What attracted you to the company/position?
"GEP is a global leader in end-to-end procurement & supply chain solutions across industries. GEP is a diverse (women and minority-owned) organization heavily focused on the growth of women leaders in the supply chain. The leadership's vision is to make a beautiful company that cares for its people, culture and customer can be witnessed in everyday operations. I joined as an associate consultant and from the get-go had the opportunity to work directly with clients, demonstrate ownership and share my ideas with the internal senior leadership."
Tell us about your overall experience working there?
"From onboarding to the exit, the entire process was really well planned & executed by a team of associates with guidance from managers which in itself demonstrates the company's trust in the ability of team members regardless of their titles. For the summer internship, 30 interns were onboarded, and every intern had a mentor and a full-time buddy helping us navigate the day-to-day. Each intern was assigned a core consulting project and an additional internal resource-building project to get familiarized with cross-functional teams. My ideas were welcomed and appreciated with proper feedback for improvements. Regular office meetups with the team, dinners with senior leadership, and mini golf with the CEO and co-founders where a reflection of the core values practiced every day."
What does your typical day look like as an intern?
"How a typical day looked was largely dependent on the project you are a part of. During my first project, I was able to divide my time between learning activities by 30%, 50% project(including client meetings and internal meetings), and 20% internal networking to explore resources. However, as i moved into the 9th week of my internship, I spent 60% of my time on core project deliverables and 30% on internal resource-building projects, and 10% on internal networking."
What did you learn from this role?
"The biggest learning from this role for me was that capitalizing on the network you build can get you great opportunities. I worked with my peers' other interns and learned about the scope of their project (of course the client's details were confidential, but the scope discussion was not), interacted with senior leaders, and observed three different leadership styles within a scope of three months which starts shaping you an individual to decide what kind of leader you would like to be. In addition to this, I learned that concepts learned in class cannot be applied as is in the industry as there are several data-related challenges that you need to overcome before you can apply the formulas you are taught in class. So, in conclusion, I would say, it was a great experience!"
What is a piece of advice that you can share with students who are seeking an internship?
"My only advice is first to figure out what interests you, and what ignites that passion in you while you are looking for a role. If you do not know that today interact with people close to you and try to get some feedback on what they have observed as your strengths or weakness. Understanding what you are good at and if it aligns with your desired career path is half the battle, and the remaining half comes with experience. Solving problems for others excites me and over time I have become a patient listener. A combination of these two combined with my academic qualifications makes me a good candidate for solution roles/consulting roles and that is what I plan to do."
