TIM, UC SAN DIEGO
What I have learned from my GLS China Internship
About Business
When I signed up, I came in with the idea that I would just follow the lead of my superiors and do what they tell me to do. However, it was exactly the opposite. I found myself working with the GRC Division of the company. Things in GRC were pretty hectic and crazy — we went quickly from a sample producing system to a mass production system. In fact, we got our first order during my internship. As such, there were lots of needs in the company, and I quickly found myself heading up two extremely crucial projects.
The first one was Configuration Management. Basically I evaluated all the current documentation and forms that were used in the various work flows of GRC, and standardized and streamlined the system. The second project that I did was a communication audit. I was given the responsibility to analyze the communication between various departments (customer service, research and development, etc.) and worked on plugging in the gaps throughout the workflow.
I had never had any experience doing either of these things…and as such most times I felt like I was in over my head. But, throughout the several few weeks, because of my challenging tasks, I learned to better understand how GRC as a division worked, how business was run, and how running a company was like. The experience gave me a great inside look at the workings of a developing company. My boss helped me out a lot.
About Business in China
The company and especially the GRC division were in a pretty hectic situation during my internship, so everybody had to work hard and stay busy. Although I was mostly cooped up in the office, I definitely could still see a lot of the good things that the company was involved in with the community. I did get to visit some of the orphanages the company sponsored and gained an appreciation for the social impact of the company in the area.
About China
Living in a second tier city took some getting to used to, but things were pretty good. Although I was pretty sheltered working in the company, I definitely heard a lot about the corruption and negative aspects of business here. Overall, the work culture at the company was great– there are some really awesome principles that this company is based upon.
About My Personal Goals
The summer has challenged me to continue to learn and understand the workings of a company such as this. I have been given an inside-track on a lot of things, and it has been pretty eye-opening. I would like to continue to explore a business career and hopefully gain a clearer understanding of what I might want to do in the future, particularly if it is in China. I also hope to gain a better understanding of what God is doing here. I have been very impressed with the communities, and hope to find ways to encourage and serve the Body in this city.
