Hi, I'm Janice Mook. I'll be a 3rd year HKUST student this year! This summer, I’ve had the pleasure of joining the TechForce Traineeship Program over a 10-week period. This is how my journey has been so far.
TechForce Traineeship Program Breakdown
Since my first week, I've closely shadowed my mentor, Raj Heera, gaining invaluable insights into the role of a Delivery Consultant. His guidance has encouraged proactive engagement, allowing me to contribute ideas and solutions. Through comprehensive training, I've developed a strong understanding of the business model, sales cycle, and key success factors for this role.
My activities initiate upon receiving new client requirements from our Solution Manager. My primary responsibility involves sourcing consultants in data and software development. The process starts from delineating key requirements of the role, carefully mapping consultants from professional networks and our CRM system into a pipeline and conducting thorough qualification exercises to screen them effectively - with the goal to present only the most exceptional consultants that meet requirements. In the best-case scenario, this leads to their deployment into an exciting project at a prestigious client organization.
Best parts of the job
This 10-week program has provided me an opportunity to interact with IT consultants from diverse backgrounds. Be it delving into domain expertise across finance, insurance, luxury retail, and utilities industries, gaining insights into their career trajectories, or learning about the latest technologies driving the digital transformation landscape, every conversation has been a valuable learning opportunity, as I explore further into my career path within the tech industry.
"Build rapport, make new friends, and have fun on phone calls”
In addition to conducting qualification calls, my learning extends to diverse communication, sales, and negotiation strategies. Through shadowing my mentor at coffee chats, consultant interview preparations, and client meetings, I’ve learned effective ways to create urgency to propel processes forward, essential components of an elevator pitch, and objection handling to manage expectations, amongst numerous other techniques.
Key challenges and learnings
Each day is powered by our morning syncs where we review our progress, play devil’s advocate, and brainstorm actionable next steps. Even as a trainee, my contributions are valued as we collaboratively work towards acquiring top-tier consultants into the firm and ensuring a succesful project deployment.
These morning meetings are crucial for immediate feedback and addressing any logical blind spots. The open culture here has allowed me to seek guidance from everyone on the team. It's essential to be intentional with every meeting- setting a goal for each interaction helps me review and refine my approach, ensuring efficiency and consistent growth.
During screening calls, I face two main challenges: finding balance between professionalism and authenticity and navigating difficult conversations with consultants. I couldn’t have done this without the generous help from my mentor and coworkers, who have encouraged me to experiment with different styles and approaches and regularly check up on my learning progress. I am now so much more confident in presenting myself than ever!
Looking to the Future
This traineeship experience has equipped me with resilience to tackle new challenges and developed my soft skills to effectively build relationships. As I continue to learn and grow through this traineeship, I want to thank my mentor and everyone for their guidance and support through this transformative program!
Do you want to know more about the TechForce Traineeship Program? Get in touch with us today! Follow us on LinkedIn to hear more stories about the program and other exciting upates.
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