on getting to know the manufacturing and R&D process. After my request, a Company tour was organized and I was able to visit the application labs and the manufacturing plants. I confirmed that I love to visit operation facilities in order to get a better picture of the process but I would rather spend most of my time at my office. I also learned that different projects keep me excited. The possibility to interact with people is also key for my ideal job, I wouldn’t want to be isolated. On the other hand, one thing I could have done better is networking prior and during my internship. For instance, the Division General Manager is a Ross alumn. I wish I had contacted him before.
In order to present results for my projects, I will do one presentation for each one of them, before my manager and the project sponsors. After that, I will do one presentation for the higher management, on my final week. It would be a very good opportunity to gain visibility and show my work. I need to excel at both the presentations and the networking in order to leave the positive impression I want to leave. And I will be leaving soon, next August 13th will be my last day.
Eleven weeks, which seemed like a long period at the beginning of my internship, are coming to an end so fast! In a nutshell, and without a doubt, I can say it was a good experience! I meet good people, enjoyed a nice city and formed part of a company with a promising future. I would love to have the opportunity of returning to FMC. But I hope, whatever happens, I will get what it’s most convenient for my future… both my personal and my professional life.
I’m off to Colombia after my presentations and my internship are done. After a short vacation, I will be finishing my second year of the MBA and then it’s back to real life. It’s my last post here, so bye for now!!
In order to present results for my projects, I will do one presentation for each one of them, before my manager and the project sponsors. After that, I will do one presentation for the higher management, on my final week. It would be a very good opportunity to gain visibility and show my work. I need to excel at both the presentations and the networking in order to leave the positive impression I want to leave. And I will be leaving soon, next August 13th will be my last day.
Eleven weeks, which seemed like a long period at the beginning of my internship, are coming to an end so fast! In a nutshell, and without a doubt, I can say it was a good experience! I meet good people, enjoyed a nice city and formed part of a company with a promising future. I would love to have the opportunity of returning to FMC. But I hope, whatever happens, I will get what it’s most convenient for my future… both my personal and my professional life.
I’m off to Colombia after my presentations and my internship are done. After a short vacation, I will be finishing my second year of the MBA and then it’s back to real life. It’s my last post here, so bye for now!!
Don’t Make Me Cry
MBA, News Corp. Hey all, this is a sad day for me, Roy Hills, and is most likely an even sadder day for you when you learn the news I am about to break. This blog post will be my last for this summer, although I do still have three weeks left in this internship. I will give you a moment to let it soak in and please don’t get all teary eyed. Okay now that we got that out of the way, I wanted to recap how my internship has evolved from my expectations and goals into what it ultimately has become.
Initially, coming into my internship at News Corp, I was told that I would be doing digital sales strategy and most likely working for Fox News. Now digital sales strategy can mean a whole variety of different things. For me, it has meant everything from being tasked to help the sales team to strategize on how to sell advertising space to increasing the efficiency among the sales teams and how they interact with different players and databases within the organization. I have looked at demographic data to determine advantages that Fox News offers over its competitors and highlight potential advertisers to the sales teams. Additionally, I have also looked at different ways to help maximize monetization from advertising of new emerging digital platforms such as mobile. The variety of projects and the constant change of landscape in the digital field is what I have enjoyed the most about working for News Corp.
News Corporation’s philosophy has always been about making money, which is good thing since that is the reason why most companies are in business. This philosophy really carries through to all divisions within the company. With this in mind, I will be looking back at the many trends I have researched within the emerging digital media advertising space and report on my findings. This report will be my “vision” of what the website can do to further increase its future revenue. Oh yeah, I also got “promoted” or more accurately I am just going to be doing the job of three people. I am taking over next week for an employee taking off to Mexico and a retiring intern, in addition to doing my own job. Should be fun! :-) (Yep, that is a smiley face)
Initially, coming into my internship at News Corp, I was told that I would be doing digital sales strategy and most likely working for Fox News. Now digital sales strategy can mean a whole variety of different things. For me, it has meant everything from being tasked to help the sales team to strategize on how to sell advertising space to increasing the efficiency among the sales teams and how they interact with different players and databases within the organization. I have looked at demographic data to determine advantages that Fox News offers over its competitors and highlight potential advertisers to the sales teams. Additionally, I have also looked at different ways to help maximize monetization from advertising of new emerging digital platforms such as mobile. The variety of projects and the constant change of landscape in the digital field is what I have enjoyed the most about working for News Corp.
News Corporation’s philosophy has always been about making money, which is good thing since that is the reason why most companies are in business. This philosophy really carries through to all divisions within the company. With this in mind, I will be looking back at the many trends I have researched within the emerging digital media advertising space and report on my findings. This report will be my “vision” of what the website can do to further increase its future revenue. Oh yeah, I also got “promoted” or more accurately I am just going to be doing the job of three people. I am taking over next week for an employee taking off to Mexico and a retiring intern, in addition to doing my own job. Should be fun! :-) (Yep, that is a smiley face)
IBM's Consulting Model
IBM continues to surprise me: this time with its super-collaborative culture. I see multiple partners working on deals together, bringing business for different groups at the company. They are able to position services throughout the lifecycle of initiatives: starting with strategy setting to implementation to business process outsourcing. In addition, they tap into an enormous range of in-house software products and technologies available to create industry-edge capabilities for clients.
Many projects at IBM have large-scale technology implementation aspects to them. My group – the Strategy & Transformation practice – usually comes in at the beginning of a project to lay out strategic direction, business case, high-level design and transformation planning. I am currently advising the corporate communications team of a global manufacturer in integrating messaging and brand-building across all regions under a global umbrella. I am redesigning the organization, designing processes for content creation and localization, defining governance framework to maintain consistent brand image, and creating strategies to win the hearts and minds of stakeholders. I hate to admit it, but a big part of my work on this project is MO. I’m building upon concepts in that class to deal with real-world challenges. I am very impressed by the detailed transformation methodologies used by IBM, which dive deep into stakeholder management and communication methodologies (remember EIS simulation?).
As you decide which consulting firm to work for, two important factors are location and work-life balance. IBM is extremely flexible in terms of location. You can stay wherever you want as long as you can fly Monday-to-Thursday to your client. That gives you immense flexibility in terms of moving around with your partner. Also, you can work from home on Fridays if there are no events or meetings, which can help offsetting the travel fatigue and balance the work-life equation a little bit.
Many projects at IBM have large-scale technology implementation aspects to them. My group – the Strategy & Transformation practice – usually comes in at the beginning of a project to lay out strategic direction, business case, high-level design and transformation planning. I am currently advising the corporate communications team of a global manufacturer in integrating messaging and brand-building across all regions under a global umbrella. I am redesigning the organization, designing processes for content creation and localization, defining governance framework to maintain consistent brand image, and creating strategies to win the hearts and minds of stakeholders. I hate to admit it, but a big part of my work on this project is MO. I’m building upon concepts in that class to deal with real-world challenges. I am very impressed by the detailed transformation methodologies used by IBM, which dive deep into stakeholder management and communication methodologies (remember EIS simulation?).
As you decide which consulting firm to work for, two important factors are location and work-life balance. IBM is extremely flexible in terms of location. You can stay wherever you want as long as you can fly Monday-to-Thursday to your client. That gives you immense flexibility in terms of moving around with your partner. Also, you can work from home on Fridays if there are no events or meetings, which can help offsetting the travel fatigue and balance the work-life equation a little bit.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Amazon: Work Hard, Have Fun, Make History
I can definitely check the first two off the list. Am I making history? Time will tell I guess, but I sure hope so! So my last month at Amazon just began this week. Time really has flown by. I have learned a lot about Amazon through other interns, the frequent speaker series (where Senior VP talk about their teams and careers), and through speaking with Ross alumni at Amazon. It seems that each team has its own sub-culture, but the common theme at Amazon is “casual intensity”.
Intensity: Everyone is very passionate about the customer, their work and their business segment. People work very hard and are very absorbed in their work. People love to get involved in different aspects of the business. For instance, engineers brim with ideas for solving business problems and marketing managers get involved with the technology architecture and bug fixing. I also love the meeting culture here. Meetings longer than 30 minutes are unusual. Attendees focus on the topic at hand and so meetings are very efficient. In fact, efficiency and frugality are also a common theme at Amazon, which contributes to innovation at every step.
Casual: In a nutshell - T-Shirts, Shorts, Sandals, Wii games, and Dogs. The culture at Amazon is very casual. On a sunny day, I often see people play Frisbee or picnic in the parks at work. People come to work in shorts and t-shirts and sandals (and that’s not just on Fridays). Even senior management dresses very casually. We have bi-weekly happy hours at work at the end of Friday that one sub-team puts together. And once in a while we have Happy Hours on other days for no reason except TGIF. There were local brews, dart boards, a Wii game set-up on a big projection screen and a heated discussion about Ninjas vs. Pirates at an impromptu Happy Hour organized by our senior VP just a few days ago. And, I also appreciate how dog friendly the company is. Employees can bring thier dog to work. In fact there is an off-leash dog park on campus, and every reception has a jar of dog cookies. There seems to be one dog for every 6 employees here at Amazon. My floor has gone to the dogs, said a colleague when introduced to two new puppies in the past month.
Here is a hilarious video by Woot, a recent Amazon acquisition that touches upon the company culture:
Intensity: Everyone is very passionate about the customer, their work and their business segment. People work very hard and are very absorbed in their work. People love to get involved in different aspects of the business. For instance, engineers brim with ideas for solving business problems and marketing managers get involved with the technology architecture and bug fixing. I also love the meeting culture here. Meetings longer than 30 minutes are unusual. Attendees focus on the topic at hand and so meetings are very efficient. In fact, efficiency and frugality are also a common theme at Amazon, which contributes to innovation at every step.
Casual: In a nutshell - T-Shirts, Shorts, Sandals, Wii games, and Dogs. The culture at Amazon is very casual. On a sunny day, I often see people play Frisbee or picnic in the parks at work. People come to work in shorts and t-shirts and sandals (and that’s not just on Fridays). Even senior management dresses very casually. We have bi-weekly happy hours at work at the end of Friday that one sub-team puts together. And once in a while we have Happy Hours on other days for no reason except TGIF. There were local brews, dart boards, a Wii game set-up on a big projection screen and a heated discussion about Ninjas vs. Pirates at an impromptu Happy Hour organized by our senior VP just a few days ago. And, I also appreciate how dog friendly the company is. Employees can bring thier dog to work. In fact there is an off-leash dog park on campus, and every reception has a jar of dog cookies. There seems to be one dog for every 6 employees here at Amazon. My floor has gone to the dogs, said a colleague when introduced to two new puppies in the past month.
Here is a hilarious video by Woot, a recent Amazon acquisition that touches upon the company culture:
More Than Halfway Through!
It kinda feels like our HR staffer’s reading this blog. Within about 24 hours of my last post, I started getting staffed on projects with my preferred groups. These were not just ordinary, run-of-the-mill pitches and such - I’m talking about the more sought after live IPO and LBO deals. Now that we’re sort of over the hump of the summer internship, things are starting to gain momentum. The mid-program reviews came up during the week and while there were loads of positives, some of us realized that being strongly opinionated is a useful trait on Wall Street. I was therefore encouraged to demonstrate that I have pretty strong ideas on just about everything.
We had our volunteer day a couple of weeks ago and I went straight to the event from an all-nighter at work. I had a lot of fun as it involved all summer interns in the New York area and caught up with some old friends. The downside was that we were somehow required to return to the office (yes it was a half-day event) and I was running on empty the rest of the day.
