Wk 9: See you next time, Bhutan!

It’s crunch time! I have only three weeks left in my internship here in Bhutan. I’m working non-stop to finish all my deliverables. I have three major deliverables (cost analysis for four benchmarked companies in different industries, standard cost of transportation of sand, and standard price for three natural resources products). I am 90% done with my cost analysis and about to start with creating my presentation material and report document. I met with my Director last week who, I am happy to say, liked the direction and content of my Rev1 output. This week, I plan to finish my two other deliverables. Yes, I am a bit worried about the time constraint that I have but I will not let this fact stress me. I will focus, will eat a lot (ha!), will listen to classical music (Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 in A major Op. 92 and Mozart's Sonata in D major for two pianos on repeat), and will keep on working.

I studied hundreds of companies in different countries to find the best peer set for the four Bhutan companies. My benchmarking activity is very challenging, exhausting, but definitely a value-adding endeavor for my skill-building. My internship has taught me that, in these uncertain economic times, many companies are indeed diversifying their businesses to lessen the risk of profit losses. I found a company that not only offers extraction and trade of timber but also sells audio and visual electronics system and products. Another one is an airline company which also operates a call center for other companies. It will be interesting to explore after my internship the financial considerations of, strategies in, and limits of diversification.

I will not get a full-time job offer at Druk Holdings & Investments (DHI) because I am here on a semi-volunteer and fellowship work only. But, I still want to leave a very good impression about the quality of education and training at the Ross School of Business. Few Bhutanese know that the University of Michigan is one of the best schools in the US. It is time to introduce our great school to them. Go Blue!

This is my last blog entry here. I hope all the stakeholders at DHI and its four companies would like my final project output. I had a great time exploring a different culture and seeing the amazing sights in Bhutan. I will definitely go back here. See you around University of Michigan this fall! J

Wk 7: Almost done

I have just started the second half of my internship. I am in the thick of my cost benchmarking activities. This second phase of my project is very difficult because most of the comparable peers of the Bhutan companies are unlisted and therefore, do not disclose annual reports. This makes my job difficult in getting enough and relevant data to compare the cost of local companies with that of international companies.

Oh, and guess what? I have two new project deliverables! The CEO of a company I am studying informed me a couple of days ago. I am happy to have had a long conversation with a CEO to discuss business. It was interesting to hear his thoughts on the local market, business constraints, and potential growth opportunities. I am excited to hear that my new cost project deliverable would greatly help improve their operations. I am going to a forest this Saturday to observe the operations of the Natural Resources Development Corporation. I have five more weeks to finish all my projects.

On another note, I have been wearing Michigan gear almost every day hoping to meet a fellow Wolverine here. But, so far I have no luck in finding one.

What I did encounter is this:

Bhutanese: Where are you studying?

Jofresh: At Michigan

Bhutanese: Oh, Michigan State

Jofresh: (gasp!) No! At University of Michigan

Bhutanese: Ah…

Hmm… the locals seem to know Michigan State more than U of M…

Last week, the other interns went to a city 8 hours away from Thimphu to see a festival. I did not join them because I had work. Nevertheless, I went on another trip to a nearby city to see a different festival. We went to the Haa district. Below are some pictures of the colorful festival.

Waiting for the event to start

Opening ceremonies

Traditional song and dance

Stalls

Delicious buckwheat momos (dumplings filled with vegetables and cheese)

Social games are changing the industry

Halfway into my internship at Ubisoft. It keeps getting better. After working on various projects in digital casual games, my supervisor put me on the GRO team.
GRO stands for Ghost Recon Online. Ghost Recon is a award winning, 10 years old franchise, based on best selling author Tom Clancy novels. The background story revolves around a fictional secret military unit (the Ghosts), which serves as the last resort of the U.S. Army when stuff gets really bad. The games have generally been first or third person shooters , with a strong emphasis on cooperation and team strategy. Ghost Recon online will be a free to play game. Players will download it on their computers and play online for free. Thanks to Ross , a lot of us ended up working with great stuff such as bleach, food, drugs.. or Ghost Recon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-6P5rE9L4o

