Batch 2007 Summer Experience
Summer training is an important window for the B-school graduates to understand the functioning of the organisation as well as to gain insights in particular functions. We believe that the 2 months that he/she spends here shapes his/her career choice in terms of the understanding of the function that he/she is in and also the kind of company/industry that he/she wants to be in.
We also believe that each summer trainee makes valuable contribution to the organisation in the period that the individual is here. The types of projects that we offer are live, challenging and meaningful to the trainee as well as for the company.
We endeavour to make this training a meaningful experience for all trainees. And hence prefer to call our summer training programme the 'Summer Training Experience'.
The summer training spans 8 weeks during the months of April, May and June
What to expect
You will be assigned a real life challenge where direct exposure to people and company will be offered.
As you explore more you will add more to your learning and as you face practical problems and real life complexities you get enough scope to experiment your learnings.
You get various instances where cross functional exposure will give you a different perspective. This is a ground where you work with different teams and yet question and reason the rule of the game.
Asian Paints is a learning opportunity at the grass root level where each trainee can stretch, innovate and realise his potential.
You never know one of your ideas might just CLICK!
Please click on the names below
Ajay Chauhan
The best part about my summer's experience at Asian Paints was the work-culture in the company. Never before had I seen such a highly motivated workforce, from the top management to the shop-floor worker, in such a large organization.
Work is taken very seriously in Asian Paints, and this includes the summer interns as well. The mid-term and end-term project reviews of summer trainees are done by the very top management of cross-functional expertise. The treatment of employees, and summer interns, is such that you feel your work is critical to the success of the organization and you yourself are the most important resource of the organization. The summer internship program is meticulously and painstakingly planned to the very last detail. This respect and trust, spontaneously, pushes you to deliver your best and live up to the expectations of the people around you. There is every opportunity for a trainee to not just sharpen his / her multi-functional technical skills but also develop one's interpersonal and leadership skills here.
"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" is very well understood in this organization. Hence, the hectic work schedule is often interspersed with light moments. It's the pressure of the work that drives all the interns together and causes a mixing and bonhomie which you can rarely expect in a professional setting. The atmosphere is informal yet professional. The spirit of camaraderie transcends the boundaries of rank or designation.
This line sums up the whole experience very well - "Work real hard and party harder".
Ajay Chauhan
Class of 2008
IIM Lucknow
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Anush Santhanam
Project Information
The plant in Sriperumbudur was just over a couple of years old and houses about 190 employees. The workers in the plant were new employees and as such there was no union for them. This brought in the complexity of managing production as there were no set rules for monitoring and maintaining plant efficiency. Hence, there was a necessity to carry out a project which would study the existing processes in detail and standardize the same. The project assigned to me would consist of the following steps:
- Benchmarking the output of the operations and developing a standard based on the study.
- Developing a manpower requirement model based on the time and motion study conducted.
Experience
It started off with all summer interns being assembled for an orientation program which was addressed by the top management. This indicated the importance the company associated with us. The last day of the orientation program was a trip to Lonavala. It was a great experience as it gave all the summer interns an opportunity to get to know each other better.
When I reached the Sriperumbudur plant where I was to carry out my project, I was given the freedom to decide the direction and course of the project. The initial couple of days at the plant were spent exclusively in getting a holistic view of the entire supply chain. This helped greatly in the later stages of my project, when information from other departments needed to be incorporated. The planning of the project was done with utmost care to ensure that there wasn't anything greatly amiss.
The course of the project was very smooth, thanks to the continuous monitoring from my guide (Mr. Arun Saravanakumar). He dedicated close to an hour every day, to discuss the progress of the project. This helped in ensuring that I never lost direction and was always on the right track. Frequent reviews with the senior guide (Mr. Ravi) made me understand the level of seriousness that was associated with the project. Apart from the help I took from my guide, there was also a great deal of support extended by the entire management team and the officers' cadre, to overcome the smaller operational constraints I faced during the course of the project.
Overall, it was fun-filled and a great learning experience.
Anush Santhanam
Class of 2008
IIM Lucknow
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Aseem Jagdale
The prospect of Summer Internship brought a lot of thoughts to my head. I received my project title and location in March.
The project title was "Creation of Development oriented workplace -
- Institution, design & implementation of training effectiveness measures
- Creating cultural cues for promoting self development environment
What would the project work be like? Would it be just like any of the projects we did on campus? What would the plant be like? Would people there be really bothered about my project and its outcome? Should I prepare for the project and go? I recall discussing with some of my class mates and seniors about the title and what exactly it would encompass. The Internship began with a three-day induction programme in Mumbai. We were introduced to the working of Asian Paints by the heads of the functions. We also had a plant visit where we witnessed the paint manufacturing process and also tried our hands at painting!! The outbound programme in Lonavala followed. I got to know the other Summer Interns well during this programme and we all had a lot of fun. I then proceeded to Ankleshwar.