While we investment banking interns started out meeting at local Tribeca hot spots, we’ve had to devise new ways of incorporating a social element into our demanding schedules. We now find ourselves ordering and eating dinner together while working late (making believe we're in some swanky restaurant), getting into lively debates on just about any random topic (who happens to be the strongest intern?) or trading oldies and rap tunes at 3:00 AM (anyone remember “Can’t touch this”/MC Hammer?). It might sound a bit sad, but it’s pretty much fun and we’re getting to know each other in a more unstructured manner. On the other hand networking with the full time associates and more senior bankers goes on apace during the day. 2 weeks ago, I had lunch with a very senior banker and found that our paths had crossed at a former client company of mine in Oklahoma - shows how small the world has become.
We had our volunteer day a couple of weeks ago and I went straight to the event from an all-nighter at work. I had a lot of fun as it involved all summer interns in the New York area and caught up with some old friends. The downside was that we were somehow required to return to the office (yes it was a half-day event) and I was running on empty the rest of the day.
While we investment banking interns started out meeting at local Tribeca hot spots, we’ve had to devise new ways of incorporating a social element into our demanding schedules. We now find ourselves ordering and eating dinner together while working late (making believe we're in some swanky restaurant), getting into lively debates on just about any random topic (who happens to be the strongest intern?) or trading oldies and rap tunes at 3:00 AM (anyone remember “Can’t touch this”/MC Hammer?). It might sound a bit sad, but it’s pretty much fun and we’re getting to know each other in a more unstructured manner. On the other hand networking with the full time associates and more senior bankers goes on apace during the day. 2 weeks ago, I had lunch with a very senior banker and found that our paths had crossed at a former client company of mine in Oklahoma - shows how small the world has become.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
The last few weeks
The last 10 weeks seem to have flown away. It has been a busy 10 weeks, although I had my fair share of fun activities. The last few weeks are going to be a scramble, to tie up a lot of information processing together into a synchronized deliverable.
I am preparing for a presentation to my entire team in the last week, and that involves a lot of work with meeting the team and getting feedback on my work over the last week. The idea is to build a foundation for your work before you go into your final presentation and building consensus is especially important when working on the strategy team.
Last weekend was a mix of fun and work. On Saturday, four Rossers left early in the morning for Friday Harbor for a whale watching tour. I was blown away by the trip and the experience of being in the middle of the ocean surrounded by a pod of whales was surreal. Sunday however was at work, where I was pulling stuff together for my meetings on Monday. Then again, I was able to fit in breaks from work. Wednesday evening, I went to the IMax in downtown Seattle and was blown away by Inception.
My roommate, who is from Ross and an intern at Microsoft as well had a fantastic experience last week. He was attending the World Partner Conference at Washington DC. It was a fantastic experience where he learnt how crucial partners are for Microsoft’s enterprise offerings, the kind of products partners build on top of Microsoft’s offerings and their expectations from a partner conference. To top it all, he attended a keynote by Bill Clinton.
Speaking of famous speakers, we have had the chance to interact with the CVPs of all of Microsoft’s divisions. Last week is the grand finale, with Steve Ballmer speaking to us. These sessions have been great learning experiences, based on the career experiences of each one of these leaders and hearing about their vision of Microsoft.
This is my last post, and hopefully I will see you all back in AA starting September.
I am preparing for a presentation to my entire team in the last week, and that involves a lot of work with meeting the team and getting feedback on my work over the last week. The idea is to build a foundation for your work before you go into your final presentation and building consensus is especially important when working on the strategy team.
Last weekend was a mix of fun and work. On Saturday, four Rossers left early in the morning for Friday Harbor for a whale watching tour. I was blown away by the trip and the experience of being in the middle of the ocean surrounded by a pod of whales was surreal. Sunday however was at work, where I was pulling stuff together for my meetings on Monday. Then again, I was able to fit in breaks from work. Wednesday evening, I went to the IMax in downtown Seattle and was blown away by Inception.
My roommate, who is from Ross and an intern at Microsoft as well had a fantastic experience last week. He was attending the World Partner Conference at Washington DC. It was a fantastic experience where he learnt how crucial partners are for Microsoft’s enterprise offerings, the kind of products partners build on top of Microsoft’s offerings and their expectations from a partner conference. To top it all, he attended a keynote by Bill Clinton.
Speaking of famous speakers, we have had the chance to interact with the CVPs of all of Microsoft’s divisions. Last week is the grand finale, with Steve Ballmer speaking to us. These sessions have been great learning experiences, based on the career experiences of each one of these leaders and hearing about their vision of Microsoft.
This is my last post, and hopefully I will see you all back in AA starting September.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Mid-point at Harley-Davidson
It’s been over 5 weeks at Harley-Davidson, and I can’t believe how fast the time’s gone by. I had a mid-term review this week, which went well (I think!), and I am now revving up for the last leg of my internship.
There are 2 companies in Milwaukee that everyone recognizes and wishes to be a part of – Harley-Davidson and The Miller Brewing Co. The Miller headquarters is just opposite the H-D headquarters, and that’s where we went for the ‘insider’ or ‘hard-hat’ tour of the Miller Brewery. We were taken to the plant, where we saw the bottling and packaging process. The best part of the tour was the free beer, of course, but what made this even better was that we got to go to the employee bar inside the corporate office! Imagine having a bar inside the office, where all employees get absolutely free beer everyday! Apparently even the conference rooms out there have taps! How people ever get any work done, I wonder!
Milwaukee is enclosed by Lake Michigan on one side, and that part of Milwaukee is very popular for its scenic beauty, beaches and jogging treks. The COO of H-D hosted an event for the LDPs (Leadership Development Program) last week at Bradford beach. The COO, Matt Levatich, is an LDP alumnus himself. The LDP program provides many such opportunities where the LDP interns and current incumbents (full-time employees currently undergoing the rotation) get to network with the leadership team. I met a lot of interesting people at the Bradford beach social, and tasted the famous Milwaukee custard.
The Harley-Davidson Foundation works with many non-profit organizations to support the communities in which the company has facilities. We met with Gail Lione, the President of the Foundation, who has been closely associated with the LDP program for many years. The work that the HD Foundation does is phenomenal, and what is especially impressive is how just 4 people manage to accomplish so much. In all companies that I work with, I always look for a strong community involvement, and opportunities for employees to volunteer. I followed up with Gail after the meeting, and volunteered at a local public school to read to young children. I was paired with a 6 year old girl by the name of Shakira, and we spent about 30 minutes reading a story book. She was absolutely adorable, and after the session, she drew a picture of me with lots of hearts around it, and wrote ‘I love you’ and gave me the picture. I now hang the picture proudly at my desk!
Well, as you can see, an internship at Harley-Davidson is a fantastic opportunity to be part of a prominent program, along with the challenges and perks that come with it. I don’t remember the last time I’ve enjoyed working so much, and it promises to get better with a trip to Sturgis planned soon! More details about that, and my attempt at learning to ride in my next blog. Have fun riding!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Company Culture at Thomson Reuters
I'd have to say one of the biggest contributors to my rewarding experience this summer has been the culture at Thomson Reuters. In a way the culture is very paradoxical: competitive but friendly, independent but unified, fun but serious, laid back but intense. This may be difficult to grasp--I'll drill down further.
The people at Thomson Reuters have been nothing but welcoming, helpful, and warm from the outset. Whether approaching managers with questions, scheduling meetings with executives, or working in teams, everyone has been nothing but kind and approachable without exception. It seems like everyone is genuinely happy to be there, and treats eachother as such. I scheduled informational interviews with 2 senior level executives this month, both of whom made time in their schedule for me, gave well over a half hour to converse, and offered to help find an opportunity for me when I graduate. That's hospitality.
Thomson Reuters competes in a very crowded and cut-throat business where many players share an enormous market. Needless to say there is a very competitive mindset at the company, especially towards the big competitors (Bloomberg, etc.). However, Thomson Reuters also does business and partners with many of these very same competitors, creating an ironic, mutual love-hate relationship for employees.
Everyone on the strategy team is a lot of fun. Whether at after-work events, meetings, birthdays, or conference calls, everyone seems to joke around and have fun a good amount. But just as fast as the funny switch is turned on, it can be turned off. When an important project or assignment arises, the intensity immediately picks up and everyone works hard to make sure everything is perfect to the last detail. It's the perfect blend of intensity and laid-back attitude.
Overall, everyone really seems to buy into the company's goals, missions, and claims. No matter who you speak to within Thomson Reuters, they will tell you it is an incredibly exciting time to be an employee, filled with new product launches, industry chaning dynamics, and unprecedented growth. That kind of rhetoric is absolutely contagious, and everyone feeds off of senior management's optimism on a daily basis. That's a culture that I feel comfortable in. One where I can be myself and contribute in a unique way, but also share a common goal to be the best in the business.
Alex Weiss (BBA 2011)
The people at Thomson Reuters have been nothing but welcoming, helpful, and warm from the outset. Whether approaching managers with questions, scheduling meetings with executives, or working in teams, everyone has been nothing but kind and approachable without exception. It seems like everyone is genuinely happy to be there, and treats eachother as such. I scheduled informational interviews with 2 senior level executives this month, both of whom made time in their schedule for me, gave well over a half hour to converse, and offered to help find an opportunity for me when I graduate. That's hospitality.
Thomson Reuters competes in a very crowded and cut-throat business where many players share an enormous market. Needless to say there is a very competitive mindset at the company, especially towards the big competitors (Bloomberg, etc.). However, Thomson Reuters also does business and partners with many of these very same competitors, creating an ironic, mutual love-hate relationship for employees.
Everyone on the strategy team is a lot of fun. Whether at after-work events, meetings, birthdays, or conference calls, everyone seems to joke around and have fun a good amount. But just as fast as the funny switch is turned on, it can be turned off. When an important project or assignment arises, the intensity immediately picks up and everyone works hard to make sure everything is perfect to the last detail. It's the perfect blend of intensity and laid-back attitude.
Overall, everyone really seems to buy into the company's goals, missions, and claims. No matter who you speak to within Thomson Reuters, they will tell you it is an incredibly exciting time to be an employee, filled with new product launches, industry chaning dynamics, and unprecedented growth. That kind of rhetoric is absolutely contagious, and everyone feeds off of senior management's optimism on a daily basis. That's a culture that I feel comfortable in. One where I can be myself and contribute in a unique way, but also share a common goal to be the best in the business.
Alex Weiss (BBA 2011)
Hi guys,
My internship is almost over. Two more weeks to go!! Yes!! I didn't realize that time does fly by~ So far, the internship has been a blessing. 1) I made 30 new mba friends, who are from all over the world. 2) My team members are fun too hang out. 3) I totally forgot about Korean working culture. 4) Re-learning about the importance of the communication
1) Seoul Trip
One weekend, my fellow intern friend and I decided to take 8 international mba interns to Seoul. Well, they were sick and tired of Suwon, where is full of factories and not a fun place to hang out.
Even though, the end of the trip, we walked more than 6 hours, we were proud that we toured the most of the northern parts of Seoul. We stop by the loyal palace, the inner city stream, the president house, a traditional street, and the shopping mall. Let me know, if you interested.
2) Project members
The more and more I work with my teammates. I am falling in love with them : ) They are all smart people, and they are classic mba students. They know when to work and when to play. They know how to work efficiently. Hopefully, I learn most of their merits before the internship is over.
3) Korean working culture
I cannot not reveal about the internship. But one thing that I want to share about the culture is 'passive, passive, and passive!!' But it is better than when I was working in Korea.