As the title of this post mention, Social games are changing the videogame industry. and this is good news for any MBA who wants to be in this field. The industry has been recession proof since the nineties, and thanks to Facebook, broadband and the Nintendo Wii, a new , huge market was born. Social and Casual games are all the games that.. people who dont play videogames play. Farmville, Cityville, Bejeweled, but even Guitar Hero, Angry Birds are played by women in careers, bored fathers, grandparents. The market is so much wider and there is so much money to be made. Companies like Zynga receive skyhigh valuations , while giants like EA purchase smaller companies (Playfish, Popcap maybe) for impressive prices. Social gaming is about number, how many people play, how many people pay. It is not as artistic as gaming , and require a lot of analysis, promotion, marketing strategy and pricing. Several MBAs are getting into those new companies, using their business skills to improve the games and to find out what happens behind the scene. While I cant say I love casual and social games now, I am very intrigued in seeing what will happen and how this industry will evolve. It feels like the videogame industry is going to change impressively (probably in less than 10 years we will have no consoles anymore), and the industry leaders are acting as pioneers. I cant wait to see what will happen in five or six years, and how the whole system will evolve. And hopefully, I would like to be a part of this.
Speak soon.
Nicola,

Wk 5: Work + Fun at the Tiger's Nest

Wow, time really flies when you are having fun. I cannot believe that I am one-third done with my internship. I look forward to seeing my classmates again at school but I am also sad that my interesting, fun, and skill-building experience in Bhutan is almost over.

As always, I was busy with work these past two weeks. I continued my internal scan of the four Bhutan companies by studying cost trends, performing the tried and tested ratio analysis, and interviewing finance managers and CFOs. I am happy that the Bhutan companies have an open door policy. The top executives are all very accessible and helpful. They also do not sugarcoat financial results. It makes my job easier to know that I have the complete and accurate picture of their cost performance and activities.

Of course, I did not forget to have fun while working. An American lawyer, currently working at DHI, took me, my co-interns, and a visiting Berkeley MBA student, who did a project for DHI, to the most majestic place in Bhutan, the Tiger’s Nest. Taktsang Monastery, more popularly called the Tiger's Nest, is situated on a nearly vertical cliff at 3,000m altitude north of Paro in Bhutan. It is a prominent Himalayan Buddhist sacred site. Learn more about the Tiger’s Nest here.

I consider successfully hiking up to the Tiger’s Nest one of my best accomplishments to date. The climb up and down the steep mountain took four hours. It was raining that day so it was a very very slippery and difficult climb. I almost slipped a number of times and nearly fell face-down in the mud! Thankfully, I stuck my umbrella in the mud just in time to break my fall. Whew… The altitude also hampered my breathing and I was pitifully panting and taking deep breaths from my mouth. There were also numerous times when my legs refused to move another step but I stubbornly refused to give up. So, I pep-talked myself until my head convinced my legs to continue the hike. J I am happy that I persevered because I saw one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen in my life. The Tiger’s Nest, perched on top of a mountain and partially covered by clouds, is breathtaking! I will definitely not forget this climbing experience.

This is the mountain we climbed. Do you see the white monastery near the top?

No?

Well, here is a closer look at our destination. It is partially covered by clouds (yes, so high up)!

Starting the hike

Slippery trail

View from the top

A mini waterfall and many prayer flags

Almost there…

Finally, the Tiger’s Nest!

Wk 3: Hiking around Bhutan

The past two weeks have been a blur. I interviewed CFOs, researched comparative data, summarized project findings, and created preliminary cost profiles. The government-owned for-profit companies are so interesting that I could not help but ask numerous questions about the organization and business drivers. My project deals with finding opportunities for cash savings. The saved capital will allow the companies to carry out more investments and business expansion. I am excited and humbled with the chance to contribute to Bhutan’s development. As you might know, Bhutan is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. I am still waiting for more internal and external data to complete my analysis. I have nine more weeks to recommend remarkable cost strategies to Druk Holdings & Investments (DHI).

I am extremely proud to represent the University of Michigan and the Stephen M. Ross School of Business in Bhutan. Many top universities also send interns here. There are two other interns at DHI, a Stanford Law student and a Columbia Masters in Sustainable Development student. The three of us are sharing the large and homey office attic. J Besides my co-DHI interns, there are two Harvard Public Policy students in another government agency, the Gross National Happiness Commission. Three Berkeley MBA students also did a class project for DHI a couple of months ago. Yale also regularly sends graduate students to undertake diverse projects for the government. I am happy that the William Davidson Institute (WDI) at U-M was able to arrange my internship here so Michigan is also represented. Go Blue!

The arrival of my co-DHI interns signaled the start of my exploration of Bhutan. Last week, I hiked around Thimphu for seven hours! We climbed a mountain to visit the Motithang Takin Preserve. Takin is a goat-antelope and is the national animal of Bhutan.

