Page 29 - PPO Diaries

PPO Diaries

❖ What did you do right and what did you do wrong?

• Reaching out to mentors, seniors and NITIE Alums
I contacted NITIE seniors who previously interned or working in GE. It helps to settle in quickly once you
join, if you know from beforehand a little about the organization, the work culture and its expectations
from interns.
I was fortunate to have a manager who was always there to help and guide me, not only for my
internship assignment but also for my overall grooming. I connected with my manager before internship
to know more about the team and expectation from the interns, which really helped.

• Asking a lot of Questions

I asked a lot of questions to various stakeholders involved in the assignment to set clear objectives and
expectations. Also, I went prepared with notes into all the meetings with a clear agenda on my mind.

• Reaching out to people for help

The beauty of working in GE is that nobody expects you to be perfect & mistakes are never heavily
criticized, there is always a helping hand to lift you & push you forward. The best thing during my
internship was the supportive environment that people at GE offered. They were always ready to guide
me and appreciated my opinions and recommendations. People will be open and willing to help you,
but it is important that you respect their time and don’t waste it and always go prepared.

❖ Things I Did Wrong
There were moments during my internship where I would find my work struck or not going in right
direction due to some or other issues. As a result, I felt a bit stress and nervous sometimes, which in
turn further degraded my performance.
But my manager and team member really pushed me hard to perform to the best of my capabilities and
would always be thankful to them for all their support.

❖ What are the things to keep in mind in the internship?
• Try to finalize the scope and deliverables of your project with your manager within the first week.
• Start preparing for mid review and final presentation well in advance. Run it through multiple people
(teammates, mentors and NITIE alums) before finalizing.
• Take on stretch assignments if you get an opportunity but do so only if you feel you can deliver on them
without affecting your main project. Never over promise and then under deliver.
• Provide regular updates to your mentor about the project progress, achievements, challenges and
learning. Keeping him//her in loop regularly really helps.
• Have an opinion: Project managers and leaders appreciate smart, thought-provoking contributions
regardless of whether they come from an experienced resource or an intern so don't be afraid to chip
in and say something if you feel an important point is being overlooked.

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