4) Re-learning about the importance of the communication
Due to our project mentor's crazy schedule, of course super busy, we, mba interns, could not talk to him about a week. Well, to be honest, we felt bad to bother him. Due to this mis-communication, we ended up reworking on 2 weeks' worthy of marketing research in 3 days. Isn't this crazy??!! I guess that I got affected by 'passive, passive, and passive' Korean culture. Wake up! Byung!!
Talk to you guys later
byung
My internship is almost over. Two more weeks to go!! Yes!! I didn't realize that time does fly by~ So far, the internship has been a blessing. 1) I made 30 new mba friends, who are from all over the world. 2) My team members are fun too hang out. 3) I totally forgot about Korean working culture. 4) Re-learning about the importance of the communication
1) Seoul Trip
One weekend, my fellow intern friend and I decided to take 8 international mba interns to Seoul. Well, they were sick and tired of Suwon, where is full of factories and not a fun place to hang out.
Even though, the end of the trip, we walked more than 6 hours, we were proud that we toured the most of the northern parts of Seoul. We stop by the loyal palace, the inner city stream, the president house, a traditional street, and the shopping mall. Let me know, if you interested.
2) Project members
The more and more I work with my teammates. I am falling in love with them : ) They are all smart people, and they are classic mba students. They know when to work and when to play. They know how to work efficiently. Hopefully, I learn most of their merits before the internship is over.
3) Korean working culture
I cannot not reveal about the internship. But one thing that I want to share about the culture is 'passive, passive, and passive!!' But it is better than when I was working in Korea.
4) Re-learning about the importance of the communication
Due to our project mentor's crazy schedule, of course super busy, we, mba interns, could not talk to him about a week. Well, to be honest, we felt bad to bother him. Due to this mis-communication, we ended up reworking on 2 weeks' worthy of marketing research in 3 days. Isn't this crazy??!! I guess that I got affected by 'passive, passive, and passive' Korean culture. Wake up! Byung!!
Talk to you guys later
byung
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Summer time: make friends outside the campus
(MBA, Amazon)
The timing for talk about my lifestyle in Seattle could not be better. The summer has finally picked up. With it, several new outdoor opportunities arise. As I write this post I look outside my window at the high of the 15th floor with a beautiful sunny view of the sea where several sailboats gently heels. I have to admit that Seattle is treating me well.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Final weeks…
Hello!
How are you doing? So far I'm doing well, but I'm approaching the end of my internship… well I still have a good 3 weeks or so. This last weeks are going to be very busy because I need to wrap up my projects, speed up the networking and prepare for moving back to Ann Arbor!.
The most urgent thing for me right now is to finish my final presentation of my core project. I want to finish it as soon as possible so I can concentrate my last days into networking in order to leave a fresh image of me into the organization. Actually I think that today I'll share a couple of recommendations that I believe are working well for me:
- For your final presentation "Tell everybody what you are going to tell to them". Usually I like to share my thoughts on the project to my manager and other stakeholders, actually this is something most people do, but I like to take it one step further. I like to present and discuss the final presentation structure, drafts, etc. with each one of the stakeholders I'll have to present at the end of the project. I know that this kills the surprise and a lot of the wow factor of all the work you have done because by the final presentation they already know all the story… but well, you know what people says: Nobody likes surprises!. And certainly you don't want surprises in your final presentations, so is better to talk to all your audience before the real final presentation in order to get their feedback and have it covered in the final product.
- As important as the work is… is not everything!. Delivering a great output from your internship work is just half of the battle. You need to create relationships within the company, meet all the people you can and try to know better the company. If you only focus on getting your job done, no matter how good it is, people is going to see it and say "yes that was done by that intern that used to sit in the cubicle at the back" and certainly you don't want that. You would want people to remember your name, have some stories to tell about you and consider you for a full time offer. So one of this days dropping the Excel and going to have lunch with your manager or the guy next cubicle can be a good idea.
You may be wondering if I actually follow my own advice… and I can say… more or less, yes, hehe. This week I have a dry run of my final presentation with most of my stakeholders (3 weeks before final presentation) and certainly once I have figured out the final structure I'll go more aggressive in the networking side of the equation. So I'll keep you all posted of hows everything going once I get closer to my last day, for now I think I need to go back to PowerPoint. See you later!
Monday, July 19, 2010
4th Post: Dell's Culture!
In this post I’d like to quickly talk about corporate cultures; in particular: Dell’s culture.
Dell’s culture is – I believe – quite unique. People here keep stressing ambiguity – and I think it’s important to understand just how much this culture is about being in a state of constant flux. For instance, as I mentioned in a previous post – the instructions I got when I got to Dell were: “This is the name of the product you are focusing on. This is a list of names. Talk to them. Figure it out.”; when I had mentioned this to other employees in the company they mostly chuckled and said “Welcome to Dell.”
The culture here is essentially one of taking initiative and knowing which resources can help you get the job done. Essentially, it’s an entrepreneurial culture in which you don’t have your hands held by your bosses. They don’t teach you to swim, they kick you screaming into the deep end, fully expecting you to either learn to swim or sink down to the bottom. I love it.
People who like to take initiative and set their own agenda can really blaze their own trail here. They can create new business lines from scratch, they can take the ball and run with it and people will not get in their way too often. This is something that I think truly distinguishes the corporate culture here from others. All too often in large corporations there is a certain entrenched thinking that is seldom challenged. I find Dell’s culture to be very accepting to critique and fresh thinking.
The deeper into the internship I get, the more productive I become, which is fortunate, because the work keeps piling on and on. Workdays quickly now become 10 hour-11 hour workdays, and I’m sure that as the date of my final presentation looms I will be racking up the over time like it’s nobody’s business.
Dell’s culture is – I believe – quite unique. People here keep stressing ambiguity – and I think it’s important to understand just how much this culture is about being in a state of constant flux. For instance, as I mentioned in a previous post – the instructions I got when I got to Dell were: “This is the name of the product you are focusing on. This is a list of names. Talk to them. Figure it out.”; when I had mentioned this to other employees in the company they mostly chuckled and said “Welcome to Dell.”
The culture here is essentially one of taking initiative and knowing which resources can help you get the job done. Essentially, it’s an entrepreneurial culture in which you don’t have your hands held by your bosses. They don’t teach you to swim, they kick you screaming into the deep end, fully expecting you to either learn to swim or sink down to the bottom. I love it.
People who like to take initiative and set their own agenda can really blaze their own trail here. They can create new business lines from scratch, they can take the ball and run with it and people will not get in their way too often. This is something that I think truly distinguishes the corporate culture here from others. All too often in large corporations there is a certain entrenched thinking that is seldom challenged. I find Dell’s culture to be very accepting to critique and fresh thinking.
The deeper into the internship I get, the more productive I become, which is fortunate, because the work keeps piling on and on. Workdays quickly now become 10 hour-11 hour workdays, and I’m sure that as the date of my final presentation looms I will be racking up the over time like it’s nobody’s business.
Season 5: Final Presentation
(MBA, Jiangtao) Finally, after weeks of work, my final presentation day comes!
At the very beginning of the project, I talked with my supervisor to nail down the audience name list and then sent out the invitations to relevant department heads from Global Treasury and Business teams. During my projects, it was very important to schedule one on one meeting with these people to let them understand my background and the projects. Often, the more you involved them in the process, the more they were willing to provide their insight and advice which I found very useful to refine my project and final presentation. In addition, the networking enables me to understand their daily jobs and them to know about my background and projects. In Lilly, one of the most valued elements is the relation you build with different people. Lilly people often agree that it deepens the mutual understanding and enhances work efficiency.
My final presentation starts at 8:30am. So, I came to the office at 7:30am and spent 30 minutes checking the projector and setting up logistics. The first to come in is Assistant Treasurer. We greeted and had a small talk on the baseball game last night. He is a very nice and smart boss. Very soon, all other audience came in one by one. In total, I have 10 people in the room. My supervisor kicked off the presentation and introduced me to the audience. After that, I started to present my projects to the audience, showing slides and talking about the details. During the presentation, my audience threw me lots of questions and I managed to answer all of them. We had a good discussion on lots of alternative solutions and possible barricades as my project touches a brand-new territory with global implication.
The final presentation itself lasts for around one hour and we had 15 minutes Q&A. At the very end, HR Director also invited me to share my impression on Lilly and the overall culture. The whole presentation was very good.
The biggest takeaway for me over the summer is to find ways to quickly know your team’s working style and achieve alignment with them. It enables you to understand the team’s priority and concerns as well as personalities. Meanwhile, your team can appreciate your role and contribution. Once both parties achieve the good alignment and mutual understanding, the efficiency will naturally ensue.
All in all, the summer internship at Lilly allows me to understand better the pharmaceutical industry, treasury jobs at corporate, and the fit to Lilly. It is a really memorable experience!
At the very beginning of the project, I talked with my supervisor to nail down the audience name list and then sent out the invitations to relevant department heads from Global Treasury and Business teams. During my projects, it was very important to schedule one on one meeting with these people to let them understand my background and the projects. Often, the more you involved them in the process, the more they were willing to provide their insight and advice which I found very useful to refine my project and final presentation. In addition, the networking enables me to understand their daily jobs and them to know about my background and projects. In Lilly, one of the most valued elements is the relation you build with different people. Lilly people often agree that it deepens the mutual understanding and enhances work efficiency.
My final presentation starts at 8:30am. So, I came to the office at 7:30am and spent 30 minutes checking the projector and setting up logistics. The first to come in is Assistant Treasurer. We greeted and had a small talk on the baseball game last night. He is a very nice and smart boss. Very soon, all other audience came in one by one. In total, I have 10 people in the room. My supervisor kicked off the presentation and introduced me to the audience. After that, I started to present my projects to the audience, showing slides and talking about the details. During the presentation, my audience threw me lots of questions and I managed to answer all of them. We had a good discussion on lots of alternative solutions and possible barricades as my project touches a brand-new territory with global implication.
The final presentation itself lasts for around one hour and we had 15 minutes Q&A. At the very end, HR Director also invited me to share my impression on Lilly and the overall culture. The whole presentation was very good.
The biggest takeaway for me over the summer is to find ways to quickly know your team’s working style and achieve alignment with them. It enables you to understand the team’s priority and concerns as well as personalities. Meanwhile, your team can appreciate your role and contribution. Once both parties achieve the good alignment and mutual understanding, the efficiency will naturally ensue.
All in all, the summer internship at Lilly allows me to understand better the pharmaceutical industry, treasury jobs at corporate, and the fit to Lilly. It is a really memorable experience!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Goodbye Dallas!
(MBA,Booz) Nine weeks had passed in the speed of light; it feels like only yesterday we went through training in New Jersy and now I’m already in the airport on my way back home to Ann Arbor.
The past few days were very exciting, my analytical model was put into use and its results will be utilized to let the customer take a very important decision. In parallel to that, I presented a deck to the Dallas office, summarizing my past nine weeks.
If I try to summarize these nine fast going weeks, I think that first of all it was a very good learning, I learned about the consultant way of life, the Booz culture and about myself. And most important of all I learned that I would really like to do this work as a full time. It is an ever changing work; new challenges arise every day and with every customer. This job takes you out of your comfort zone on a daily basis, some people might not like this idea but for me it’s a thrill! I believe this type of challenges keep you sharp and assure that boredom will not be part of the daily routine.
One of the fundamentals of being a consultant is working in a team, the experiences I had with my team were amazing, it was a group of talented people who played a major part in my final decision to pursue this career path. I found out that Booz consulting teams are very supportive and are also fun to go out with after the working hours.
My internship had taken me through all kind of experiences with my teammates and taught me some values!