We also visited the Thimphu Dzong (The Trashichodzong), which is the seat of the government and the headquarters of the clergy in the capital city. Beside the Dzong is the King’s Royal Residence. Unfortunately, pictures are not allowed to be taken of the place. I shot this picture while walking down a mountain. The Dzong is on the left while the Royal Residence is on the middle-right, covered by trees.

We also went to the world’s tallest Buddha, standing tall at 169ft. The site is still under construction.

And, we saw an archery competition in Paro, another town. Yes, they need to wear ghos, traditional Bhutanese dresses, when competing.

This weekend, we are trekking to the Tiger’s Nest, Bhutan’s most spectacular sacred site, and going to Punakha, the old capital of Bhutan. I heard the climb up the Tiger’s Nest is rigorous. I hope my lethargic body can handle the exercise. J

Hi

This week I ended my third week of my internship which means that I already finished 25% of it, time flies by… I also just moved to downtown Chicago after seeing what the suburbs have to offer (which is not much…).

I know it is about time I will share more about what I am really being paid for during my internship, however in this post I would like to share with you what I am doing in the weekends and I will explain why. My wife is staying in Ann Arbor because she works as a Research Specialist at the Physiology Department which is part of the Medical School, Therefore until now every weekend I found myself driving eastward towards our beloved Ann Arbor. This is the reason I would like to share with you the amazing experience of Ann Arbor in the summer. Many people might come with their partner to Ann Arbor and the partner might find himself or herself during the summer in Ann Arbor, thinking there is nothing to do in a college town during the summer vacation. Well, they can’t be more wrong- Ann Arbor is amazing during the summer! Unfortunately people don’t know how many things are there to do here. Last week there was Taste of Ann Arbor where Main Street was closed down to traffic and all the restaurants from down town opened booths and sold small plates that represented their menu. All the samples where very cheap and where paid for with coupons the people bought. After spending coupons that cost us $15, we couldn’t eat any more. Another event was the Peony Festival at the Nicholas Arboretum that attracted nature lovers who wanted to see the rare one week bloom of those amazing flowers. During the summer nights there are also public screen of movies at the diag and in general there is a great student atmosphere thanks to many students who are doing summer semester and can be seen in their front yards playing beer pong inside big inflatable pools. As much as Ann Arbor has a feeling of an easy going place, the summer enhance this feeling much more and I am enjoying every weekend I am here.

Therefore if anyone is scared from the fact that he or his partner will have to do the summer in Ann Arbor, he should not have any worries, rather he should open the calendar and start planning an amazing summer time.

Yoav.

Wk 1: Hello from the Land of the Thunder Dragon!

I arrived in Bhutan on May 28 without my luggage. Thanks to Singapore Airlines (not!), my luggage was left behind in Singapore. Regardless of this hassle, my excitement went through the roof as soon as I stepped off the Druk Air plane at Paro International Airport. The sight that greeted me was breathtaking! Bhutan’s international airport is situated beside majestic mountains. The scenery on the way from Paro to Thimphu, the capital and where I will be staying, was also remarkable. I saw monasteries, lakes, valleys, and numerous mountains covered with green foliage. I am very happy to see the last great Himalayan kingdom!

The people here are very friendly and helpful. An officemate helped in retrieving back my luggage while another showed me the local market and the best restaurants. Because of her, I was able to buy my elixir, Diet Coke (hahaha…). And, another peer volunteered to give me daily rides to and from work. I am thankful for my new friends.

My internship started on May 30. As I mentioned in my first blog post, I will be conducting a cost analysis project for Druk Holdings & Investments. My first week at work was very productive. I learned more about the four government-owned for-profit companies in my project portfolio. I am eager to gain knowledge on the costs involved in four new industries: natural resources, financial services, telecommunications, and airlines. This project will truly enhance my problem-solving capability and broaden my business knowledge.

This week, I read the Annual Reports for the past five years of the DHI’s companies. Next week, I plan to conduct interviews with DHI’s executives so I would grasp a better understanding of the companies’ cost drivers and problems. I have also been in contact with a Kresge librarian provided by the William Davidson Institute (WDI) for my fellowship project. The librarian will help me in researching competitive and comparative data for the four DHI-owned companies.

