Summer Internship Series: Anusha, Brandon and Amy

Each week this summer we will check in with a couple RBS students to learn more about their summer internships. For the inaugural post, we will hear from RAMS Co-Presidents Anusha Aneel and Brandon Harris, and RAMS Tech Chair Amy Lum. 

Brandon writes from West Orange, NJ....

"This summer I am working about 10 minutes from Rutgers Business School in West Orange, NJ at Groupe SEB USA, a large French consortium that manufactures and sells assorted housewares items.  My summer internship is a continuation of a Co-op program that I started in January of this year.   I am officially working as a Commercial Marketing Intern, but my responsibilities span both retail and commercial marketing.  

Interning at Groupe SEB gives me the chance to work with great brands in the housewares industry such as T-Fal cookware and small appliances, Rowenta haircare, Krups coffee makers and accessories, and All-Clad premium cookware, amongst others.  Specifically, working on the T-Fal Cookware team has given me the opportunity to oversee various projects including ones focused on new product development, development of go-to-market strategies, channel management, data analytics, and retail sales strategies.  As part of my responsibilities, I interface with many cross-functional employees, including finance, logistics, sales, innovation teams, and manufacturing teams in order to successfully achieve my project’s deliverables.  By working closely with my manager and by having access to senior level management, my learning process has been accelerated and I feel like I am developing as a marketer every day I spend at Groupe SEB.  

Overall, working at Groupe SEB during the Spring semester and continuing that work into the Summer has been a great experience.  Over the next few months, I look forward to contributing even more as a Commercial Marketing Intern and further developing my skills as a marketer."

Anusha is spending her summer in Columbus, OH...

"This summer I am living and working in the heart of downtown Columbus, Ohio at Nationwide Insurance Company. I am a Management Associate intern with the Marketing Leadership Rotation Program. I am simultaneously working on four different projects for the VP of Customer Insights & Analytics, which sounds like FOUR much, but the team I work for has been extremely helpful. Two of my projects are on brand transformation, another one is digital in nature, and the last one is on tableau. So far I have been interacting cross-functionally with several different teams and am hoping to get a pretty well-rounded experience from all these projects. Currently at the end of my third week now and loving it so far!

Nationwide has been kind enough to put me up in an apartment that is a 5 min walk from their headquarters so my commute every morning is painless! It has been great to connect with some old friends from when I used to live here and make new friends in the internship program. I am very excited to be here and hoping you are all having a fantastic summer too!"

Amy checks in from Chicago, IL...

"This summer I am living and working about 40 minutes north of Chicago at AbbVie. My official title is Commercial Analytics & Operations Intern and I'm working for the Marketing Analytics and Business Insights team. For my main project this summer, I am working on the brand Humira and analyzing raw, qualitative research data in order to gain a deep understanding of the patient experience for a specific Rheumatoid Arthritis patient segment. I'm hoping to develop some key strategic insights about this patient segment in order to provide input for future business planning. I'm very happy about my assignment as it allows me to utilize my social sciences background as well as apply concepts I've learned in business school this past year. I'm just finishing up my 2nd week and I really enjoy working with my manager and team. This is my first time working in corporate America and the pharmaceutical industry so I feel like I've learned SO MUCH in just these first couple weeks. 

I'm staying in a hotel about a 5 min drive from the AbbVie campus. It's not the most exciting area so I plan on spending most of my weekends in Chicago. I'm looking forward to catching up with some old friends in the city and trying out all the delicious food and craft beer Chicago has to offer. If anyone passes through the city this summer, let me know!"

Check back next week to hear from more members of the Class of 2016...

STUDENT FEATURE: Avril Hsu, MBA '14

Avril Hsu

Marketing

President, Int'l Student Org

Treasurer, RAMS

Avril is a full-time student, earning her MBA in marketing.  Originally from Taiwan, she has worked in seven countries and speaks four languages. She enjoys salsa dancing, learning guitar, and (surprise) traveling.  When she is not in class, she can be found negotiating portion sizes with the food trucks outside 1 Washington Park. 

Where were you before RBS?

 I was born and raised in Taiwan. After completing my undergrad in industrial design, I worked at a Swiss Consultancy called Process Brand Evolution, AG for five years. (www.process.ch). It’s an independent branding and design consultancy based in Switzerland, Taiwan and China.  I started as a product designer and then was promoted to strategy consultant where I helped clients develop new products, new lines of business, and implement go-to-market strategies. (Check out one of my cool projects that won six international awards. http://www.idsa.org/content/content1/t-tech-led-dimmable-light-bulbnature#! http://www.notcot.com/archives/2012/06/led-gluhbirne-nature-bulb.php)

While working at Process, I had the chance to travel and work in Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Japan, Thailand, and China. Now, I’m here – the United States J

Where do you see yourself in 15 years?

Ahh this question is hard. I can only say that I enjoy living in the moment and exploring new challenges all the time. And these are the things I will still be doing in 15 years.

What do you do for fun?

I love to eat (all kinds of cuisine) and I eat a lot!  One time the food truck saw my tiny body, assumed I was doing some sort of crazy diet, and decided to give me less food. I’m NOT, so please fill the whole box full of food!  I also love salsa dancing, playing pool, and traveling. Currently, I am learning guitar… progressing slowly though.  

What would you do differently if you could repeat your first semester all over again?

Uh... Honestly, I would pay more attention in all classes… It is kinda hard to balance job/internship searching and classes, but you cannot lack one of them in your MBA journey! Now, I can better balance both classes and work, because I know both are equally valuable. J

What is/was your favorite class? Why?

Strategic management is an awesome class, especially if you are interested in consulting!  Definitely take this class. You will be able to pick up lots of frameworks and how to employ those. Breakdown the current problem into buckets, tailor the right method to analyze it, and from there, strategize the solutions for your companies. 

Kurt Salmon Consulting Lunch & Learn

A great discussion around the future of Mobile Payments 

Kurt Salmon is a global management consulting firm of 1,400 consultants across 13 countries and four continents.  Yesterday, RBS students enjoyed lunch and an interactive discussion on the landscape of Mobile, e-Commerce, and Consumer Finance/Banking with two members of Kurt Salmon's leadership and financial consulting teams.   Thank you RAMS for organizing such an informative and fun event.