carenaloy

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A VALUABLE EXPERIENCE

Hi everyone! I am Carena, a year 3 NUS Business School student, currently majoring in Finance and Supply Chain Management. I am currently interning with the mature market credit team in Lenovo Beijing. This is my first-ever overseas internship and I am truly excited to share my experiences with you. For my first post (3 months into this internship), I will be sharing with you why I chose this internship, the events in Beijing which left the greatest impression on me and lastly, some of the skill-set and work experience that I have learned and gained from the Lenovo internship.

CHOICE

Like most NUS business students, I have been sourcing for internships through the Talentedge portal. Specifically, I was interested in applying for a finance internship so that I could have a hands-on experience in the finance industry. Before I submitted my application for the Lenovo Internship 2011, I did a small cost-benefit analysis of going on the internship.

PROS:

Experience living and working overseas
Acquire analytical skills related to credit and risk management
Gain an insight of an MNC’s operation in China
Work experience in a finance-related field
Opportunity to further experience the Chinese Culture in China

CONS:

1 semester delay in graduation
6 months away from family and friends

After looking through the analysis, I was very motivated to apply for this internship. Besides, the air fare, accommodation and visa application would be fully paid for by Lenovo. Looking at all the learning opportunities and new working experiences that I would gain, I felt that the Lenovo Internship was not to be missed.

Everything happened so quickly. Few days after I have applied for this internship through the TalentEdge portal, I was informed that I was shortlisted for an interview session with Mr James Loh, the Chief Risk Officer (CRO) at the Singapore Lenovo office. A few weeks after the interview, I said my farewell to my family and friends and was off to a new and exciting journey in Beijing.

Farewell Singapore!

MEMORABLE EVENTS IN BEIJING

In the following sections, I would like to share with you some of the interesting experiences I had in Beijing.

A STEP OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE– As I walked through the aisle of the airplane, I thought about my family and friends that I have bided farewell to back in Singapore. At the same time, I was also excited of what awaits me in Beijing. As I took the first step out of the airplane, it suddenly dawned on me that I was no longer in Singapore and I have arrived in Beijing safely. As I immersed through the crowds in the Beijing airport, the environment, the company, even the air in China smelt different. Everything felt surreal to me. Taking the first step out of my comfort zone was an experience that I would never forget.

FIRST DAY AT WORK IN LENOVO BEIJING – We all started work on our 2^nd day in Beijing. On our way to Lenovo’s office, I was running through a few questions in my head. How should I introduce myself to the Chinese colleagues? What would the office environment be like? What would be my daily work tasks for the next 6 months?

When I first entered the office, I was introduced to the whole GCSC team of credit analysts, credit supervisors and credit managers from the respective regions. They gave me a very warm and friendly welcome. Many of them asked if we had settled well in our hostel, whether we could get used to the food in Beijing and if any of us felt unwell. Through the many conversations we had over lunch, I felt their concern and kindness towards us as they offered us help and gave us useful tips for living in Beijing.

This was my first-day at work, a fruitful and engaging experience which left me feeling at home, away from home.

Office Colleagues

VAST LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES – The entire GCSC operations team is separated into 3 regions (Americas, Mature and Emerging Markets) as previously mentioned by Wenqi. The mature market team covers the credit analysis of customers from Western Europe (WE), Japan, Australia and New Zealand (also known as ANZ). My current role in the team is to support the credit analysts in areas such as credit limit analysis and revalidation, insurance applications and update Lenovo customers’ database and financials in their Enterprise Resource Planning System (ERP also known as E-Credit and SAP). I am also tasked to generate reports using excel spreadsheets and perform simple analysis on the performance of Lenovo’s Business Partners (BP) and Direct Sales (DS) customers. Initially, it was a steep learning curve for me, as there were many financial reports to understand. Subsequently, we would be given more important financial credit analysis tasks and projects. As can be seen, interning in Lenovo offers constant and vast leaning opportunities and I know that the entire 6 months in Lenovo would better equip me with the relevant skill-sets for my future career.

SIGHTS AND SOUNDS OF BEIJING – Besides being engaged in work activities, there are many chances for us to travel around Beijing during the weekends. I have attached some pictures of interesting places that we have visited in Beijing. This is definitely an internship not to be missed. 🙂