I will update you again next week. I am now off to play basketball with some Bhutanese friends. J

P.S. Oh, I saw the King! Fine… I only saw his car but he was inside it when the car passed me! LOL! J

First and last days of vacation

Hi

My name is Yoav, right now I am in the transsion from being a first year MBA to become a second year MBA at Ross. Meanwhile in two weeks from now I will be a Senior Leadership Program Intern at Sears Holdings Corpporation, or as I will refer to it from now- SLP at SHC.

I am very excited about the internship, which is a general managment rotetional program at the headquaters of SHC that are located in the suburbs of Chicago. I find this program to be a good fit with someone like me who haven't decided what he wants to do in his life. In the program I'll be able to rotate among different Bussines Units of SHC (there are approximatly 34) and the different functions which may be anything - from Business Development to Finance, from Marketing to Operations. I hope that by the end of the summer I'll be able to better focus myself towards the future. Of course that if I land a job offer that I would like to recieve,I will mainly focus during my second MBA year on the night life that a great student town like Ann Arbor has to offer...

Wish me luck,

Yoav.

Summer Internship in New York

Hi All,

My name is Matteo Dominianni, I am an MBA student at the Ross School of Business and I just finished my first year. I am going to Citigroup Global Markets Inc. this summer, I will be joining their M&A group as part of their Investment Banking Summer Associate Program.

My background is Corporate Finance. After graduating in Telecommunications Engineering, I worked for two major telecoms operator, both in Italy and The Netherlands, first in M&A and then in Financial Planning, Reporting and Analysis. I am very excited about my summer internship as in my previous work experience I saw an M&A transaction from the corporate side, and now I will see it from the banking side. I will leverage all the skills learned in my previous financial jobs combined with the ones learned at Ross in order to bring valuable contributions to the team.

Now that all the first year exams are done and MAP is over, my only concern is finding a place in New York City that is close to the office. All the people I talked to told me it's extremely important to find a place to stay that makes commuting easy. I know it's hard to find a nice place to stay, but all my Ross classmates are very helpful and I am sure I will find something nice soon.

Talk soon,

Matteo

Excited for summer!

Hello blog readers! I am Jofresh, a Filipina MBA student. Prior to attending business school, I worked in the finance department of Intel Corporation’s Philippines and Malaysia offices for almost six years. My concentration at Ross is still finance but I am also learning more about strategic consulting.

My first year at Ross has just ended. It has been an amazing year filled with meeting new friends, watching football games (Go Blue!), working on school projects, and (of course) recruiting. I am very excited for my summer internship. I am fortunate to have received a William Davidson Institute (WDI) Global Impact Internship/Fellowship. The WDI is a non-profit research and educational institute at the University of Michigan dedicated to understanding and promoting actionable business and public policies in emerging markets. I want to learn more about International Business and WDI gave me the opportunity to do just that.

I will be working this summer in BHUTAN! J

I will be working for Druk Holding & Investments (DHI), a government agency established through a Royal Charter issued by His Majesty the King of Bhutan. DHI holds and manages the commercial companies of the government, makes new investments, raises funds, and promotes private sector development in Bhutan. I will be analyzing and benchmarking costs then, ultimately, recommending cost strategies to the government-owned commercial companies.

I am very excited to see the beautiful country and learn more Bhutan’s culture. I heard from last year’s WDI fellow that people in Bhutan are very friendly and that the sights are amazing. I am also excited to work on a project that merges finance with consulting. I am thankful for the opportunity to enhance my skills. My internship starts on May 30. Wish me luck! If you have questions about Ross, just leave a comment and I would glad to help.

E-Retail: is it Tech or Retail?

(MBA, Amazon)
Frugality: that is one of the core values at Amazon and door desks are an enduring reminder of that. Although you can see it across the company I think this is only a mean to a greater core value: customer obsession. Amazon is constantly seeking to satisfy its customers because it truly believes that happy customer equals more revenue in the future.
Amazon’s culture has been the most surprising part of the internship thus far. I’m positively impressed by seeing Jeff’s statement on maximizing long term FCF percolating through daily decisions. It is interesting to seeing a company maintaining that even after becoming a multi-billion-dollar organization. Some examples are: expansion to new regions where profits might not anytime soon, and discussions around making changes to the company’s current capabilities to accommodate a potential important customer at AWS.
Amazon is constantly classified as a Tech company that happens to be a retail company. I would argue it is a retail company that happens to sell products over the internet. I say that based on some aspects of its culture that I have seem, and I am totally biased by the fact that I am working at the more high-tech portion of the company (Amazon Web Services). Let’s go to the facts: Amazon is a low margin company (retail like), from this fact comes frugality; the company’s goal is to have the largest world’s selection (retail like), a high-tech company would probably have a goal related to its products; Jeff Bezos in its famous 1997 letter to the shareholders clearly states that the company is working to maximize future FCF (retail?, Tech?), although future FCF is definitely the ultimate component on any company’s valuation, I have never seen a high-tech firm completely ignoring quarterly results in favor of a greater good.
I believe it is important for Amazon’s success that it is a retail company. What is not (retail like) is probably the fast growth and innovation at Amazon. And this definitely distinguishes Amazon as a unique culture.

