More than just dealing with people: My HR internship at Allianz Technology SE
The 6th semester of my studies abroad at ISM, my bachelor’s thesis is coming up, and graduation is around the corner. Time to look back. One of my highlights was definitely the internship at Allianz Technology SE, which is part of the international insurance company Allianz SE. In this post, you'll read why the internship was a great experience for me and what I learned for my future career.
I am studying International Management at ISM Hamburg. I have always been curious what it is like to work in an HR department, therefore the position in Allianz Technology’s Talent Management team attracted my attention. Allianz Technology is responsible for IT, operations and service for the Allianz Group I had heard of Allianz before because of its reputation. Moreover, the company is also famous for encouraging a healthy work-life balance and providing high flexibility regarding work time and work capacity. When I look back at my internship experience over the winter of 2021 at Allianz Technology SE, I see that I have gained so much knowledge and experience from it.
The Application Process
I got the job posting from ISM’s JobTeaser. ISM’s JobTeaser is a platform with ISM personalized job offers, events and career tips. There is also a talent database where you can create a profile and be found by companies. The application process was quick. I submitted the essential documents directly via the open position link. I also included proof of my abilities and strengths, such as letter of recommendation from other previous companies where I did internships, English and German language certificate, voluntary certificate, etc.
After applying, I was delighted when I got an interview invitation one week later. I received an email from one of the recruiters after another week that the hiring managers would love to have a second interview with me. There was one thing that I will never forget: The second interview was on the morning of my birthday. Surprisingly, I received a call from the recruiter at the end of that afternoon. She told me that I got the job. Overjoyed, I thanked the hiring managers immediately by email.
The legal and paper process was finished after about a month. As an international student from Vietnam, I needed to provide them with my international student visa and my work permit. The recruiter also needed my German tax ID, my social security number, and my insurance number so that the company would cover the insurance while I was working there. After two weeks, I received and signed the contract with the company.
My time at Allianz Technology SE
During the first month as an official intern, I got to know the team and company structure. Especially in regular meetings, I found out many things about the company and our department, People Attraction & Development. The meeting “Talent Team Jour Fixe” took place every Tuesday and I learned lots of things about the Talent Development Journey in Allianz Technology SE there. Every two weeks, we had a department-wide Global People Attraction meeting to ensure we were connected to other teams and their respective global initiatives. It was very interesting to get the international perspectivehere as well. I also had a chance to work with different team members on various tasks and projects. They are all amazing people who helped me a lot in providing answers about the work process and what they do to bring out the best outcome for our team’s main focus and responsibility: the Talent Discussion.
The talent conference takes place twice a year. There are three different nomination levels depending on the talent's current job role: Senior Associate, Allianz Executive and Allianz Senior Executive. Most of the time, my main task was related to the Senior Associate Level. Talents who want to be nominated to this level need to go through the #MyCareer Development Journey Process. In this, talents must showcase their ability in professional business-related settings. At first, I was responsible for creating a script for our so called “simple shows” which had to summarize all steps in the nomination process and development journey and turn it into an animation video. I was supported by another intern who started before me and received feedback from my principal manager. After the first task, I was already familiar with the duties and aware of what I needed to do. Therefore, the manager trusted me to support her with tasks that were related to the #MyCareer Journey, such as creating tools and offers for talent support, sending out timelines and helping other Business Partners.
During the last 4 weeks of my internship, I was involved in another project called New Talent Team JF. The project's main aim was to bring agility into teamwork and team communication. My task within the project was collecting the data about surveys from team members for analysing and creating a new approach. The team leader proposed the project for the other two interns and me. Since we were all interns, I feel we had the same idea, and the discussion went smoothly throughout the whole project. Indeed, I cannot deny that some tasks are challenging and made me question my abilities. For example, I have struggled with the data analysis tasks. In my opinion, the best way to solve delay and a difficult task, is to look for information, then communicate with the team and seek lived truth and advice either from the manager or anyone in your team that has good knowledge in that area. Different team members had different specialties and areas of focus, so learning from them meant I could improve my understanding in diverse ways.
In the last week before my internship ended, it was relaxed since I had done and finished almost all the tasks. For my last day the team gathered (virtually) with me after work hours to celebrate the time I contributed. I felt the warmth like they were my family even though the time I was there was just six months.
Looking back, I am happy that the internship helped me in gaining knowledge for my future. I learned about people and the Employee Value Proposition, which is the core of the company’s business and one topic which my team in particular strived to bring to life. The internship taught me a deep knowledge of real-life business, how to work with other people and why communication and trustworthiness are the keys to success. I would also recommend Allianz Technology SE to people interested in the HR field and in learning about employees' journeys. Now, I know Human Resources Management is more than just dealing with people but rather bringing the best out of people and increasing the firm's performance naturally.
Are you interested in studying Management? Then check out ISM’s study programs on en.ism.de.
Pictures: private, Nick Morrison, Christina @ wocintechchat.com, KOBU Agency, private
Linh Vu Kieu is studying the study program International Management at ISM Hamburg.
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