You have worked for 17 months with Google India Pvt Ltd. Tell us about your experiences during these months. How did MYRA happen to you?
I’ve enjoyed every single day of my work at Google Inc!
During my stint at the Hyderabad campus, I worked under 6 different pod leads, 3 different team leads and 2 Process leads! This augured very well for my inter-disciplinary understanding of the GPS tracking Systems. Interactions with teams from different verticals helped me move to The Spam & Evaluations Team. This was part of the Data Securities division. Working on large sets of data to ascertain user trends and behaviour patterns got me interested in the subjects of customer behaviour and marketing. I wanted to learn more about these subjects and started looking out for Business Schools. I wanted a school that did things differently and would fit in my budget. MYRA seemed to have all my requirements for a B-School covered and I appeared for the admission interviews to enrol myself in the PGDM program.
What do you like the most about MYRA?
I like MYRA’s approach towards imparting education. The Immersion system of course curriculum that MYRA has is a one of a kind model. The structure of packing in an entire subject in two weeks brings us very close to the style of work at business houses in today’s fast paced world. The “one subject at a time” style of doing things also gets us to spare our undivided attention to learn the nitty-gritty’s of every management subject. Today’s world of business understands that there are no right answers to issues. There are only optimal solutions to aberrations. MYRA trains every one of its students to follow the same principle and one’s grades depend on the substantiation of his solution to the given aberration.
You spent your summers interning with Strateology in Chicago. How was the experience interning overseas? What are the main differences in an Indian work life and an American work life according to you?
I was a Marketing Analyst Intern at Strateology Inc. I was working out of their World Headquarters in Chicago, IL. My job involved understanding the product both from Strateology’s perspective and from its client’s perspective. As part of the job requirement, I had to extensively travel across the USA to interact with clients at the client locations, collate information and report back to the head office with suggestions on the product front, on improving existing processes and exploring future potential markets etc.
An overseas internship teaches you a lot about the culture, knowledge transfer, the importance of communication, time management and value systems. The US is largely a “do-it-yourself” country. One is expected to leverage the potential and the availability of technology and be self sufficient in doing things or getting him/herself from point-to-point.
The Americans take mutual responsibility to the job that’s entrusted to them. They don’t usually need supervision or correction to ensure that the deliverable deadlines have been met. They have an immense respect for work life balance and ensure that there is a certain amount of leisure every day after work and during the weekends. This is more of a norm than a lifestyle choice. You wouldn’t find people working long hours or burning the night oil after work.
Did your engineering background help you maintain the fine balance between technology and management at work?
Engineering, according to me is understanding the concept of machines and the art of building them to make the lives of humans easier. Management is the science of dealing with or controlling processes. In a way, Management and Engineering have an uncanny resemblance to each other. The intricate difference being that management deals predominantly with people and processes whereas engineering deals heavily with machines. My technical knowledge allowed me to understand the science of machines and this in turn helped me relate much better to the concepts of team work, motivation, Employee fatigue management, work force management, operations, customer relationship management, marketing, and consumer behaviour at the work place. My ability to think through an issue or a solution has been augmented by the analytical ability learned during my engineering. This combination seems to be extremely crucial in today’s technology world.
Lastly, any message for your junior batch at MYRA?
Have a goal. Build a vision. Discover yourself.
All of you, as brands have your own unique value propositions. Just make sure that you are listening to yourself at the every juncture in life. Management is more of an inherited skill to each and every one of us. We just have to express ourselves and showcase it when the moment comes. As a signing off note, I would urge the junior batch to believe in themselves. The only thing that stops one from achieving greatness is the inability to believe in him/herself. Leverage the Global Exchange programs that MYRA offers. Observe the differences in cultures and understand the similarities. Make the most of the international faculty that comes into MYRA to teach you. Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do something! Keep rocking!
Sai Pratik Vemuri is a second year PGDM student at MYRA School of Business.
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