I learned the value of friendship when I got stuck with one of my teammates on a shaky plane for two hours because the pilot didn’t succeed landing due to crazy weather, another teammate taught me courage when he managed to convince the whole team to eat at the 105 degrees, a vegan raw food restaurant; Artistic ability was presented by my managing partner as he prepared his famous smoked ribs in a BBQ; I learned common sense when one of my teammates convinced me to eliminate all the macros from my over engineered Excel model though another key learning was pride of ownership which made me keep some of them at the end of the day ;-)
So this is the end of my blog, it was a pleasure sharing my experiences with you and I hope that some of my writing gave you some insights about the consulting world.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Keep Busy...Look Good
One of the hardest things to do in internship is to keep busy with good work. All of us interns now that there is always the administrative type work that can be done but none of us want to do that. In an early post I had talked about learning how to say no when you have too much work, this post is the antithesis to that one. How to get more work when you don't have enough.
One of the worst things an intern can do is sit at their desk with no work, go on facebook, gchat, or just surf the web. Granted a little of that stuff never heard, and I am one of the greatest offenders to that. But it is about creating a good balance, and of course not letting the boss see. If you find yourself going to your list of websites that you go to when you are bored go ask your supervisor if they have any projects for you. If they don't have anything ask their supervisor. This type of attitude will make you look like a diligent worker, and as we all know an internship is just an extended interview. Showing your commitment and hard work will leave a good impression of you with your bosses. However don't say "Do you have any work I can do?" This will lead to those killer tasks like making copies, filing, and other monotonous tasks. Instead say to your boss "Do you have any projects I can help out with?" or "Is there any project that I can work on?" Phrasing it like this shows the boss that you want a real project not a time filler. If you end up doing files so be it, it is the little things that get you to the top. In the sports and entertainment industry (more specifically agencies), in which I work, entry level is often in the mail room. Those who work the hardest at the job they hate the most will ultimately be the one who networks the best and climbs the corporate ladder.
My internship to this part has been a lot of ups and downs as far as work load. There have been times when I am the last intern in the office, and other times when I am the first out the door. Recently I asked my supervisor, "It is now the second half of the internship, is there anything I should improve or focus on in my second half." His response was, "Make sure you are always asking for work if you don't have anything on your plate." He said that since I already do this there wasn't much to improve but that the higher-ups like interns that are always working and asking for more work. I am lucky that my supervisor was recently an intern and knows the ins and outs, but if your supervisor isn't willing to offer that advice, take it from me your boss will like to see you in their office if you are always looking to do work.
Enjoy the rest of the summer it's almost over.
One of the worst things an intern can do is sit at their desk with no work, go on facebook, gchat, or just surf the web. Granted a little of that stuff never heard, and I am one of the greatest offenders to that. But it is about creating a good balance, and of course not letting the boss see. If you find yourself going to your list of websites that you go to when you are bored go ask your supervisor if they have any projects for you. If they don't have anything ask their supervisor. This type of attitude will make you look like a diligent worker, and as we all know an internship is just an extended interview. Showing your commitment and hard work will leave a good impression of you with your bosses. However don't say "Do you have any work I can do?" This will lead to those killer tasks like making copies, filing, and other monotonous tasks. Instead say to your boss "Do you have any projects I can help out with?" or "Is there any project that I can work on?" Phrasing it like this shows the boss that you want a real project not a time filler. If you end up doing files so be it, it is the little things that get you to the top. In the sports and entertainment industry (more specifically agencies), in which I work, entry level is often in the mail room. Those who work the hardest at the job they hate the most will ultimately be the one who networks the best and climbs the corporate ladder.
My internship to this part has been a lot of ups and downs as far as work load. There have been times when I am the last intern in the office, and other times when I am the first out the door. Recently I asked my supervisor, "It is now the second half of the internship, is there anything I should improve or focus on in my second half." His response was, "Make sure you are always asking for work if you don't have anything on your plate." He said that since I already do this there wasn't much to improve but that the higher-ups like interns that are always working and asking for more work. I am lucky that my supervisor was recently an intern and knows the ins and outs, but if your supervisor isn't willing to offer that advice, take it from me your boss will like to see you in their office if you are always looking to do work.
Enjoy the rest of the summer it's almost over.
The final word from Sears…
This has been the most exciting, eventful and somewhat dramatic two weeks of the internship. I am almost done with my time at Sears and it is time to wrap up and say goodbye, atleast for now.
I had my final internship presentation scheduled for the middle of last week, almost a week and a half before the end of the internship. I wasn’t certain that I would be able to work right up to the end, since my baby’s due date and my internship end date almost coincided at the end of this week, and therefore planned ahead. This foresight was invaluable! My presentation was at 3 pm on the 7th of July and three hours later, right after I got home, I went into labor!!! That was the end of completing the internship on the planned schedule. I am home recovering and going back to work for a few short days to wrap things up and complete a final performance review. It has been very rewarding to take on two very differently challenging projects at the same time and complete them both successfully.
Regarding the presentation itself, I started working on the power point at almost the six-week mark, making notes and draft power points of what I wanted to communicate. My bosses were very accommodating of the need to make a well-crafted deck and supported me in many ways such as creating a rough outline, providing detailed reviews and feedback on my analysis, setting up schedules with my audience of CFO’s and VP’s and providing overall feedback on the slide deck. I was very happy with and confident of my slide deck for the presentation and took a couple of hours going over every detail in the slides and preparing for possible questions, while rehearsing the script for my presentation.
The presentation was attended by business unit CFO’s and VP’s and also included other Finance interns for the summer. Both my managers were present. I presented my findings and left time for questions. The presentation was well-received by the audience. My manager told me I had done a good job of the presentation and of handling follow-up questions.
Working at Sears has been a great learning experience in terms of Corporate Finance, the Retail industry, good management practices and self-discovery. I am hoping that I will get an offer before the summer is up.
I had my final internship presentation scheduled for the middle of last week, almost a week and a half before the end of the internship. I wasn’t certain that I would be able to work right up to the end, since my baby’s due date and my internship end date almost coincided at the end of this week, and therefore planned ahead. This foresight was invaluable! My presentation was at 3 pm on the 7th of July and three hours later, right after I got home, I went into labor!!! That was the end of completing the internship on the planned schedule. I am home recovering and going back to work for a few short days to wrap things up and complete a final performance review. It has been very rewarding to take on two very differently challenging projects at the same time and complete them both successfully.
Regarding the presentation itself, I started working on the power point at almost the six-week mark, making notes and draft power points of what I wanted to communicate. My bosses were very accommodating of the need to make a well-crafted deck and supported me in many ways such as creating a rough outline, providing detailed reviews and feedback on my analysis, setting up schedules with my audience of CFO’s and VP’s and providing overall feedback on the slide deck. I was very happy with and confident of my slide deck for the presentation and took a couple of hours going over every detail in the slides and preparing for possible questions, while rehearsing the script for my presentation.
The presentation was attended by business unit CFO’s and VP’s and also included other Finance interns for the summer. Both my managers were present. I presented my findings and left time for questions. The presentation was well-received by the audience. My manager told me I had done a good job of the presentation and of handling follow-up questions.
Working at Sears has been a great learning experience in terms of Corporate Finance, the Retail industry, good management practices and self-discovery. I am hoping that I will get an offer before the summer is up.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
The World of Buyouts, $ and a whole load of Junk
I'm on my second rotation now, on the High Yield trading desk - thought it would be good to explain High Yield/Junk Bonds/Leveraged Buyouts in layman terms.
Remember Barbarians at the Gate? If the title does not ring a bell, try RJR Nabisco. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts? How about Leveraged Buyout? Three names; one of the history's largest buyouts at $31.3 billion. Such is the infamy, and some might argue romance, of the leveraged buyout that the tale is relived in one of the most well read books in financial literature, even spawning a movie (arguably much less successful than the book). But financial wizardry aside, what is a Leveraged Buyout (LBO)? More importantly, why use of the term junk?
On an extremely basic level, an LBO is simply one company buying another company, but instead of funding the purchase with cash or stock, the acquirer uses debt. A lot of debt.
Consider this simple scenario. Company A wants to buy Company B for whatever reason. However, A does not have the cash to do so/ does not want to commit a large amount of cash to do so. Recall: Company A tends to be a private equity firm, private investment partnership, corporate raiders and the ilk. What does Company A do? Simple, it borrows. In a twist of financial magic however, Company A purchases B and pushes all the borrowed money into B. Here's how the magic works:
Company A creates a new Company, C. Recall: C is a SPV or special purpose vehicle, whose "special" purpose in this case is to house Company B and all the debt taken on to fund the purchase. Now, when the debt is raised, B is bought and housed into C, together with all newly issued debt. Hence the use of the word "Leveraged" since the entire investment is made using rmostly borrowed money. A Real life example, in time to coincide with the dying World Cup fever. The Glazer's bought Manchester United in a LBO, with the English club being placed into the SPV/holding company Red Football Ltd - together with that now infamous debt which has caused a minor revolt in the club's fan base.
Now, more importantly, why use of the term junk? Simple. Remember the credit rating agencies that rated all the toxic mortgages triple A? They rate bonds based on the company's ability to repay them. Basically, more bonds equals more debt equals lower chance of repayment equals lower ratings. At a predetermined point on these agencies' ratings scales lies a threshold of High Yield (Junk) status. Go below that point, and the debt is rated junk. So named due to their relatively higher probabilities of default and thus unpopularity with most investors. In an LBO, so much debt is raised that it is a virtual certainty for the new bonds/debt to be rated as junk.
Hence the term, its use in Leveraged Buyouts, and the obscene buyout amounts witnessed. All essential ingredients in a quintessential Wall Street tale.
Half-way point!
I am now officially more than half way through my internship – and it feels like I just started yesterday. A lot has happened in the past two weeks – a couple of big client meetings, excellent team dinners, a new workstream and my mid-summer “pulse check”.
Let’s start with the work first. I completed the first project that was assigned to me (read previous post for details), and have now been assigned another workstream for the rest of the summer. The summer pulse check turned out to be balanced – with areas of strength and areas of improvement. I hope I end up improving on those “areas of improvement” by the end of the summer!
My next piece of work will influence a couple of key recommendations that we will make to the client. I am extremely excited, and a little apprehensive at being given this new responsibility. For one, the situation is a lot more ambiguous than my first project. And two, this project involves qualitative decision-making, definitely not my area of strength, in addition to the quantitative analysis. But the support from the rest of the team and other Booz folks has been tremendous. They have made themselves available to speak with me, exchange ideas, brainstorm and offer advice in a heartbeat. And being a
Now, for the fun part. The
P.S: The Germany-Argentina game was an absolute shame. And we could not have asked for a more boring final. A disappointing world cup over all.
A Typical Day @ Nationals Park
(BBA, The Washington Nationals Baseball Club)
I cannot believe I have already been here for over a month! I have fully adjusted and now have a daily routine. I thought I’d share a typical day of my in
ternship. As I mentioned in my last post, non-game days and game days are extremely different work environments. Game days are much more exciting, in my opinion. On a typical game day I work from 2pm-8pm.
2pm-3:30pm: I come in to the office, get settled, and start working on my current project. Last week I finished a Punch List of all the suites. I had to go around to all 79 suites in the stadium and take photos of places that needed touch-up work and fixing. This week, my project is to contact other baseball teams’ Enterprise and Events departments to receive information and brochures on their event plannin
g and price rates. Additionally, this week I have to edit and make the layout diagrams for the party clubs and rooms. This definitely is going to test my powerpoint ability!
