HR!! The word itself seems to be appealing… Isn’t it?? Might be for some, might not be for others. But for me it is! It is something that meets my interest, something that is everything for me, something that I have dreamt of myself to be.
During the first year at Narayana Business School, Ahmedabad, I still remember myself as a shy and less confident lass sitting silently in the classroom amidst confident people around me. Giving presentations was something that almost killed me because it required immense confidence to face a hundreds of people who were ready to pounce back! With passage of time, more openness and interaction with my professors and classmates, I gained more confidence with each passing day to transform into a confident and less fearing person. We always used to hear from our seniors over and again about their internship stories and how it made a big difference in their lives. My question to them was, “Does it actually make a difference??” to which the answer was a big YES. I had to just wait and watch for my turn to come.
Time passed by and interviews for the internships were near. Preparations for the same were in full bloom. There were mock interviews, group discussions (GD’s), aptitude tests and suggestions by our professors. After all the preparations, finally the day came where we had 20 companies coming to our campus out of which some of them were Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company Ltd., Coca Cola Ltd, Bajaj Finserv Ltd, SNL Financial and many more. I still recall the day- 15th March, 2014, where I was sent for an interview at Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Ltd along with three other classmates. My interview round with the State HR got my heart palpitating in momentum. The reason being I tried my best to overcome my flaws and ease my nervousness, but I failed. I had answered almost all the questions incorrectly and to my disappointment these were the questions that I knew. Realizing this, I was disheartened assuming I wouldn’t be selected. But I was wrong. The results were something that I least expected- I least expected myself to get selected in the first go! I was awfully happy, filled with countless emotions, now just waiting for my internship period to start.
I remember the very first day at the office where I was told to give a presentation on “Nature and Scope of HR” since I was supposed to work in the HR department along with one of my classmates and now colleague. It was 1st April, 2014. This presentation tested us on many skills like attitude, knowledge and confidence. And to my surprise I was really good and confident that day. I then realized that indeed ATTITUDE and CONFIDENCE are extremely important. This was not something gathered in a day. In fact, it was something I had achieved over a period of 8 months slowly and steadily by giving continuous presentations in the classroom. YEAH!! I had gained confidence from all this. But this was not enough. There was much more to learn. We were told to give presentations every fortnight which we welcomed willingly. Apart from this, a major part of work done was Recruitment calling for vacant positions in the company. Secondly, I learnt about document checking through their HR portal named HR4U. I got to learn about various terms and their uses. Calling umpteen people for interviews and lining them up as well as a complete check of all the documents that were submitted by new candidates was a difficult task that taught me to handle work load and pressure effectively and efficient time management.
My dedication towards work and confidence in delivering presentations by the end of my summer internship won lots of appreciation in the form of words as well as a lunch treat by our State HR to my colleague and me which was an icing on the cake. Three months passed by, where I had explored a lot of practical knowledge of what had been taught in class? I was amazed to see the different dimensions of a corporate life. Although I cannot sum it up in words completely, the fact is I have seen myself transforming from a shy girl to a confident person ready to face challenges and I owe this completely to my faculties and Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company for giving me memorable moments of my Summer Internship Programme.