Dell: Final Post

It’s the home stretch. I can’t believe how quickly time flew by. 10 weeks just went “whoosh”, and I am finally ready to present my findings.

Well, almost. Every day involves meeting several people, presenting the findings to them, massaging the deck a little bit more. But it’s about ready. I will be presenting it at a director-level meeting either this Friday or the one after that. It’s all fairly fluid here at Dell.

My project involved a long period in which I essentially collected data that was previously unavailable; and then after I collected it I started to analyze it and construct my recommendations. Unfortunately, the data got to me only a week ago, and at first one of the only time slots they found for an executive presentation was a week from them. You can imagine that some sort of a panic set in; 12 hour workdays became the norm and I scurried to get everything ready in time. Fortunately, another timeslot was located a couple of weeks from then – but the scurrying had paid off , and most of the recommendations and presentation are ready for the original date (which was supposed to be tomorrow).

Who says that procrastination is bad, eh?

In news on the social front – it’s sad to see everyone I’ve become friendly with leave. The first wave of Dell interns is leaving at the end of this week and I’m sorry to see them go. Yesterday a whole bunch of us went on a boat again. Same boat as 4th of July. Same fun people. Same fun activities.

In two weeks, I will be back in Ann Arbor. To be honest, I had a blast in Austin – but I will be happy to leave and get back to my own apartment; back into life in Ann Arbor with my MBA friends and a lifestyle I had grown accustomed to and fond of. Farewell Austin, you’re an awesome city. I hope to be back soon!

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.

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 15^th floor with a beautiful sunny view of the sea where several sailboats gently heels. I have to admit that Seattle is treating me well.

During the first half of my internship I had the chance to really enjoy Seattle and the surroundings. I went sailing, diving, hiking, kayaking and running. I went visiting Vancouver and I’m going to visit LA. But more important than it all, I accomplished one of my goals for the summer: expand my network and make new friends.

Seattle is probably not the city with the biggest MBA intern class (approximately 150), but is definitely unique in its setup. Pretty much all the MBA interns, mostly Amazon and Microsoft, live at the same apartment building complex. It happens because both companies subsidize the leasing. This uniqueness creates an atmosphere of cohesion and openness hard to find outside campi. Interns from 30 business schools interact with each other in several events organized by the companies and by us.

Only 6 weeks have gone by so far and I still have 6 weeks more to come. If it is true that after almost one year at Ross I keep meeting new people there, I can assume that my networking expansion here at Seattle is far from having fulfilled its potential. During the next 6 weeks I anticipate the life becoming a little bit more stressful with the approaching of final presentation. I also am aware that I was part of one of the last groups to begin their internship, therefore the group will get smaller every week from now on. I am confident that the foundations for an enjoyable 2^nd half have been laid down.

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.

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.

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.

Fun times in Kansas!

In my last two posts I mainly described all the hard work I've been through to understand the business and ensure my projects add value to the company. Having been with Hill's Pet Nutrition for 5 weeks now, the only thing that haven't changed is the amount of work. What have changed though is the amount of fun!

When I first started I didn't know too many people in the state of Kansas (actually I knew only one from work) so fun wasn't part of my everyday life. It got even worse when I had to deal with flooded roads and storms (picture was taken at 3pm). If you add to that tornado warnings every other day, there you have a whole bad situation in terms of lifestyle.

However, things started to turn around as the HR department had organized some activities for all the interns. Since we are only two MBA interns, it was great to get a chance and meet others from packaging, engineering, procurement etc. After a picnic at Lake Shawnee, which was extremely fun, we all started to hang out and arrange different kind of activities with the best of it being the get-together in my apartment to watch USA against Ghana for the World Cup. If only USA had won our afternoon would have been even better but you can't have it all! To fight the pain from the devastating loss my American counterparts suggested we go for a beer which took me some time to drink. Look at the glass size in the picture...