3:30pm: I go grab the wristbands for the Diamond and Presidents Clubs that will be used during the game. Only those people with Diamond and President Club tickets are allowed to enter the clubs; therefore, wristbands are the most effective and efficient way to ensure only ticketed guests are in the clubs. Liam, a staff member in my department, and I walk to the Presidents Club, the Diamond Club, Section 126, and Section 119 and distribute the wristbands to the ushers. Those are the on
ly 4 locations that people can redeem their wristbands to enter the clubs. We also make sure there are podiums at these locations, and that everything in the clubs is ready for when the gates open. At every game, there are concierges in the clubs to greet and direct the guest. My department is in charge of ensuring that the concierges are there, on time, and ready. After we distribute the wristbands to the four locations, Liam and I post the concierge work schedule in the concierge check-in location. This whole loop usually takes us about an hour.
4:30-5:30pm: I head back to the office and work on my assigned projects.
5:30pm: Liam and I take another loop to make sure that the concierges and ushers are in places at the designated locations. After doing this final loop with Liam, he heads into the Diamond Club and I go work on my pre-game project.
6-7pm: My co-intern, Jim, and I work on throughput times before every game. Our department is trying to figure a more efficient way for people to get drinks and food, by minimizing their wait and process time. We are trying to prove that the method we currently use is not efficient. Jim and I time, count, and calculate the number of people that are served at s
pecific concession stands.
7pm: I meet up with the rest of my department’s team in the Diamond Club, where we can work while watching the game. (It’s a great view of the whole field)
8pm: Workday is over. I can either head home or stay and watch the game.
That is what a typical day at Nationals Park is like on a Game Day. Everyone in my department is extremely friendly and helpful. We spend a lot of time together as a team. On Non-Game Days we all spend a lot of time in the office together. Even though we are all doing different things and working on separate projects, there is still a social atmosphere around the office, and always someone to help, answer questions, etc. The people working in my department are young and fun, which definitely enhances my social life as an intern. I’m really enjoying my internship and can’t wait to update everyone again!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Almost there...
It's Nikos again from Hill's Pet Nutrition in the extremely hot state of Kansas, which I was told is the place where basketball was born. Having played pro basketball that sounds very cool!
Anyway, even though I have 4 weeks to go, I present to senior management next Friday. Logistically, it was easier to get all the marketing directors, VP, brand managers etc. in the same room for a 2 hour time when I and the other MBA intern will spend talking about our recommendations and overall experience. Frightened, terrified, and stressed are only some of the words that can describe my feelings. Not so much for presenting, but putting together a big deck while dealing with all the projects that I am part of. To make a long story short, my workdays have become dangerously long!
The good part is the experience. No matter what I say, words are not enough to describe it. Yes, I am tired! Yes, I am working till 9pm! Yes, I can't wait for vacation! But, I'm confident it will pay off. Being involved in several projects provides great exposure in the company and the opportunity to work extensively with cross-functional teams which, in my opinion, is the hardest thing to do no matter how much experienced you are in it. Actually, if I had to distinguish the single most important aspect of my internship it would be the cross-functional experience and the ability to coordinate with different people, different priorities, different perspectives.
Well, as another day of the week ends, I'm looking at this weekend as an opportunity to wrap up my presentation and get ready to rock it. The expectations are high and I'm looking forward to meeting them. Once that is done, I will spend time exploring the area, networking within the company, finish up my projects, and get ready to go back to Greece before school starts.
Anyway, even though I have 4 weeks to go, I present to senior management next Friday. Logistically, it was easier to get all the marketing directors, VP, brand managers etc. in the same room for a 2 hour time when I and the other MBA intern will spend talking about our recommendations and overall experience. Frightened, terrified, and stressed are only some of the words that can describe my feelings. Not so much for presenting, but putting together a big deck while dealing with all the projects that I am part of. To make a long story short, my workdays have become dangerously long!
The good part is the experience. No matter what I say, words are not enough to describe it. Yes, I am tired! Yes, I am working till 9pm! Yes, I can't wait for vacation! But, I'm confident it will pay off. Being involved in several projects provides great exposure in the company and the opportunity to work extensively with cross-functional teams which, in my opinion, is the hardest thing to do no matter how much experienced you are in it. Actually, if I had to distinguish the single most important aspect of my internship it would be the cross-functional experience and the ability to coordinate with different people, different priorities, different perspectives.
Well, as another day of the week ends, I'm looking at this weekend as an opportunity to wrap up my presentation and get ready to rock it. The expectations are high and I'm looking forward to meeting them. Once that is done, I will spend time exploring the area, networking within the company, finish up my projects, and get ready to go back to Greece before school starts.
Introducing Jeans to Specialty Chemicals
Hi, it’s Sandra again. When I arrived to FMC, I was told that I could wear jeans. I didn’t understand at the time why it was important or how come it came to be some constant topic of conversation during my summer. Every FMC person I spoke to after accepting the intern position and before my arrival to Philly mentioned, in one way or another, the fact that I could wear jeans now. I started working and I was glad to discover that the things that attracted me to the company held true. After the mid-point of my internship is behind me, I can understand better the 3 factors that really made a difference in my decision process and I hope will impact my career going forward.
1. Impactful projects: I am blessed to have the opportunity of 3 leading projects that will affect the core business, in a meaningful way. I discovered that part of FMC’s culture involves ownership. I own my projects and it’s up to me to make the impact I want. I have a real chance at achieving my goals and not only my manager but senior management are really expecting me to do so.
2. People: Initiative is valued. People will help if I look around and ask for help. It took me a while to discover it is how things work. Help won’t be offered but won’t be denied either.
3. Potential: FMC is a diversified company and a global leader in almost every business it operates in. An emphasis in growth has been put in place and culture is changing to make it possible. Opportunities around the world are currently being created. Diversity is increasingly encouraged by top management.
During the past weeks I heard some conversations among my co-workers about jeans and I understood it was a recent change in the company. I learned the new CEO was making other changes and I received several organizational announcements of new hires, changes in the structure of the company, new positions, movements around the world and some more HR communications. Yesterday we had a lunch with my manager and the other intern. I believe the intention was to check on our progress and give us some feedback.
It was after our discussion at a more informal setting when it all came together. I realized that the change in attire only reflected a deeper change and meant so much more. Some resistance I have felt towards the introduction of jeans in the wardrobe had a new meaning for me. The company is changing. It is looking for more flexibility and trying to attract new talents. I also discovered the MBA recruiting program is being revived. http://www.fmcbiopolymer.com/careers/Careers/FMCMBARecruiting.aspx The Chemical Industry is a traditional sector. New leadership at FMC is set to take advantage of the opportunities available and grow. Change in mindset is what FMC is really looking for in order to build its future.
1. Impactful projects: I am blessed to have the opportunity of 3 leading projects that will affect the core business, in a meaningful way. I discovered that part of FMC’s culture involves ownership. I own my projects and it’s up to me to make the impact I want. I have a real chance at achieving my goals and not only my manager but senior management are really expecting me to do so.
2. People: Initiative is valued. People will help if I look around and ask for help. It took me a while to discover it is how things work. Help won’t be offered but won’t be denied either.
3. Potential: FMC is a diversified company and a global leader in almost every business it operates in. An emphasis in growth has been put in place and culture is changing to make it possible. Opportunities around the world are currently being created. Diversity is increasingly encouraged by top management.
During the past weeks I heard some conversations among my co-workers about jeans and I understood it was a recent change in the company. I learned the new CEO was making other changes and I received several organizational announcements of new hires, changes in the structure of the company, new positions, movements around the world and some more HR communications. Yesterday we had a lunch with my manager and the other intern. I believe the intention was to check on our progress and give us some feedback.
It was after our discussion at a more informal setting when it all came together. I realized that the change in attire only reflected a deeper change and meant so much more. Some resistance I have felt towards the introduction of jeans in the wardrobe had a new meaning for me. The company is changing. It is looking for more flexibility and trying to attract new talents. I also discovered the MBA recruiting program is being revived. http://www.fmcbiopolymer.com/careers/Careers/FMCMBARecruiting.aspx The Chemical Industry is a traditional sector. New leadership at FMC is set to take advantage of the opportunities available and grow. Change in mindset is what FMC is really looking for in order to build its future.
Internship last 3 weeks
So the very creative title says it all, I'm almost done with my internship. These days, I'm working on tying up loose ends and organizing the mass of information generated during the internship. Also, I’m creating a presentation that can effectively sum up 3 months of work in 1 hour and yet not miss the important details. There is still some time to go (about 2.5 weeks) and I’m yet to enter the reflection mode fully, but since this is my last post, I will mention some of the key takeaways from the internship.
On the positive side I have been able to learn about many key aspects of the business. I started with evaluating some broad market segments for the company. And these days I'm creating pricing models which I hope would shortly be the basis for some price negotiations. More importantly, I have identified some channels the company could use to target those particular market segments. Also as short side projects looked at product certifications and some supply chain issues. Now that I think of it that’s a reasonable amount of work for 12 weeks. May be if I had interned for a larger company I might not have got the opportunity to touch so many aspects of the company business.
On the not so positive side, I got some pointers about dealing with investors when you are running a company in its initial stages. And saw some instances of how frustrating it can be some times to have to think continuously about cash flows or be in continuous dread of losing the only advantage that the young company has – intellectual property. Having seen the amount of uncertainty all these can bring to even a well funded early stage company, I could see that there are some definite advantages of being in a larger company.
It has been a great two and a half months and I have learnt quite a lot and I’m pretty sure come full time recruitment it will help me make a well informed choice.
(341 words)
On the positive side I have been able to learn about many key aspects of the business. I started with evaluating some broad market segments for the company. And these days I'm creating pricing models which I hope would shortly be the basis for some price negotiations. More importantly, I have identified some channels the company could use to target those particular market segments. Also as short side projects looked at product certifications and some supply chain issues. Now that I think of it that’s a reasonable amount of work for 12 weeks. May be if I had interned for a larger company I might not have got the opportunity to touch so many aspects of the company business.
On the not so positive side, I got some pointers about dealing with investors when you are running a company in its initial stages. And saw some instances of how frustrating it can be some times to have to think continuously about cash flows or be in continuous dread of losing the only advantage that the young company has – intellectual property. Having seen the amount of uncertainty all these can bring to even a well funded early stage company, I could see that there are some definite advantages of being in a larger company.
It has been a great two and a half months and I have learnt quite a lot and I’m pretty sure come full time recruitment it will help me make a well informed choice.
(341 words)
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Mid Summer Check In
MBA, News Corp. Now that I, Roy, am about halfway through the summer and a month and half into my internship, I feel that this would be a good time to let you in on my personal, deep thoughts about New York City and News Corp. My inner thoughts could befuddle even the most learned, so be careful reading on. To start, I love living in New York City, but I know that is a shocker. I have always wanted to live in this city and I am finally getting to accomplish that. There is just never a dull moment, which is not very good for my sleep habits. There is a reason they call it the city that never sleeps because honestly people are always out and about, which I love. Now that’s all I have to say about that.
As for my internship at News Corp and Fox News Digital more specifically, I am enjoying the heck out of it. I have been able to learn many things that both I knew that I wanted to and stuff that I had no clue existed. I have been able to research and recommend advertising capabilities for the IPad to thinking of creative uses for QR Codes. Additionally, I have been able to see from the start to finish the process of how digital advertising gets sold, published and delivered. Although I personally do not necessarily want to be in sales directly, having this understanding is crucial to any role I might want in digital advertising strategy or business development.
