Vaibhav Mundra has been born and brought up in Rajasthan. For his graduation, he went to Mumbai and pursued B.Com from H.R. College of Commerce and Economics after which he pursued his MBA from International Management Institute, New Delhi in Finance and Marketing. Since he had a peculiar interest in accounting and finance subjects, along with B.Com, he also took up certifications in finance from NSE and NISM. Along with their studies, he has actively participated in school and college student bodies, which helped him improve his interpersonal and management skills. Currently, he is working with Capgemini as a Consultant.
What was the selection procedure? How did you get this job?
I got this job during my MBA through campus placements. During our final placements, I applied for a Risk and Finance Consultant role with the BCM Transformations business unit in Capgemini. The selection process involved three rounds, the first being a gamified logical reasoning test. On the basis of this, some candidates were shortlisted. The next round was a technical interview, so I was questioned about concepts of risk management and banking. Lastly, it was an HR Interview which included questions related to our background and general things. Post this I received the offer letter and got selected by Capgemini.
What is your job title and responsibilities?
I am working as a Functional Consultant at Capgemini, India. I am a part of the risk and finance practice under a bigger domain of Banking and Capital Markets Transformations. I mainly work with U.S based banking clients. We deal with things like asset-liability management, balance sheet transformation, profitability, implementation of risk management applications, etc. Our day-to-day work also includes analyzing client requirements, understanding their reporting systems, and identifying process improvements. It’s a techno-functional role involving a lot of concepts from finance/risk which are implemented on some technical tools.
What were some of the challenges that you faced? How did you overcome them?
Since I come from a Commerce background, understanding an IT company and its procedures including various software as well as the coding part was challenging. Another challenge was since we were doing work-from-home initially, there is a communication gap, so whom to approach for what problem was a bit challenging. I also learned through the course of time that you will have to manage your time and work effectively and communicate to your managers if there are too many items to deliver, as it will impact your efficiency.
What are some of the essential skills needed for this role?
Good communication skills are a must to interact efficiently with your colleagues, clients, management, etc. Especially in the Consultancy industry where you need to interact with clients for the majority of your time. Presentation skills are also important, being able to convey your thoughts and ideas to the clients is very important. One should have good analytical thinking, and be to the point and structured in their thoughts. Being good with number crunching is also essential as we would be working with it all day. Having good Microsoft Excel and Powerpoint skills is also a valuable addition. Learning some database management skills like basic SQL commands would also be of immense help.
How was your overall experience working with Capgemini?
Overall it has been a great experience. My team is really understanding and supportive, my superior makes sure I am learning something. I did struggle with the tech part initially, where we have tech jargons day in and day out but eventually you understand it much better. There have been great leaders at this company and overall it has been a great exposure as I got to interact with various clients from different places.
Do you think internships are important for students? Why?
Internships are extremely important. When I look back in time I did various certifications and training related to stock markets, and finance-based activities but I never focused on internships. Later, I realized how important practical exposure is to gain a better understanding and knowledge about corporates. It enhances and helps in building your CV, so doing internships in a single domain or multiple domains is also okay as it is good to explore. It would help us know our interests and which domain we want to get into as well.