If Data Is The New Oil, I'd Love To Get My Hands Dirty!

Being in the IT industry for close to 4 years has helped me concrete my aspiration to work in the field where data and technology are crucial to reach the desired outcome and quality. As a software/web developer, the significant part of my work did not involve crunching data, but I kept my interest quotient on. I coincidentally grew my interest in management during those 4 years and started working on my aptitude simultaneously. I failed a couple of times to convert the ivy league b-schools, but I finally succeeded in 2017 and ended up in NITIE (National Institute of Industrial Engineering), Mumbai to pursue an MBA in Industrial Management.

The first year at NITIE was no less than a "roller coaster ride". It groomed me as a person and made me ready to start a new stint in the corporate world. The emphasis on self-learning is at next level at NITIE. The sleepless nights and tremendous support of seniors had prepared us well for the much-awaited summers of 2018. I prepared myself in Supply chain, IT, Consulting and Current Affairs. The knowledge of current affairs comes real handy to ace group discussions of some companies that visit b-schools for Summer Internship. Apart from these obvious technical preparations I have attended all the Pre-Placement talks about all the companies and maintained a black book. This book contained all the basic information about the company, its functionality, goals and kind of talent they are looking for in a candidate. This helped me excessively in interviews which followed after the PPTs.

Having said that for certain the most important skill one needs to master to crack a job interview is the self-confidence. It can take you places and put you in the right spot eventually. I still remember that time when I had my interview with Fidelity Investments. It was raining cats and dogs on the day of my interview when I got the call for the first round. I just wanted to nail this one as this organisation was growing rapidly in the Indian market and also it was coming to recruit for the role where my interest lied.

I entered the room filled with panellists all drenched in rain. They asked me to take a breather and settle down. My heart was racing (perhaps at 150-160 bpm) but I tried to calm down. I remembered the times in past when I dreamt of being a part of such a great b-school and getting placed in a great company like this. I gathered myself quickly and promised myself to give my best come what may. The interview started with generic IT question based on my resume. They asked me about my interest in analytics and what exactly I want to achieve in this field. Then they moved on to basic statistics and case-based questions and finally ended with some non-technical questions. I did well I suppose since I finally got selected for the summer internship at Bangalore.

The date 9th April 2018 will remain etched in my memory for a long time to come. I started an awesome journey at Fidelity Investments, Bangalore. The lush green Embassy Golf Links Business Park was all set to be my work location and my delivery address for online purchases I was going to make in the next two months. The office building and the humans working in it were so welcoming that it didn't take more than few days to gel with the new set up. I was fortunate enough to get introduced to one of the best teams in the organisation – the Operational Analytics Team. It was a team consisting SMEs of Business Analytics & Research division of the organisation.

The project assigned to me involved Data Mining wherein I was supposed to work on data and find insight about important business scenario. I was working for a client who was heading a team of call representatives. The reps were recording thousands of clients calls in the form of phone and Gmail and The task given to me was to mine this Big Data and discover common themes for calls generation. The objective was to reduce the call volume for the team and help improve their performance.  I was also required to determine an action plan to make the operation more efficient and optimized. I have leveraged Python language and relevant libraries like Natural Language Toolkit and TF-IDF etc. Apart from the technical knowledge, the understanding of business context and communication with client were also crucial. I was little confused about the Functionalities of a Business Analyst at first, so I sought help of my manager. He called me up and cleared my doubts. "Business Analyst is not a one person. It is a combination of someone who is technically sound and knows the business inside out", he explained. I was happy and eager to deep dive into the business problem. As it turned out I successfully completed the project with client appreciating the kind of work I have done in such short span of time. Based on my research I have enabled client to reduce 70% of the calls which required at least 4 FTEs (Full Time Employees) to handle in a year. The stint was indeed successful, and all the stakeholders were satisfied the end with my performance.

During my junior year at NITIE, I was introduced to the case competitions. I took part in many of the big case study challenges and learned many aspects of the business. The learning of solving the business problem, analysis and visualization of the solution came real handy for my summer internship. If I look back I would certainly acknowledge that the first year at NITIE was the sole reason that I could survive in this highly competitive phase of MBA. I owe a debt of gratitude to my alma mater and various committees which shaped me to do well in summers.

Finally, I will point out some key takeaways from my summer internship for the future interns.

1) Research about your employer thoroughly. Your willingness to walk the extra mile will help you impress your manager; reduce the time spent on basics and progress quickly to the real problem.

2) Get clarity on your business problem and the desired outcome.

3) Develop a habit to give a daily progress / status update by the day's end. Keep the stakeholders in the loop.

4) Network with people. Build a good rapport with your team and seek help whenever needed.

5) Take part in the outside work activities initiated by the firm. It showcases your interests and all-around capabilities.

I will wrap it up by thanking Fidelity, my manager and team for giving me ample opportunity to learn and grow in the coolest environment one could ever ask for. I will for sure miss those two months I have spent in Bangalore and hope to relive those days at some point in future.