IFMR GSB MBA-Internship Stories | Umesh Pareek

IFMR GSB MBA-Internship Stories are a series of interviews with the students of IFMR GSB, who have recently completed their Summer Internships. Here, Umesh Pareek, MBA 2021 shares his internship experience and learnings at Deloitte USI – Technology Consultant.

Could you tell us about the organization you have completed/are doing your internship from?

“Deloitte” is the brand under which tens of thousands of dedicated professionals in independent firms throughout the world collaborate to provide audit & assurance, consulting, risk and financial advisory, risk management, tax, and related services to select clients.

Did you focus on a specific domain while participating in summer placements? How did you approach the whole process? 

I was always inclined towards operations as a domain and was looking for an internship opportunity in the same. I got a chance to work in one of the most important parts of the operations domain which is supply chain management during my internship at Deloitte USI. For summer placements, I worked hard on developing problem-solving capabilities by referring and analysing case studies from different online sources.

Now that the internship has successfully concluded, could you reflect on your experience through the same?

The internship was one of the most enriching experiences of my professional career so far. With the ongoing COVID pandemic, initially it was really difficult to get started with the project due to the virtual nature. The support from Deloitte and especially the mentor and coach who guided me throughout the project, changed it all for me. They played a very helpful and important role in helping me successfully complete the internship.

How was the environment of the company, the resources, employees and work culture?

Deloitte was very welcoming in terms of learning exposure, as we were introduced to various subject matter experts for our projects. Several sessions on leadership connect helped us know the organisation’s vision of making a larger impact towards society.

What were the key challenges you faced during your internship and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge would have been the communication barrier between mentor and the intern due to the virtual nature of the internship. I was fortunate enough to have a supporting mentor and coach who ensured that we had at least one connect session in the day to ensure regular communication for tracking progress of projects and solving any queries.

How about the learnings you garnered from this internship? Are there any milestones you would like to share?

The internship was helpful in enhancing my problem-solving capabilities as we were exposed to different scenarios within the project.

Do you think it’s important for an MBA student to do an internship? What values/skills can a student gain from a summer placement?

It is very important for an MBA student to do an internship program as it helps to understand how a specific job profile works and what skill sets need to be improved, in order to excel in that particular profile in the future.

During your internship, how were you connected with your academic mentor(s) at the institute?

I was fortunate to have Prof Jayaram as my academic mentor, we regularly connected every week during my internship tenure. It was really helpful to get his academic point of view which enhanced the value of the project.

Would you prefer to return to the organization for a job opportunity in the future?

I would definitely want to return to the organisation on completion of my MBA programme as the organisation has a learning and growth environment, which is what I am seeking for my future goal.

With due consideration to COVID-19, all internships were moved to the virtual mode- how was that navigating through this new experience?

With Deloitte already providing a conducive work from home facility to their employees, we were at ease in switching the internship to virtual mode. Though the overall internship experience may have been very slightly affected, the smooth communication more than made up for it.

Could you tell us how the remote working experience was, with respect to building team rapport, internal communication and work as a whole?

The virtual working experience was overall good. We were given a short training of Do’s and Don’ts of virtual internship, with etiquettes like sharing minutes of the meeting after every connect with the mentor to reduce any communication gap.

Could you share a memorable incident from your internship days?

The most memorable experience for me was getting the final feedback from my mentor and coach which was positive, and was a satisfying conclusion to months of hard work.