Once the first waves of excitement receded, though its vestiges clearly animated my aspects and coloured my countenance, the hygiene list from a kind senior came into my head and I contacted my mentor first thing next requesting his time the following day. I could hardly have asked for a better mentor and a better co-mentee for my time at ICICI or even otherwise as there we forged a friendship that’ll always make all my moments and time at ICICI fonder in my reminiscence for years to come.
There, I said it guys. You better treat me for such fond words.
From there the journey into IC @ ICICI started. Several times during the induction, the stress on open door policy at ICICI had been highlighted but my sceptic MBA trained mind needed to test waters before taking them on their word. And what a surprise I received the very next day when I walked into one of the DGM’S office to discuss my project with just a knock at the door and a nervous but confident smile on my face and he kindly indulged me straight for three-quarters of an hour, discussing my perspective on IC and guiding me on the expectations from the project. And here came the second important learning for me at ICICI. At no point in time were my more-often-than-not even fanciful ideas ever rejected outright or at all for that matter but discussed each time with patience which allowed me to voice my opinions, concerns and refutations as comfortably as my doubts and questions. Nowhere was I handheld into taking my project in any direction but I was instead asked to scope out my project at will, based on my understanding, and was then given all the support and resources at each stage to head in that direction.
Extended conversations followed, hundreds of ideas popped up and were archived for later use, some of my old faculty was contacted and each was ever so kind as to lend me a hand at each roadblock I faced and finally the presentation days neared. The working hours didn’t change but the amount of work shot up. Going home was no longer about resting but about working a little more. And then on the final day, in front of the SGM of HR and all his one downs in his air conditioned, 9th floor stately office, sitting beside him on his coffee table, IC@ICICI was served with flavors borrowed from various theories of communication, latest trends in Internal Communication and a dash of behavioral economics. I crooned my communication model and solution to the party. And then with bated breath, I looked around for their questions and comments and Srirang (SGM) awarded my eagerness with an appreciation for my presentation.
The worst was over, but so was the best. My stint at ICICI, my summer fling had come to an end or so I thought. But just when we were all saying our goodbyes and somewhat sadly booking our cabs to the airport, a GM called me and a co-intern to his cabin. He held out his hand, wished us luck and just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, he affectionately handed out a hardbound copy of “Humans of Bombay”, one to each of us with an inscription in his name and the following words I’ll always remember, “Our job as HR Managers is not just about managing our ‘resources’ but also about preserving the humanity in the organisation as we develop our ‘resources’ each day.”
And with those words, when I thought everything was over, a new chapter for me began.
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