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Tag: G&EE

Published on
Blog post written by Jennifer Swartz

 

Packing. That seems to be all we are doing these days. I am currently packing up our room in Vietnam, and I cannot believe that we are leaving this beautiful country in just a few short hours. Moreover, I cannot believe that CAP is over. These past few months seemed to go by at a glacial pace, but the past couple of weeks in country flew by. So what now?

 

Well, in an attempt to keep CAP going as long as possible, I want to reflect on the trip and provide three key takeaways, or pho for thought, that future first years can hopefully benefit from.

 

First, it is essential to set up regular meetings with your client from the get-go. The format of these meetings can vary from Skype to phone calls to another form altogether. However, setting up regular meetings throughout the semester provides structure and deadlines for both parties, paving the way for everyone to be on the same page when it comes to overall expectations. Additionally, it allows you to better develop a meaningful relationship with your client. Because of the time and effort we exerted up front, we had a great working relationship with our client by the time we got to Vietnam. In fact, our client took every opportunity to express how much they appreciated our regular meetings and communications.

 

Secondly, make sure your repeatedly ask your client if there is anyone else at the company you should be talking to other than your point of contact throughout the semester. We asked a couple of times towards the beginning of our project, but then dropped the matter altogether. When we got to Vietnam, our point of contact changed, and the colleagues we were working  with had a wealth of knowledge we would have benefited from much earlier on in the semester. In retrospect, we should have asked if there were any other contacts to connect with once our project was a bit further along, as that would have been the best time to touch base. But alas, hindsight is 20/20.

 

Lastly, carve out time to get to know your teammates. We started doing this back in January, scheduling out one team event a month in addition to our team meetings. Team events varied from happy hours at Circa to lunches at local Vietnamese restaurants. These team events enabled us to get to know each other on a more personal level and ultimately work better together throughout the semester. It even resulted in our amazing team of four seizing every chance to spend time together in Vietnam, whether it was hanging out in the pool, learning how to salsa (THANK YOU BORJA :) ), or exploring trendy speakeasys. Overall, these team events helped make us a true team. And my team – the Pho-tastic Pho-r as we jokingly called ourselves – they made my CAP experience one that I will treasure pho-ever.

 

 

Published on
Blog post written by Alyssa Passarelli
The three JD.com CAP teams checked in at company headquarters in Beijing just before initial in-person meetings with our points of contact. Here, students stand around the company’s mascot, “Joy.”
Image source: Bisman Preet Singh, GMBA Class of 2019

Before arriving in Beijing, the four CAP China teams researched industry best practices, brainstormed and whiteboarded ideas in Duquès Hall, and used feedback from client site visits to improve PowerPoints in the JW Marriott. These efforts all led up to the pinnacle of CAP: the final in-person presentation to our clients. Even for the three JD.com teams, each presentation required preparation that was as unique as their individual projects.

Cheng, Erez, Kapoor, and Shahi needed to conduct multiple on-site interviews with key stakeholders as well as observe the logistics and processes within the client’s warehouse to analyze aspects of the supply chain. They also had various translation

From left to right: Mark (JD Finance), Kathleen (GWSB), Flora and Boer (JD Finance) Professor Larry Yu, Mohnish, Kellen, and Alyssa (GWSB) after wrapping the final presentation at company headquarters.
Image source: Kathleen Harrington, GMBA Class of 2019

requests for their PowerPoint and final report that influenced how they managed their time and efforts for their final presentation.

 

In contrast, Baid, Curry, Harrington, and myself were only able to spend a single afternoon interviewing four employees of JD Finance (the startup arm of JD.com). The meeting was informal, taking place on couches at the end of one the hallways of company headquarters. This conversation afforded our team the opportunity to better understand the current priorities of the expansion of JD Finance’s work and confirm that our recommendations reflected what was most important for the client in both the present and longer term. Additionally, the abundant feedback that our team received the previous month from the external panel of judges helped us revamp our PowerPoint’s content and aesthetics.

 

Kalec, Khashogji, Preet, and Yuan went to great lengths (figuratively and literally) to deliver their final presentation, mainly because their points of contact were based in Shanghai. For our group’s weekend outing to this new city, none of us expected that we would spend what ended up being twelve hours in the airport before making our departure. Despite the travel

From left to right: Abdulmohsen, Katherine, and Di (GWSB), Tom (JD.com), Bisman and Professor Larry Yu (GWSB) in Shanghai delivering their final recommendations to their client in an engaging discussion over breakfast in Shanghai.
Image Source: Katherine Kalec, GMBA Class of 2019

challenges, this JD.com team made it to Shanghai to give their final presentation over a breakfast meeting with their points of contact, which was an ideal environment to engage with the client on their recommendations.

 

Dimes, Miller, Ou, and Russell worked with Shenzhen Energy, a client whose relationship-building style made for an intensive experience for the team in country to prepare for their final presentation. As Russell put it, “Our contract was quite guarded before our visit (so didn’t tell us much), but it seemed that he [their point of contact] really wanted to have a meal and rice wine with us to get to know us, and he was very generous after that (but it did mean we had to do plenty of work in China.)” Dimes shared that the team divided up ownership of additional research needed from the new information the client provided in country based on the project areas where each team member had built the most expertise. The final result was a presentation that more closely resembled an internal company discussion.