Going forward I have been tasked with creating a business plan type thing (not exactly sure if it will be a full business plan) which will show the implications of the changing internet landscape as it applies to the Fox News website. This research and plan will allow Fox News to strategize on how to better monetize their current digital advertising against these trends. As you may have heard, News Corporation has made headlines recently with respect to the Wall Street Journal online. They are going to start micro billing for its content. Many in the online news industry are watching closely to see whether this business model or the current one of paying through digital advertisements is best. I initially believe it will be somewhat of a hybrid of the two, but I guess I will have to see what I discover in my research.
As for my internship at News Corp and Fox News Digital more specifically, I am enjoying the heck out of it. I have been able to learn many things that both I knew that I wanted to and stuff that I had no clue existed. I have been able to research and recommend advertising capabilities for the IPad to thinking of creative uses for QR Codes. Additionally, I have been able to see from the start to finish the process of how digital advertising gets sold, published and delivered. Although I personally do not necessarily want to be in sales directly, having this understanding is crucial to any role I might want in digital advertising strategy or business development.
Going forward I have been tasked with creating a business plan type thing (not exactly sure if it will be a full business plan) which will show the implications of the changing internet landscape as it applies to the Fox News website. This research and plan will allow Fox News to strategize on how to better monetize their current digital advertising against these trends. As you may have heard, News Corporation has made headlines recently with respect to the Wall Street Journal online. They are going to start micro billing for its content. Many in the online news industry are watching closely to see whether this business model or the current one of paying through digital advertisements is best. I initially believe it will be somewhat of a hybrid of the two, but I guess I will have to see what I discover in my research.
Monday, July 12, 2010
My Intern Life So Far
Time is going so fast and 4 weeks have passed since I got here. Since my first posting, there have been several things going on.
(1) Work
Some of my project scope has been finalized and I am trying to keep pace with the schedule. Unfortunately I can't tell you about the details of the project, but I want you to know how important Apple thinks about confidentiality. As for each of the projects, I have to work with 3-4 Apple employees, some of whom are in other countries. To get to know each other, I organized several one-on-one interviews with them for introduction of myself and my project. One thing unique about Apple. When you begin your internship, you are assigned an i-Buddy. i-Buddy helps you with almost every issues and it was very helpful to me getting used to Apple and its people. Another thing I want to tell is that people here are really busy these days. Since the launching of i-Phone 4, almost all the operations people are busy whole day to resolve some follow-up issues. I see their passion and professionalism, and understand what made Apple at this position.
(1) Work
Some of my project scope has been finalized and I am trying to keep pace with the schedule. Unfortunately I can't tell you about the details of the project, but I want you to know how important Apple thinks about confidentiality. As for each of the projects, I have to work with 3-4 Apple employees, some of whom are in other countries. To get to know each other, I organized several one-on-one interviews with them for introduction of myself and my project. One thing unique about Apple. When you begin your internship, you are assigned an i-Buddy. i-Buddy helps you with almost every issues and it was very helpful to me getting used to Apple and its people. Another thing I want to tell is that people here are really busy these days. Since the launching of i-Phone 4, almost all the operations people are busy whole day to resolve some follow-up issues. I see their passion and professionalism, and understand what made Apple at this position.
(Above you can see a pic of me and Woz. I hope I can finally be friend with Apple like the pic)
(2) Intern Events
As I said in the first post, there are lot's of intern events here. One is the executive speaker series. There were several speaker series since my first posting, including Steve's and Jonathan. I guess all knows who Steve is, and Jonathan is a SVP of industrial design at Apple. Recently he was announced as one of 50 smartest people in tech by Fortune. Again, the details of the speech is also a confidential, but I just want to tell you these events are really interesting and I gain a lot getting to know their experience and thoughts. There was also intern welcome dinner, field trip to winery etc. I am also in one of the teams for the corporate game, which is like Apple Olympic.
(3) Cupertino Life
When you are considering for a full-time job, I guess one important thing is the environment of where you live. Cupertino is a small city, but the weather here is so good. I heard that during May-December it hardly rains. Every day it is sunny, and you can enjoy a lot of leisure sports. Last week I brought my bike to Angel Island and went around the whole Island. People here are enjoying the weather and all seem to be sports-lovers. If you are very active person, I am sure that you will enjoy your life here.
(2) Intern Events
As I said in the first post, there are lot's of intern events here. One is the executive speaker series. There were several speaker series since my first posting, including Steve's and Jonathan. I guess all knows who Steve is, and Jonathan is a SVP of industrial design at Apple. Recently he was announced as one of 50 smartest people in tech by Fortune. Again, the details of the speech is also a confidential, but I just want to tell you these events are really interesting and I gain a lot getting to know their experience and thoughts. There was also intern welcome dinner, field trip to winery etc. I am also in one of the teams for the corporate game, which is like Apple Olympic.
(3) Cupertino Life
When you are considering for a full-time job, I guess one important thing is the environment of where you live. Cupertino is a small city, but the weather here is so good. I heard that during May-December it hardly rains. Every day it is sunny, and you can enjoy a lot of leisure sports. Last week I brought my bike to Angel Island and went around the whole Island. People here are enjoying the weather and all seem to be sports-lovers. If you are very active person, I am sure that you will enjoy your life here.Sunday, July 11, 2010
Investment Banking Week 2
Work has been interesting so far. I am staffed on a number of projects - some live some otherwise. The live deals are obviously the most exciting since they are actually going to happen, but the pitches give me a sense of how much work actually goes into clinching a mandate.
A little on the work environment at CS - I think the Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) group is a great group. Everybody, and I mean everybody, is nice, friendly and helpful. Even the senior bankers are polite when asking for help and I feel I work with them instead of for them.
It has been a little hard to juggle personal/social life and the internship. I work 16-21 hours most days, having hardly any time to do anything else. It remains to be seen whether such a lifestyle is sustainable and/or desirable.
Also, banking is a lot about personalities of the Managing Directors. Since MDs are the ones bringing in the revenue, they dictate what kind of work gets done and how they want things to be done. Different MDs have different requirements for their Powerpoint formatting. So we get exposed to different kind of management styles. There are directors who go for the big picture, and others who like to get down into the details. Having the chance to work under MDs with different working styles is an enriching experience.
Bear with my shameless promotion of CS, but I think CS is in great shape post-crisis. It constantly ranks top 3 in the leveraged finance league tables, beaten only by Bank of America and J.P. Morgan, both of which have humongous balance sheets. CS is known for its execution. Furthermore, CS now ranks 2nd in global M&A deals. It is exciting to be part of an up and coming financial powerhouse in such a conducive market for investment banking.
A little on the work environment at CS - I think the Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) group is a great group. Everybody, and I mean everybody, is nice, friendly and helpful. Even the senior bankers are polite when asking for help and I feel I work with them instead of for them.
It has been a little hard to juggle personal/social life and the internship. I work 16-21 hours most days, having hardly any time to do anything else. It remains to be seen whether such a lifestyle is sustainable and/or desirable.
Also, banking is a lot about personalities of the Managing Directors. Since MDs are the ones bringing in the revenue, they dictate what kind of work gets done and how they want things to be done. Different MDs have different requirements for their Powerpoint formatting. So we get exposed to different kind of management styles. There are directors who go for the big picture, and others who like to get down into the details. Having the chance to work under MDs with different working styles is an enriching experience.
Bear with my shameless promotion of CS, but I think CS is in great shape post-crisis. It constantly ranks top 3 in the leveraged finance league tables, beaten only by Bank of America and J.P. Morgan, both of which have humongous balance sheets. CS is known for its execution. Furthermore, CS now ranks 2nd in global M&A deals. It is exciting to be part of an up and coming financial powerhouse in such a conducive market for investment banking.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Fun, work and vistas
In addition to the 30-odd Rossers here, there are over 150 MBA interns in Seattle this summer, from B-Schools all over the U.S. We have a Facebook page and google groups where people have signed up for different activities. It has been great to hang out with them over the weekends for BBQs, Kayaking and Movies. It is not possible to meet over the week, but I make it a point to see other people every weekend, and I got to know a few of them very well.
Amazon organizes a lot of events for its interns. We have weekly happy hours. And one of my favorite parts of the internship is the speaker series. HR invites Senior VPs and VPSs from different divisions to talk to the intern group about their teams, career and the company as a whole. These are very educational, and provide another opportunity to spend time with the rest of the interns. As for networking, I meet a lot of people in relation to my project. And I reach out to people in groups that I find interesting. I found people here very open to talking to interns and happy to make time for us.
I have found the workload to be reasonable for an internship. My days vary quite a bit. I usually meet one or two people per day about my project. I spend several hours writing my findings or recommendations down. I also spend a few hours doing secondary research for my project. Due to the flexibility Amazon employees enjoy, every once in a while I work at the office café or lounge so that the change of scene and beautiful Seattle vistas can inspire me. I am very impressed by how every Amazon building has great views.
Amazon organizes a lot of events for its interns. We have weekly happy hours. And one of my favorite parts of the internship is the speaker series. HR invites Senior VPs and VPSs from different divisions to talk to the intern group about their teams, career and the company as a whole. These are very educational, and provide another opportunity to spend time with the rest of the interns. As for networking, I meet a lot of people in relation to my project. And I reach out to people in groups that I find interesting. I found people here very open to talking to interns and happy to make time for us.
I have found the workload to be reasonable for an internship. My days vary quite a bit. I usually meet one or two people per day about my project. I spend several hours writing my findings or recommendations down. I also spend a few hours doing secondary research for my project. Due to the flexibility Amazon employees enjoy, every once in a while I work at the office café or lounge so that the change of scene and beautiful Seattle vistas can inspire me. I am very impressed by how every Amazon building has great views.
Starting up as a consultant
“In matters of great importance, it is style and not sincerity that matters” – Oscar Wilde
One of the most important qualities of a consultant is to build credibility quickly – with the client, with their team and in their firm. Early impressions count heavily. The first two-three weeks of consulting are the most demanding for a fresh consultant looking to establish a good early impression. I would dedicate this post to sharing learnings from my experience that could help a fresh consultant ace this early challenge.
Always be on time. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. In the American workplace, punctuality is expected by your colleagues and clients. Set multiple alarms in the morning. Skip breakfast if you’re rushing, but be 5 minutes early at client site. In a couple of weeks you’ll smack of dependability, which will go a long way in your relationship with the client.
In meetings, listen well and contribute confidently. Never let the client feel that you are an intern. Firms won’t pronounce you as an intern in front of the client. You are expected to perform like a seasoned consultant. However, I would stress listening much more than speaking. Jot down your notes, form your ideas and speak impactfully at the right time. In a large meeting, I personally prefer to carefully rehearse talking points in my head, and then deliver them succinctly, clearly and confidently.
Consulting firms are looking for new ideas, frameworks and models to solve problems all the time. Develop new models, nurture new ideas when you have some time off your responsibilities. Then take these models to your buddies, the partners, and to your clients. These go a long way in convincing your firm that you bring fresh thinking to the table. If you do implement your model, make sure you highlight appropriately. Share the model, write a case study, put it on the knowledge base and present your work to partners.
Network well. Seek advice of experienced folks on how to shape your internship. Their inputs will not only be immensely useful to your project, but will also give you an insight into its culture and what it takes to be successful in the firm. Offer to work for your partner, project manager or buddy beyond the project. Help out in writing proposals, SOWs, project plans, etc. These are very tedious document that people are always looking for help on. You’ll be a super-valuable asset to them and they will back you for a full-time offer.
Finally, always be cognizant that the client is paying a huge hourly rate for your work. Always push yourself to deliver value that is greater than that rate.