I realised after the Project briefing by my guide and the meeting with the Factory Manager that my project was an initiative which was very much a part of the plan for the year. The outcome of the project was being looked up to. I was given the liberty to work as per my ideas. The preliminary review was the real eye-opener though. It was in this review that I realised how I should approach the project. I learned the importance of keeping the interests of the stakeholders in the project in mind while working on the project and fixing the deliverables accordingly. I discussed the issues with other managers, executives and officers in the plant. The mid-term review helped me check the course and the progress of the project. Every bit of information I received gave me clarity on the project, the working of the plant and the working of Asian Paints as a whole. Every day triggered a lot of discussion and introspection which helped me understand myself better. I was encouraged by one and all whenever I needed the confidence. The project was a unique experience to me as it changed me as a person and still reminds me to look within myself for the answers.
The Summer Internship at Asian Paints stands as one of the singular defining experiences of my life. I learn something new from it every time I look back at those eight weeks. I count them as some of the most fruitful days of my life.
Aseem Jagdale
Class of 2008
XLRI Jamshedpur
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Satheesh Raman
The internship at Asian Paints had a perfect start with the orientation to the various functional verticals of the organization followed by a trip to the Bhandup plant, and then an outbound program where we did let ourselves loose. Along with providing an insight into company's operations as well as culture, this tightly packed induction also set the momentum for the remaining 8 weeks.
Having been put on an overseas assignment, and having heard many stories from seniors who had interned with various organizations about Guides usually not having the time for interns, I was a little anxious about what lay ahead. All these fears were blown to pieces however, by the sheer extent of my Guide's involvement in my project. Challenged to the core by the timelines and nature of the project, I nevertheless had all the support from my guide and the company to take it on and do the needed. The stint also gave me immense exposure and insight into a different culture, different people and surely changed many a perception of mine.
In Asian Paints I surely was provided with the right mix of freedom and guidance regarding my project which facilitates the development of the intern and at the same time ensuring the achievement of deliverables. And to complement all this, all the high energy and fun at Asian Paints surely made me look forward to corporate life eagerly!
Satheesh Raman
Class of 2008
XLRI Jamshedpur
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Shambhavi Jha
At Asian Paints, the two months that I spent were as an employee rather than a summer intern. I had the full freedom to work my way and also had the responsibility and accountability that one would associate with a job. My project on the retailer initiative was the most talked about initiative in the company and therefore could not get more challenging where my contribution would make a big difference. This company does not believe in spoon feeding, be it information or ideas but then the direction that my project guide provided was what made all the difference. But the best thing about Asian Paints is that it is a very simple and straightforward company with very simple and straightforward people but great ambitions.
Shambhavi Jha
Class of 2008
MDI Gurgaon
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Vikram Chandrashekhar
Summers at Asian Paints was truly an enriching experience, and one of the most significant takeaways from my MBA at IIM Kozhikode. Several factors made it the unforgettable journey that it was. Some of them, briefly, are below.
Learning
Some of the primary takeaways I was looking for in my Summers experience were continuous learning, a chance to get a feel of the market, and the opportunity to meld first year theory with practical experience. Asian Paints surpassed my expectations on all three counts. In discussions I later had with my batch-mates, my Summers was clearly more challenging, involved more groundwork, was more 'live', and gave me more insights than many others.
I learnt of the difficulties in managing a channel and avoiding channel conflict. I learnt about the organization, sales, distribution, marketing, branding, consumers, the eccentricities of large dealers and the worries of smaller ones. From Mumbai to Bangalore, I learnt how culture and competition affect a dealer's attitude towards the company. In speaking to the dealers, I learnt how a business is run in a way that no textbook could have explained. But most importantly, I learnt the importance of the channel, the issues faced by our channel partners, management's constraints in dealing with these issues, and how to reach a balance in order to create maximum value.
Structure
Summers at AP was well structured. This began with the orientation which gave us an overview of the business and the outdoor which helped us bond, which very few companies did. The timelines imparted structure to our individual projects, and the mid-term review was a good chance to reaffirm our progress or make mid-course corrections. The framework within which we did our projects was thus solid and gave us an excellent top-down approach to our projects, enabling us to drill down to the problem within the available time. I enjoyed the fact that within this framework, I was given complete freedom to structure my visits to the dealers and the branch offices. This balance helped keep the project on track as well as broaden the scope of my project.
Importance
Asian Paints takes the summers programme very seriously, and that is heartening to any intern. The orientation has top management addressing the interns. During my Summers, I had the opportunity to meet and gain knowledge from almost anybody within the organization (time permitting), and did -The DM (West) who was my guide, Marketing Managers, GBMs, BMs, RMs, AMs, Admin, TSOs and Sales Force. Throughout the organization, people are willing to help out and share knowledge and time. The Final Presentation was attended by the General Managers of our respective functions. The fact that as a Summer Trainee I had access to these resources and people was a great motivating factor throughout the internship.
Organization and Guide
In my 8 weeks at AP, I enjoyed interacting with the people I met. There was something to be learnt in every meeting, both within the organization and with the dealers. Assimilating, structuring and making use of that information was a challenge I enjoyed.
My guide was an anchor and an invaluable help in giving direction to the project. He arranged meetings with managers across verticals to ensure that I started off with fairly comprehensive knowledge of the product lines and the business. He also ensured in his meetings with me that his own experience and personal biases would not be transferred, leaving me with an open mind. At the same time, he made sure that I understood the evolution of the market, and certain trends facing the industry today. It was a pleasure and privilege to work under him.
Vikram Chandrashekhar
Class of 2008
IIM Kozhikode
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