What caught my attention this year?

What caught your attention this year? What are you interested in at the moment? This can be a story, an event, a hobby, skill, relationship...anything. Focus on one thing only and try to write as clearly and concisely as possible.

This year I did an internship at an established construction and infrastructure company called Relcon for two weeks. I was particularly interested in an internship at this company because it had encountered legal problems seven years ago as it utilised some illegal material on the roads they were building. Predictably, this company went into a loss for the next two years as they didn’t receive any projects. However, they worked very hard to strengthen their brand image and identity. They once again received many big projects such as constructing a highway in India, a large diamond office community, etc. Therefore, I wanted to further discover what methods this company utilised to navigate through these issues and retrieve its brand image after such a downfall.

This firm had a very unique approach in marketing their company and protruding it in a positive light. In the midst of all its competitors this company stood out as they voiced their sensitivity to sustainability and prioritised visibility and they broadcast this on hundreds of billboards, through social media and by hosting monthly gatherings to show the public that they are solely based on the hopes, feelings and needs of the people. I was highly fascinated by this as I was unaware that marketing played such a vital role in construction companies as I initially thought that construction companies attract customers internally. After observing and learning from the central marketing team, I realised that carrying out such measures in the marketing department can lead to client satisfaction, enhance brand identity and image, and allow the company to break into new markets, which are crucial elements.

I am highly passionate about marketing, and I aspire to study it in the future. Hence, I hope to work closely with the marketing team and grasp the realities of this career line. Unfortunately, my daily responsibilities did not include work intricately with the marketing team and aid in making the final decisions, but I was able to observe them. My responsibilities included developing ideas with the rest of the team for the presentation of the billboard display, which in whole, was an outstanding learning experience.

I immensely enjoyed this experience, as this was my first time working so closely with such an established company. This internship was a unique experience, and being the only student there, having a say and expressing my opinion for the most trivial things was a very positive experience and a proud moment for me. I was exceptionally proud of myself as initially, I was extremely nervous and quiet, but I gradually got accustomed to this unfamiliar and new learning environment and opened up. Carrying out this internship enabled me to confirm which career line I wanted to pursue in the future, which is business and marketing.