 

No two teams had the same experience preparing for these final moments of our CAP projects, but there is something important to learn from each one. What we all shared in this experience was gaining practical experience preparing for when working with your client does not go as planned, how to shift gears with composure, and above all, how to serve your clients.

Left to right: Mr. Yu (General Manager, Shenzhen Energy), Mia and Professor Larry Yu (GWSB), Ms. Lee (President, Shenzhen Energy), Natalia, Kris, and Patrick (GWSB) being hosted for lunch by the company’s leadership at a high-rise in Beijing.
Image source: Natalia Tabares Dimes, GMBA Class of 2019

Published on
Blog Post written by Kevin Saladino

 

After finally making it in from Dublin, Ireland, the biggest shock was the change in weather and the lack of darkness in the region. During our time so far in Sweden, we have experienced 16-hour days with the sun shining far into the 10PM hour. This has necessitated the use of eye masks and some people, (myself included) are having problems getting our bodies to adjust to the new times. It is also unseasonably hot, with temperatures comparable to Florida, my home state.

 

Travel from the Arlanda airport to the hotel couldn’t be simpler and since I've used Metro in the DC area for 4 years, I am quite impressed with the transportation in Sweden. Though I've been to the country before, I can say that it takes no real skill or luck to make it to the Arlanda express high-speed train and then into Stockholm, where the hotel was about a 5-minute walk away from the station, again easy to find. After a welcome dinner (that included a meal of meatballs, pictured) we had some time to tour the “Old City” area. Before I move on from the food, I want to state that it is VERY good (though expensive) here. Speaking of, the exchange rate is good here for the moment with the USD trading for approximately 9 SEK. We had the opportunity to take some pictures as well as spend some time socializing as a group, getting to know one another on a personal level.

 

After this point, we made it back to the hotel, where it seems we never look up from our laptops - typing away hastily on our respective projects. Don’t get me wrong, there are times where we are allotted the opportunity to experience the area and the offerings, both culturally and culinary speaking; we have had great tour guides and have been to the Vasa museum, for example. However, the entire class is preoccupied with the project, and that focus requires long hours of practice as well as focus.

We are involved with a consulting project for Volvo, based out of Gothenburg. The pace is unrelenting and the hours are long, however our group is working hard to bring the best product to Volvo in hopes of furthering their initiative, Care by Volvo (CBV), especially since meeting the talented leadership in person. All in all, the class is under pressure, however we are making time to connect on both a professional and personal basis as well as (attempting) to remain healthy. My group, “DRG” and I have been working long days and mornings to make sure that we are both a fluid and a well-sounding team that presents a cogent case. 24 hours to go and we will make our cases to Volvo, as well as have the company declare a winner out of the three teams. More to come.

Published on
Blog Post written by Visola Shukhrat

 

It is the last day of our CAP Peru… With a big smile and some tears of happiness on my face, I gave farewell kisses and hugs to my classmates and headed to the airport. As I was waiting to board the plane, I could not stop thinking about what a powerful experience it was. The pictures of 20 young professionals altogether climbing the Machu Picchu, watching the sunset while having a city bike tour, supporting and cheering on each others’ teams during final project delivery would appear in my mind as flashcards of a colourful movie. We arrived in Peru as just classmates and were leaving it as a family with strong bonds.

We spent an unforgettable two weeks in the country that has a history of three dominant and advanced civilizations. We learned a lot about Peru as a country, its culture, food, and language. While the primary goal of the program was to learn about industries of projects and culture of a nation, we gained much more than that. The time spent in Peru will flourish beautiful memories in the hearts of each and everyone for a long time in the future.

 

I would like to devote this post to a person who transformed our CAP Peru 2018 into an eye-opening event with bonds created for a lifetime. The academic knowledge, soft skills development and cultural experience would not be the same without this superhero, our father-teacher-professor Shyam Giridharadas. This superhuman went above and beyond to not only teach us how to be great consultants but also how to become better leaders and to be mindful of those around us.  He used to start every class with a couple minutes of centering, when we all closed our eyes, took a deep breath and thought of something positive. This exercise helped us during our presentations. During our time in Lima, Prof. Giridharadas gave special attention to every single student, was accommodating to our needs and wants. One of the most fun and memorable things that united such a diverse student body was the time when he arranged a night of gathering. We all watched a soccer game first and then danced Salsa, Turkish, Kosovian and Uzbeki dances. The night ended with playing mafia.

 

Prof. Giridharadas has the power to comfort people and make them believe in themselves. I remember the day before our final presentation to the client; my teammates and I were worried that we would be unable to meet clients’ expectations. Professor spent 3 hours with our team and gave us detailed feedback on our delivery. When we finished our last rehearsal, he asked us to stand up and take each others’ hands. We were expecting another moment of centering… However, what he said next left us speechless. He said he was impressed by all the improvements we’ve reached so far. This gave us confidence in ourselves and motivation to work more. As a result, we delivered a project that satisfied our clients to the fullest.

 

As we all gathered for the last time, we sat in a circle and reflected on our trip. Some classmates cried while expressing their feelings about the trip. I felt so happy to be around such a fantastic bunch of talented young professionals. If I could repeat this trip, it would be with Prof. Giridharadas and these people.

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