EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
As a student of Tourism and Hospitality Management, analyzing today’s business world is very crucial to observe in this complex situation. When doing an internship at a company it is necessary to go through all fields of knowledge, both theoretical and practical. Before finishing my four years of bachelor’s degree, I have been given the opportunity to do a Human Resource Internship in Nepal. In order to obtain practical knowledge of business life, as a part of my academic program. In this report, I will discuss about my internship experience at Nepal Realistic Solution, focused on HR practices which I have done during my 2 months period as a trainee. As mentioned, I am a student at Turiba University in Riga, Latvia. Furthermore, I obtained and found this internship opportunity at NRS from an internship recruitment agency called Placement Year International, based in UK. The whole internship search and placement went very smoothly. I arrived in Kathmandu on the 11th January 2019. And my first day at work was on the 14th January 2019.
During my first day at work, the HR person gave us an orientation process, where she presented about Nepalese culture and gave information about the country itself. Then work policies and procedures were explained and had to sign all the acknowledgement forms. Afterwards, she presented me to all the NRS staff members and did introductions. After the introductions, workplace was given, such as my desk and chair, as well as work equipment such as notebook and pen. On the very first day, tasks and schedule were given, my first task was to create a presentation about: “Recruitment practices undertaken by companies through online portals and social sites in Nepal”. This task was given so that the CEO and other staff members could evaluate my presentation skills, such as communication skills. Feedback was given for future improvement. Feedback has always been given throughout my whole internship period, this has helped me grow professionally and improve my work skills. Overall, I have been involved in creating many HR documents for a client company, I have participated during Educational Training with the CEO at a college, presented for the students about Leadership and its meaning. Furthermore, I have had the opportunity to attend during several client meetings. By participating, it allows me to have a wider perspective and view on the business world and processes. This will allow me to know how to behave and do work after I graduate from university.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First of all, I would like to thank all NRS staff members, for making my internship experience memorable and successful. And for making me feel like one of the team. I would like to express my gratitude to my honorable supervisor, Wrishika Giri, from the core of my heart for her kind support, guidance, constructive supervision, instructions and advice for conducting my work tasks at NRS. I am also thankful to the CEO of Nepal Realistic Solution, for giving me the opportunity to work with his HR department. At last, thank you for all NRS employees for making my internship experience great, making me feel welcome at the company and part of the team. Without everyone’s kindness and warmth, the experience wouldn’t have been the same. Furthermore, allowing and inviting us to place and cultural events has allowed me to have a wider perspective and understanding of the country itself, which has been amazing. Getting to know different cultures has always been a big interest of mine, and helped me grow as a person, explore new things in life and create memories.
INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE
What were the main tasks you were trusted with?
During my two months period of internship at NRS I was mainly involved with creating all sorts of HR documents for a client company. In total I created around 50 documents, all relating to Human Resource, such as different types of forms, policies and standard operating procedures. At first, I thought that creating and writing documents nonstop would be harsh and I would lack time to explore other types of HR practices, however I was wrong. By writing all of those documents and receiving feedback for every single one of them by my supervisor, Wrishika, I managed to gain a lot of experience when it comes to HR practices. Such as an in depth understanding of HR and everything which is involved within it. I started from having very basic knowledge about Human Resource, since I have never done any type of internship or studies regarding the topic, to now knowing every single detail which is involved within the HR department. By writing and re-writing and improving all of those 50 documents, all the knowledge has sticked into my brain and all the explanations given to me by my supervisor has made me understand everything clearer. By understanding HR practices clearer, it has also allowed me to grow professionally, such as I am more self-aware of my strengths and weaknesses, and I am able to communicate better professionally regarding HR topic. I am more confident about myself and well educated.
Not only did I write and create HR documents, I also had the privilege to participate with the CEO, Roshan Shrestha during a Leadership Presentation at a college. While being alongside him during his presentation, he gave me the chance to participate and give my opinions regarding the topic, as well as giving explanations to the students. By doing so, I was able to grow my communication skills while presenting in front of people and being confident while communicating. This was a good experience for me, especially since before arriving to the location I was nervous about presenting in front of other students (since students are usually more judgmental then business people and talk and whisper to each other). However, once I got there Roshan Shrestha made me feel comfortable enough alongside him to speak confidently. As well as, he showed me the presentation before we went to the college in order for me to know about what he will be talking about.
At last, I participated during several client meetings at client’s premises. By participating during these meetings, I was allowed to have a wider perspective regarding business meetings and how they are performed. By making notes during the meetings, and afterwards reading through my notes I got more educated regarding the business world and how it works. How to behave during business meetings and what to say in order to look professional. Most of the clients spoke in Nepalese, so I wasn’t able to understand 100% everything that they said, instead I studied their body language. By studying their body language, I was able to understand whether the meeting was successful or a fail, as well as analyzing client’s behavior gave me a better perspective on how to act during a meeting in order to persuade them and make them satisfied about our business services.