One of the most important qualities of a consultant is to build credibility quickly – with the client, with their team and in their firm. Early impressions count heavily. The first two-three weeks of consulting are the most demanding for a fresh consultant looking to establish a good early impression. I would dedicate this post to sharing learnings from my experience that could help a fresh consultant ace this early challenge.
Always be on time. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. In the American workplace, punctuality is expected by your colleagues and clients. Set multiple alarms in the morning. Skip breakfast if you’re rushing, but be 5 minutes early at client site. In a couple of weeks you’ll smack of dependability, which will go a long way in your relationship with the client.
In meetings, listen well and contribute confidently. Never let the client feel that you are an intern. Firms won’t pronounce you as an intern in front of the client. You are expected to perform like a seasoned consultant. However, I would stress listening much more than speaking. Jot down your notes, form your ideas and speak impactfully at the right time. In a large meeting, I personally prefer to carefully rehearse talking points in my head, and then deliver them succinctly, clearly and confidently.
Consulting firms are looking for new ideas, frameworks and models to solve problems all the time. Develop new models, nurture new ideas when you have some time off your responsibilities. Then take these models to your buddies, the partners, and to your clients. These go a long way in convincing your firm that you bring fresh thinking to the table. If you do implement your model, make sure you highlight appropriately. Share the model, write a case study, put it on the knowledge base and present your work to partners.
Network well. Seek advice of experienced folks on how to shape your internship. Their inputs will not only be immensely useful to your project, but will also give you an insight into its culture and what it takes to be successful in the firm. Offer to work for your partner, project manager or buddy beyond the project. Help out in writing proposals, SOWs, project plans, etc. These are very tedious document that people are always looking for help on. You’ll be a super-valuable asset to them and they will back you for a full-time offer.
Finally, always be cognizant that the client is paying a huge hourly rate for your work. Always push yourself to deliver value that is greater than that rate.
Life at Harley-Davidson gains momentum
Having completed 3 weeks out of my 10 weeks of internship, I now feel that my project is taking shape. The LDP program here is quite an intense experience, and you are evaluated not only on your project deliverables, but also on how much you have networked within the organization, and on how many H-D events you have attended. This is true even for the internship, and so my days are packed with work and lunch & dinner events!
I had a fantastic trip to our Kansas City plant recently where I saw first-hand how the fuel tanks were fabricated, then were customized with H-D’s famous paint options, and then how the motorcycles were assembled. The Harley culture seems to be prevalent even in the plants where all employees there were very warm and helpful. And of course, I did not miss out on the famous barbeques of Kansas City at Smokehouse!
Summerfest saw millions of visitors flocking to Milwaukee as usual. As I had mentioned earlier, Harley-Davidson has its own stage, and I got VIP treatment as an employee – I got to watch the shows from the H-D deck. In the picture, you can see Counting Crows performing at the H-D stage.
Part of getting to know the American culture is getting to know the two most popular games in the country – American football and baseball. I got to know the first game at Ann Arbor itself, in the largest university stadium in the US. I watched my first baseball game ever in Milwaukee last week, with their local team ‘Brewers’ playing against the San Francisco ‘Giants’. The game’s quite slow, but people go mostly to hang out with friends and drink beer and eat hot dogs! I did all of that during the last game, and although the Brewers lost, it was a very memorable experience!
My next blog will have details about my ‘insider’ tour of the Miller Brewery, a company-hosted Bradford beach social, my dealer visits, and a volunteer opportunity I am participating in with the Harley-Davidson Foundation. Till then, keep riding as always!
Season 4: About Pharmaceutical Industry and Eli Lilly
(MBA, Eli Lilly) First of all, pharmaceutical industry is important to us because it creates new drugs to cure many kinds of diseases that damages people’s life quality. It is a great industry to work with if you are passionate on improving people’s life quality and prolong lives. Nowadays, this industry, especially for leading patent pharmaceutical companies are facing increasing competition from generic companies like Teva in Israel. In 2011, many blockbusters will go off patents and thus these big companies will face huge losses in their ever cash cows. This trend puts lots of pressures and urgency on patent pharmaceutical companies. Most of these companies’ response will be to emphases innovation and accelerate the pipeline to overcome the gap. Also you may read news on pharmaceutical companies’ restructuring to cope with this strategic move. Last, another thing you may be interested in is that pharmaceutical industry has very long cycle. From a molecule to a fully approved drug on the market, it normally takes around 12 years. If you really care about the fast outcome and fast innovation, pharmaceutical industry may be not the right one for you.
With respect to Lilly, it is a good company. People in the company are generally nice and willing to share their experiences and offer advice. The overall culture is all about excellence, respect for people and integrity. Today, Lilly is still in the progress of global restructuring and you may clearly feel how fast they want to develop new drugs to replace those old blockbusters that are going off patent in the next few years. Lilly, like many other big pharmaceutical companies, has two key focuses in the corporate, one is R&D, over $3 billion investment every year, and the other is sales and marketing. Other functions and administrations are revolving around these two centers. In addition, Lilly, like many other pharmaceutical companies, is starting to expand business in emerging markets such as China, Russia, Brazil, Turkey and etc. because of the fast increasing need on effective drugs.
All in all, pharmaceutical industry will be a good fit if you feel yourself are fascinated with healthcare. Lilly will be a good fit if you are in the spirit of teamwork and humbleness as well as agility of learning.
With respect to Lilly, it is a good company. People in the company are generally nice and willing to share their experiences and offer advice. The overall culture is all about excellence, respect for people and integrity. Today, Lilly is still in the progress of global restructuring and you may clearly feel how fast they want to develop new drugs to replace those old blockbusters that are going off patent in the next few years. Lilly, like many other big pharmaceutical companies, has two key focuses in the corporate, one is R&D, over $3 billion investment every year, and the other is sales and marketing. Other functions and administrations are revolving around these two centers. In addition, Lilly, like many other pharmaceutical companies, is starting to expand business in emerging markets such as China, Russia, Brazil, Turkey and etc. because of the fast increasing need on effective drugs.
All in all, pharmaceutical industry will be a good fit if you feel yourself are fascinated with healthcare. Lilly will be a good fit if you are in the spirit of teamwork and humbleness as well as agility of learning.
Reflection
The summer internship is finally coming to an end and it is now time to do the one thing we all love to do; reflect on these last months and identify what we have learnt and how much growth there has been, around the waist and intellectually!! To merely say that I have “grown” over these last months would be an understatement without qualifying that claim with all the things I managed to accomplish!
Starting off as an eager student of business, ready to soak up the knowledge and get my hands dirty with paint, I have now managed a decent size business and ran a team of 9 employees, handled angry customers, satisfied customers, met deadlines, payed off my debt and began to understand what I really want to achieve from my business degree. Did I value and like this experience? Definitely. Is entrepreneurship for me? Maybe. Maybe not. I realized that although I love to get out there and meet new people, talk to them, lead a dynamic work force, entrepreneurship is a tough job and one that maybe I should keep for later on in life, once I have had more experience on the financial and administrative side of business, am comfortable with that and willing to leave it to others to handle that task!
What I take back most is the amazing network of fellow colleagues I made who are from every walk of life and I truly learnt from them as I understood that although I may be international, I did grow up with a lot more than they did and that while I look at the internship as a resume builder, for them it was real work that would help them earn a decent amount of cash to get through another year of university. This put things into perspective for me and helps me realize that I need to better utilize the opportunities that come my way the following school year!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Just Like MAP!
Hi people, how are you guys doing?
Even though I finished almost the half of the summer internship, I think it is good time to go back when my internship begun. By the way, so far, my internship has been fun and challenging, but, luckily, MAP experience has saved me couple of times. Thank God that I am in Ross : )
1. Internship Subject
I got the internship opportunity in the strategy team in Samsung Electronics' semiconductor memory division. My internship subject is setting a market entry strategy for an upcoming product by studying current IT trends. I want to go deeper, but it is against NDA sorry..
2. Team members
I'm working with two other MBA students. 'J' is from MBA school in China and has been a great intermediate between me and 'P'. And 'P', who has pure engineering backgrounds before joining MBA in U.S, has giving us diverse perspectives. It took me first two weeks to figure out the personalities of my teammates. I found out that we have a perfect chemistry for the project!!
3. First impression on mentor
My first impression on my mentor is very good. Considering conservative Korean culture, he is the person who has very open mind and will to listen other opinions, which are against his opinion. He is also love to talk about classic guitar, body building, and soccer. Finally, he is the one who makes us go home as early as possible. I love it!!
4. Just like MAP
Every internship step reminds me MAP; the letter of the engagement, the way interacting with mentor and other teammates, the research methodology, and, of course, making attractive also persuasive power point slides. I did not realize MAP experience was going to help me to secure my fulltime position. Cross ma fingers!!
See you next blog!
Even though I finished almost the half of the summer internship, I think it is good time to go back when my internship begun. By the way, so far, my internship has been fun and challenging, but, luckily, MAP experience has saved me couple of times. Thank God that I am in Ross : )
1. Internship Subject
I got the internship opportunity in the strategy team in Samsung Electronics' semiconductor memory division. My internship subject is setting a market entry strategy for an upcoming product by studying current IT trends. I want to go deeper, but it is against NDA sorry..
2. Team members
I'm working with two other MBA students. 'J' is from MBA school in China and has been a great intermediate between me and 'P'. And 'P', who has pure engineering backgrounds before joining MBA in U.S, has giving us diverse perspectives. It took me first two weeks to figure out the personalities of my teammates. I found out that we have a perfect chemistry for the project!!
3. First impression on mentor
My first impression on my mentor is very good. Considering conservative Korean culture, he is the person who has very open mind and will to listen other opinions, which are against his opinion. He is also love to talk about classic guitar, body building, and soccer. Finally, he is the one who makes us go home as early as possible. I love it!!
4. Just like MAP
Every internship step reminds me MAP; the letter of the engagement, the way interacting with mentor and other teammates, the research methodology, and, of course, making attractive also persuasive power point slides. I did not realize MAP experience was going to help me to secure my fulltime position. Cross ma fingers!!
See you next blog!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Last Post!
(BBA, Fox Broadcasting)
Hey guys! It's Alyssa Fried. This past Wednesday was my last day at Fox. It was sad because obviously I don't want my internship to end and because two of my bosses were out of work, sick. However, we've been e-mailing and I know that we're going to keep in touch. This is one of the great things I am taking away from my internship at Fox. I have made so many connections in so many different departments in Fox Broadcasting.
I have learned so much at my internship with Fox, more than I ever could have hoped to have learned from a summer internship after my sophomore year. I learned about analysis of numbers, revenue analysis, planning sales, and what goes on before and after deals are made. Having my own projects to do, plus watching the other employees doing their projects helped me gain so much knowledge.
Another great thing that I am taking away from this internship is I am now extremely proficient in Excel. They taught me so many shortcuts, and after working on spreadsheets all day for six weeks, I feel like I know the ins and outs of Excel. I know this is going to be extremely useful for me in the future.
Something else that is going to be useful for me in the future is what they taught me about working with clients. They taught me that every client has their needs and requirements, and it is the company's job to fulfill them. One day I am going to use what they taught me to communicate with my clients and build client relations.
I think I showed my bosses my incredible work ethic and my desire to succeed. I think that I could have been a little less anxious about messing up and making mistakes, but looking back I think it was normal to be nervous in my first 'real' office job.
Now that my internship with Fox is over, I am going to be working for an accounting firm in New York City for three days a week. This accounting firm does the taxes for Broadway shows, so once again I will be working with the entertainment side of finance. I am very excited to see how this compares to my internship at Fox!
I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their internships and their summers!
