Internships are usually about understanding the organization, gaining familiarity with the culture and networking with your future employer. The students of Marketing Research program started their 2nd internship of the program, on 26th November 2014. They are interning at the Nielsen office in Mumbai and Gurgaon. In a short span of 5 working days, they students have experienced something that is usually reserved for management trainees and employees with experience: Interacting with clients.
Yes, you read it right. The interns thought they`d be given “low, unimportant” jobs as a part of their profile were pleasantly surprised.
Nielsen has again demonstrated its carefully constructed learning path for students by making students work on LIVE projects. Some of them have already been on conference calls with the clients, while a few also got to interact with the clients. This is unprecedented.
Another aspect of work culture of Nielsen is the open-ness with which work happens. We were quite surprised to know that employees refer to each other on a first name basis. Quite a few of us had difficulty in switching from “sir/madam” to addressing our mentors and colleagues on a first name basis. In the author’s personal opinion, calling your mentor by first name really reduces the barrier of communication and enhances the quality of the communication. The reason is yet unknown, but you should experience it yourself.
Talking about openness, the interns are free to approach anyone within the organization. We are delighted at the fact that our mentors and colleagues are always enthusiastic to listen to our ideas and give us valuable suggestions.
By
Trivikram Chausalkar
PGPMR 2014-15