My Hevo Internship Experience: Less Predictive, More Explorative
Let’s flashback to 2019: I was a final year B.Tech. student, eager to get my feet wet in the corporate world. When HR professionals visited the college for recruitment, I was acquainted with the profession and instantly felt attracted to their persona. Their effective communication, confidence, and civility in their nature was captivating. However, I was doomed to only observe Human Resources from a distance as I had landed an IT Job.
(In a conscious effort to not bore you with my back story) let’s fast forward to 2022: I completed my 1st year of MBA, specializing in HR (yes, finally!), and was looking forward to an eventful summer internship experience at a SaaS startup.
For most, joining a start-up comes with an equal measure of excitement and apprehension. It was no different for me. The SaaS startup culture is known for being accommodative and collaborative with an environment that enables immense learning, so I hoped to explore and learn more about how HR contributes to work culture and talent acquisition.
And just like that, with only the faintest idea of the odyssey ahead, it was Day 0 of the placement season.
Day 0
When I heard that Hevo is coming to campus for hiring, I started researching the company and the SaaS industry. Some amount of research led me to learn that with the pandemic-induced acceleration towards digital, the SaaS industry is the next big thing. Indian SaaS is a hard-to-ignore-growth market that is opening up a pool of opportunities for fresh talent. This meant exciting opportunities for the Talent Acquisition team to scout and engage with such cohorts. Hence I keenly applied for an internship at Hevo.
We all can agree on how a typical selection process goes — a perplexing case study round followed by an even strenuous personal interview! Contrary to that, the process for Hevo was smooth. Firstly, the given case study was relevant and perfectly aligned with the role, which presented much clarity to solving it. Secondly, the interview process was smooth and conversational — one of the very few which didn’t make me sweat.
Finally, I was told that I was selected! 🙌
Hevo Data hired me as a Talent Acquisition intern for nine weeks as part of the Summer Internship Program. Before my official joining, my assigned buddy connected with me and gave me the idea that I would OWN the role and the work I would be doing. I was asked to plan and ideate my internship instead of being instructed on the roles and responsibilities. This came to me as a surprise, because most companies usually offer planned-out-to-the-details internship programs. With Hevo, I could carve out the job aspects I wanted to work on and incorporate them into my internship.
From the first day of my joining, the TA team was welcoming and genuinely excited to have me on board. After basic training on the tools, I was onto the express train from New Joinee Nagar to the real Hevoite Land!🚆
Embarking on the Journey
Having no experience in the field, naturally, I was anxious. To add to that, I was introduced to and added to meetings with hiring managers and senior stakeholders from the beginning. All of this felt quite overwhelming initially. I was aligned with crafting the job description for various roles in the Sales and Growth functions, screening candidate profiles, and working on campus engagement activities. Prioritizing tasks was a challenge, but with constant guidance and help from my mentors, I was able to handle the tasks at hand by setting daily and weekly targets.
I soon realized that the exposure I received at such an early stage was rare for interns in most companies. In hindsight, I couldn’t be gladder to have had the chance to work on multiple aspects within Talent Acquisition and get an overall touch and feel of the role.
Each day, looking at our workplace filled with highly focused and motivated individuals pushed me towards making my mark on the floor.
Not Your Typical Recruiter
Even as an intern, the role was far more extensive than one would imagine. Most MBA students will agree that ‘branding’ is typically associated with the Marketing domain. But along with recruiting activities such as sourcing, screening, and running the hiring pipeline, I was also engaged with marketing campaigns for hiring purposes. Understanding the need for employer branding and why a marketing strategy is crucial for attracting quality talent was an eye-opener for me. This not being my forte, it was challenging to cope with. But then that’s the whole idea of an internship right? Getting hands-on experience with things that actually matter.
Remember I mentioned how I looked up to HR professionals back in my undergrad days? Hevo gave me a chance to get a taste of that too! I was also interacting and engaging with other B-school students through various webinars and virtual coffee sessions and creating a talent pool through these activities. One of my key takeaways from all these activities is to “never settle for anything less than an A+ hire”.
The Hevo Impact
Hevo has taught me the true meaning of working cross-functionally. The TA team would timely and promptly collaborate with the Sales, Marketing, and other teams to reach common goals. It provided me with a comprehensive and well-rounded learning experience that many would possibly get only after a year of working.
The work culture here goes above and beyond your specific domain or team. Everyone is not just interested in everyone’s work; they are eager to assist and guide. During my time at Hevo, I noticed a strong common value shared by every Hevoite — the urge to learn and the willingness to impart knowledge. Continuous support, guidance, and feedback from my colleagues and managers be it in or outside my team, constantly greased the wheels for me.
The Hevo internship experience has been a real milestone in my career and an experience that has firmly grounded my roots in TA.