Furthermore, I participated during some interview processes for potential candidates, with NRS Human Resource person, Sabina, who allowed me to ask the applicants questions. Not only sit next to her during the interviews, but being able to participate in conducting it, such as asking questions to the applicants and give comments. From this I learned how to conduct a successful interview, which steps should be followed, and which steps should be done after conducting the interviews. This also helped me grow my communication skills. In addition, NRS gave me the opportunity to participate as a client in a training program, for ISO 9001:2015 Internal Auditor. The training was held on 25th and 26th February 2019. Our CEO was the lead auditor for this training, he held several presentations and conducted many exercises for clients and myself. Recently, I received an email stating that I passed the training, meaning that I got a certificate for Internal Auditor. Which was an interesting training and great experience to participate in it. As well as passing the exam, adds a certificate for me to show on my CV. Which is great for my future job applications. So, thank you, NRS for proving me this training! Not only did I gain work experience but as well, did the CEO hand me a few days off from work so that I could travel to Pokhara, I didn’t even ask about a few days off, instead he gave it to me and told me that I must visit Pokhara before my internship ends. Which was very kind of him to do so. So, I had an AMAZING time in Pokhara, just enjoying the sunny weather and beautiful landscapes, as well as walking by the Lakeside and seeing different temples, such as doing a hike all the way up a mountain to reach World Peace Pagoda.
What was the most beneficial thing you took away with you?
There are so many things a person could say such as professional growth and understanding of HR, however not only did I grow professionally, I also grew as a person. The two first weeks were a challenge for me, coming to a country far away from home and overcoming many challenges and habits which I am not used to back home, such as coming to such an underdeveloped country, with bad infrastructure can be challenging at first. Getting to adapt to a whole new culture and ways of living as well as traffic and a lot of pollution. Not only was I jet lagged, but my body was weak from all the pollution and different type of nutrition intake. Once, I started to adapt to Kathmandu, everything became easier, knowing how to take public transportation to work as well as knowing what I should be eating and what I shouldn’t. The workplace made it easier for me to adapt to this city, providing us Nepalese language classes was helpful, learned some basic but very essential sentences and words. So, thank you NRS for providing interns Nepalese language course. As I mentioned before, not only did I grow professionally, but the most beneficial thing that I will take away with me is the fact of being less needy, such as growing within myself and taking new risks and adventures, not being to needy and comfortable with daily things and resources which we get back home and not in Nepal. Being able to live in a place where the internet is shutting down all the time, having cold showers back at the hostel and hard beds. Not taking things to granted is the most essential thing which I will take back with me home. The whole 2 months experience in Nepal, has allowed me to open my eyes wider and discover new things in life and different religions and cultures. Understanding different ways of living and respecting people’s cultures and religions. To not judge others and instead learn things from other cultures and religions. Not only am I proud of myself for taking this adventure and getting out of my COMFORT ZONE, but also, I am grateful for the experience which I have lived here in Nepal, both workwise and leisure. I have learned and I have become a better version of myself. Working within HR has made me realize that this is the type of profession which I want to pursue once I graduate in June 2019. Putting others need into priority has always been a big part of my personality since I was a kid, and being able to use it as a profession, making sure that the needs of employees and well-being is being considered and managed in the correct way, is a big plus for me, my passion as a career. As well as traveling and discovering new cultures and religions. So, having the chance to have combined both passions have been great for me as an experience here in Nepal.
What was the biggest difficulty you faced?
The biggest challenge which I faced was when I had to create documents which I had never written before, didn’t know what structure I should follow and include. But with some research and feedback from my supervisor I managed to create several documents. Another challenge would be when the clients spoke in Nepalese, I would look at them and smile but wasn’t able to reply to them, instead had to reply in English and hope that they would understand me.
Did you feel like a valued member of the team?
Yes, 100% both in the NRS premises and at client premises. All staff members are friendly and polite, as well as the other interns. I didn’t have any sort of conflict with anyone and they all made me feel welcome at the company. Furthermore, getting invited to work events and cultural events with the NRS staff members, made the connection grow even better. Every staff member at NRS have a close connection, they are all like a family and get along well. Both the CEO and my manager spoke to me professionally and were very kind and helpful.
What advise would you give a student/graduate currently undertaking a HR Internship?
Life is short, if you have the opportunity to do a HR internship grab it, it doesn’t matter in which country or which company. The smaller the company the greater responsibilities you will have and wider understanding of all HR aspects. However, the bigger the company the greater chances you will understand how big companies work, for future job opportunities. The greatest way to learn in life is to take a risk and go on adventures, get yourself out of your comfort zone and travel to a foreign county, learn about their culture and ways of working. Instead of learning in a class room or at a company in your town. If you have the chance to travel around, do so, because when you start real work life, the less time and opportunities you will have to travel as much as you desire. If you travel to another country for your HR internship, travel with an open mind, don’t expect much and don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone. An opened mind will make everything so much easier for you, give the locals a chance to welcome you into their country and learn from them. Overall, grab the opportunity to travel abroad and learn new things, as well as creating memories and experiences for life. No matter how hard it will be the first weeks, getting home sick and having to adjust to a new culture and way of living, things will get better as long as you keep having a positive mind. At the end you won’t regret travelling and taking the opportunity of doing an HR internship abroad.