Overall, the World Cup has dominated, not only discussions but also our time. Being part of a truly global company gave me the opportunity to watch the Greece-Nigeria game with a couple of Nigerians that work for Hill's. Also, based on my initiative, there are several brackets flowing around but so far mine is the most accurate. I guess soccer is not an American sport yet. Good times... Hopefully it will be even better during the second half of my stay...

Summery Philly Sips

OK, I have to admit it… I really like Philadelphia! And I am very pleased with the location of both my place and my office in Center City. I know it might not the same for everyone, but for me, having an internship in a city is a big plus! When thinking about my personal experience in managing social life as an intern, it is something that surely makes a difference.

The first one in a bunch of events that I have enjoyed, just walking distance from my current area, was the Ross Alumni Reunion. It was refreshing to get together with fellow Rossers and talk about our summer experience so far. It was also good to receive advice from recent (and not so recent) graduates in Philly as well. Afterwards, I discovered that a group of people from my office organized outings every other week to a happy hour, taking advantage of http://centercityphila.org/life/SipsPartic.php. I joined, sharing the mission of the gathering, since I’m also into socializing and strengthening ties with co-workers in different functions and divisions of the company.

And there is also the World Cup! I was very surprised to see that some of the matches were watched in the office or in nearby sport bars and pubs. I didn’t expect to find such a strong enthusiasm with soccer, and yet I found a huge T.V. on a completely blocked street. The fans were outside, watching the game and making noise. It felt a little bit like home. Continuing with the sporting events but not in my neighborhood, I went to see a baseball game. The Phillies made a nice and eventful game that night, with just the perfect summer weather!

The city has great food offering and I’ve been able to go to nice restaurants. I have also gone to the Historic places and the Old City, which was very interesting. I used the Memorial Day long weekend to visit a friend in Boston and I hope to be in NYC for the Independence weekend. And yes, I know that it all happened here, but I miss some of the people I’ll be seeing in New York! I have yet to go to some of the museums Philly has to offer… I’m looking forward to it!!

Working for the "other"

Summer internship has started and I see myself working for the other: other country, other industry, other coast, and other business.

My internship experience starts 2.400 mi from Seattle. I decided to take the opportunity to get to know US a little bit better and I chose to drive from Ann Arbor to Seattle.

RoadTrip Stats:

Duration: 6 days;

Distance: 2650 mi;

Consumption: 125 gal of gas;

States visited: 9;

Pictures taken: 7940

View Larger Map

Yes, this country is really huge and driving all the way to Seattle prepared me to the changes to come. I've seen beautiful landscapes changing from the absence of hills in Michigan to the absence of pretty much everything Wyoming; from the cosmopolitan Chicago to the far-west little cities on the way to Yellowstone national park; from 85F at Ann Arbor to a snow storm 10000ft above see level at the top of Wyoming Creek; and obviously... people were changing too. But that was just the beginning.

Working in US is considerably different than working in South America. Americans tend to be much more focused on their work than I was used to. In Brazil it is not uncommon to have little “social breaks” during the workday. I would not say it is a complete waist of time. It is during those breaks, with the excuse to have a coffee that a lot of social interaction happens and you end up getting to know your coworker better. Ultimately, a lot is accomplished because the social networks formed this way are a very powerful shortcut to the natural processes. It is also not natural for me to see most of the people having lunch at their desks. I guess that Latinos tend to value the lunchtime much more. The counterpart is that one is actually able to manage the work-life balance much better.

Coming back to the industry after 2 years working as a consultant has been very interesting. I am adapting myself to once more navigate within an organization. The biggest challenge here is to work bottom-up rather than top-down. As a consultant you can move much quicker past the obstacles just because you have the sponsorship of a VP or a CXO. On the other hand, as an MBA intern you are typically on the bottom of the pyramid and you have to exercise negotiation and influence skills much more. Probably, the most noticeable difference between consulting and Amazon is that the first targets the short term profit and the later long term free cash flow.

Finally, I’m working on the “other” business: at least according to the Amazon’s annual financial report. I’m working for a group within Amazon that probably shares only the name and the culture. AWS is a cloud-computing provider and as such has a completely different business model than the e-retail. It grows even faster than Amazon and is a very dynamic environment. The “not so good” side of it is that I’m really far from Amazon’s core business.