Hey guys! It's Alyssa Fried. This past Wednesday was my last day at Fox. It was sad because obviously I don't want my internship to end and because two of my bosses were out of work, sick. However, we've been e-mailing and I know that we're going to keep in touch. This is one of the great things I am taking away from my internship at Fox. I have made so many connections in so many different departments in Fox Broadcasting.
I have learned so much at my internship with Fox, more than I ever could have hoped to have learned from a summer internship after my sophomore year. I learned about analysis of numbers, revenue analysis, planning sales, and what goes on before and after deals are made. Having my own projects to do, plus watching the other employees doing their projects helped me gain so much knowledge.
Another great thing that I am taking away from this internship is I am now extremely proficient in Excel. They taught me so many shortcuts, and after working on spreadsheets all day for six weeks, I feel like I know the ins and outs of Excel. I know this is going to be extremely useful for me in the future.
Something else that is going to be useful for me in the future is what they taught me about working with clients. They taught me that every client has their needs and requirements, and it is the company's job to fulfill them. One day I am going to use what they taught me to communicate with my clients and build client relations.
I think I showed my bosses my incredible work ethic and my desire to succeed. I think that I could have been a little less anxious about messing up and making mistakes, but looking back I think it was normal to be nervous in my first 'real' office job.
Now that my internship with Fox is over, I am going to be working for an accounting firm in New York City for three days a week. This accounting firm does the taxes for Broadway shows, so once again I will be working with the entertainment side of finance. I am very excited to see how this compares to my internship at Fox!
I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their internships and their summers!
The Media Industry
It's really an unbelievable time to be working in the media industry. News media has really struggled over the last decade with declining ad revenues and entirely new methods of media consumption. It's been survival of the fittest throughout the industry, as the companies that adapt the fastest win out with emerging trends. In my internship at Thomson Reuters, I feel fortunate to be thrown into the middle of media revolution.
Reuters media, although the most recognized and branded portion of Thomson Reuters' business, actually accounts for a very small portion of the company's overall revenues. However, Reuters media is still a huge brand builder and money-maker for Thomson Reuters. Reuters Media, like the rest of the company, relies mostly on business to business transactions. While there is a Reuters news website that generates significant traffic (although mostly outside the U.S.), Reuters does not compete with media distributors such as the New York Times, Yahoo, CNN, etc., but rather the Associated Press and other content providers. In essence, Reuters creates content through its global, unbiased, journalists stationed worldwide. They then distribute that content, whether it be video, text, pictures, graphics, etc. to the aforementioned consumer focused media companies (NY Times, Wall Street Journal, etc.). While this does allow Reuters to avoid many of the problems plaguing the industry such as declining ad revenue and new platforms, it provides its own set of challenges that I have been working on solving as a Strategy Intern.
Without getting into too much detail, it's an incredibly exciting time to meet these challenges at Reuters. Whether it be adjusting to new ways of consumption (think iPad and beyond), adapting to changing consumer tastes (think twitter, mobile, etc.) or simply just generating more revenue out of existing channels, there is a plethora of change going on in the industry and at Reuters itself.
I look forward to continuing to get my hands dirty and give my best effort to solve some of these issues, anticipate changes, and shape the future of Reuters media.
Alex Weiss (BBA Rising Senior)
Reuters media, although the most recognized and branded portion of Thomson Reuters' business, actually accounts for a very small portion of the company's overall revenues. However, Reuters media is still a huge brand builder and money-maker for Thomson Reuters. Reuters Media, like the rest of the company, relies mostly on business to business transactions. While there is a Reuters news website that generates significant traffic (although mostly outside the U.S.), Reuters does not compete with media distributors such as the New York Times, Yahoo, CNN, etc., but rather the Associated Press and other content providers. In essence, Reuters creates content through its global, unbiased, journalists stationed worldwide. They then distribute that content, whether it be video, text, pictures, graphics, etc. to the aforementioned consumer focused media companies (NY Times, Wall Street Journal, etc.). While this does allow Reuters to avoid many of the problems plaguing the industry such as declining ad revenue and new platforms, it provides its own set of challenges that I have been working on solving as a Strategy Intern.
Without getting into too much detail, it's an incredibly exciting time to meet these challenges at Reuters. Whether it be adjusting to new ways of consumption (think iPad and beyond), adapting to changing consumer tastes (think twitter, mobile, etc.) or simply just generating more revenue out of existing channels, there is a plethora of change going on in the industry and at Reuters itself.
I look forward to continuing to get my hands dirty and give my best effort to solve some of these issues, anticipate changes, and shape the future of Reuters media.
Alex Weiss (BBA Rising Senior)
Sun burnt
As an Israeli who has some roots in Iraq, I rarely – if ever, get sunburnt. Texas, however, has proven to be the Moriarty to my Sherlock Holmes of a skin. Or, if you will, the Darth Vader to my Obi-Wan Kenobi. I could go on. But I won’t.
For the past 4 weekends I have either been tubing, hiking, boating, or swimming. I’m as red as a lobster. I say this not to discuss my dermatological state – but rather to emphasize the social lifestyle that us interns have been living here. Every weekend is full of activity! This weekend for instance, I will probably go to the Texas Roller Derby; last weekend was a 4th of July excursion to Lake Travis, etc. etc.
I must also note that I am at the exact mid point of my internship.
So far what I’ve done is essentially talk to people, get the lay of the land, and scope out the project. We finally have a firm grip on the timeline, what we want to deliver, and how we want to deliver it. A lot of the past week has been spent on taking toll of what I’ve done so far and discussing the project with various parties and stakeholders.
I don’t think I can emphasize enough how long the process takes: Scoping out a project in a culture you are not familiar with and in a business line you never knew takes time. A lot of time is spent just understanding the acronyms. Dell has an overabundance of those. The rest of the time is about managing expectations, and getting the assistance, resources, and support you need to conclude the project successfully. I think the success of an internship project hinges more on the preparation than it does on the execution. We will see if I’m right soon enough.
A lot more of my time now is going towards analyzing data and work rather than learning the ropes. I feel that I have become significantly more productive in what is essentially an environment and culture I have never encountered until a few weeks ago. While the learning curve has been steep, I feel I have finally reached a plateau of productivity. I hope this keeps up.
For the past 4 weekends I have either been tubing, hiking, boating, or swimming. I’m as red as a lobster. I say this not to discuss my dermatological state – but rather to emphasize the social lifestyle that us interns have been living here. Every weekend is full of activity! This weekend for instance, I will probably go to the Texas Roller Derby; last weekend was a 4th of July excursion to Lake Travis, etc. etc.
I must also note that I am at the exact mid point of my internship.
So far what I’ve done is essentially talk to people, get the lay of the land, and scope out the project. We finally have a firm grip on the timeline, what we want to deliver, and how we want to deliver it. A lot of the past week has been spent on taking toll of what I’ve done so far and discussing the project with various parties and stakeholders.
I don’t think I can emphasize enough how long the process takes: Scoping out a project in a culture you are not familiar with and in a business line you never knew takes time. A lot of time is spent just understanding the acronyms. Dell has an overabundance of those. The rest of the time is about managing expectations, and getting the assistance, resources, and support you need to conclude the project successfully. I think the success of an internship project hinges more on the preparation than it does on the execution. We will see if I’m right soon enough.
A lot more of my time now is going towards analyzing data and work rather than learning the ropes. I feel that I have become significantly more productive in what is essentially an environment and culture I have never encountered until a few weeks ago. While the learning curve has been steep, I feel I have finally reached a plateau of productivity. I hope this keeps up.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Traditional industry… more dynamic than it looks
Hello everyone!
How's the summer going? Hope everyone is enjoying these days and making good use of them. In my case I'm more than half way through my summer internship at Cummins. It is time to start wrapping up my projects and put everything in order in order to prevent rushing in the last weeks here.
By now I feel like I've learn a lot about the diesel engine industry… well actually about more things because Cummins not only does diesel engines but also power generators, exhaust solutions, components and other things. But most of them gravitate around diesel engines. It is really interesting to see how all this businesses, although with the same core components, differ one from the rest. For example, the product characteristics requested for one type of power generator used at a hospital could be radically different from one (of the same size) to be used in a power generation plan.
One thing that surprises me the most is the fact that diesel engine-centric products have a lot of way to go in terms of growth. Probably you, as me in the beginning, could think that the oil-feed engines would have their days counted, but actually, that's apparently not true. In the short term there are no hybrids and other "greener products" that actually could cover, at reasonable cost, the space that diesel engines cover in trucks and industrial applications. Additionally, the new environmental regulations and continuous improvement of companies like Cummins are making the old Diesel Engine a way efficient and clean power source, even comparable to some of the most recent alternatives. And don't get me wrong, Cummins is working hard to provide alternative power sources and greener alternatives; actually they are one of the world leaders in emissions control equipment.
Additionally, there are still a lot of opportunities to grow geographically especially in emerging markets like the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) were an ever increasing economy demands more power and equipment. So we should not disregard the potential of companies working into the "traditional" industries. That would be one of my key learning from my internship. I feel that sometimes, as MBAs, we feel that the only way to work in a dynamic environment with high growth potential (personal and professional) would be in the high tech, green or CPG industries. Now, after my internship at Cummins, I think that some "traditional and established" industries could also offer exciting experiences and we need to be open to understand and consider them as a place to develop as professionals.
Learning, scoping, delivering!
MBA, Amazon
At this point, one third of the internship is done and with it comes an urge to see some work done. The first month is probably the most unproductive and hard (at least that’s what I have heard and what I expect), simply because you are flooding with new information. You have to learn the about the company’s culture and how to navigate it, the topic and industry you are working with, and the project objectives itself. Apart from it all you are still supposed to start delivering some results.
From the very beginning I have spent a considerable amount of time just scoping my project: what it will be and what it will not be. I believe this is probably the most important success factor of a good end product. Is by scoping, and discussing the scope with your manager, that you are able to set expectations and plan yourself to achieve a good result.
The first month would be the best phase of the internship if it wasn’t by one detail: you are supposed to start delivering something. Just by talking to other interns and former interns I have the feeling that pretty much everyone has some sort of frustration during this phase. The common sense is that either you don’t know exactly how or what you are supposed to deliver.
I guess that my consulting background helps me at this point. I feel much more confident simply because I have worked at many other 3-month-projects before. I’m also lucky to have a very concrete end product to produce: an excel model. And the success of my work will be easily accessed at the end by checking the website: the model is there or not. At this point I have a mock-up and I can start showing it around. That was my strategy to manage internal and external expectations.
At this point, one third of the internship is done and with it comes an urge to see some work done. The first month is probably the most unproductive and hard (at least that’s what I have heard and what I expect), simply because you are flooding with new information. You have to learn the about the company’s culture and how to navigate it, the topic and industry you are working with, and the project objectives itself. Apart from it all you are still supposed to start delivering some results.
From the very beginning I have spent a considerable amount of time just scoping my project: what it will be and what it will not be. I believe this is probably the most important success factor of a good end product. Is by scoping, and discussing the scope with your manager, that you are able to set expectations and plan yourself to achieve a good result.
The first month would be the best phase of the internship if it wasn’t by one detail: you are supposed to start delivering something. Just by talking to other interns and former interns I have the feeling that pretty much everyone has some sort of frustration during this phase. The common sense is that either you don’t know exactly how or what you are supposed to deliver.
I guess that my consulting background helps me at this point. I feel much more confident simply because I have worked at many other 3-month-projects before. I’m also lucky to have a very concrete end product to produce: an excel model. And the success of my work will be easily accessed at the end by checking the website: the model is there or not. At this point I have a mock-up and I can start showing it around. That was my strategy to manage internal and external expectations.
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