This is my first post  on myRBopportunity, so ‘hello’ to all readers! I hope to give you an unique insight into RB through blogging about my personal experiences and opportunities.

Just to give you a quick introduction, I initially worked at RB through a summer internship and having earned a PPO for my work, I joined RB in June 2010 as a Management Trainee after completing my MBA from IIM Lucknow.

India Management Trainee Programme

Nine months into the organisation and it already feels like I have learned so much! I have undergone a robust Management Trainee program which included  seven months of on-ground sales and two months of trade marketing during which I was given the responsibility of designing a loyalty program for wholesale partners of India (who contribute to 25% of RB business). I am currently doing my Media stint.

While I do not have a choice of function; nonetheless I have had a flavor of most functions in the organization so at a later stage when I am ready to take up more senior responsibilities I am aware of what I am getting into.

The main highlight of the training programme, without a shadow of a doubt, was the annual sales and marketing conference in Rome! It was an amazing experience to be among the who’s who of the organization and hear perspectives and plans of the Management team. It was overwhelming to see people work hard, with such passion and commitment all year long and deservingly winning accolades for the same. I’m looking forward to the next conference, hopefully in another fantastic location this December

Learned so much in such little time

When I joined I never imagined that I would get to experience so many things and learn so much in such little time. The sales training period is so enriching not only in terms of the market knowledge that you acquire but also in terms of making you a stronger person. I was faced with many challenges along the way but the zest to perform kept going up. One thing that you pick up while working in this company is the ‘Never Say Never’ attitude. RB is a company where overachievement is a habit and it’s a culture where people who are spirited thrive.

Now at the tail end of the training program, we (all the Management Trainees) eagerly await our confirmation and are itching to assume our next role and contribute in a bigger and better way to this awesome organisation!

In my first blog I said the Information Services (IS) department at Reckitt Benckiser is similar to what many companies call IT but it is not the same. I also told it is very EXCITING to work for IS at Reckitt Benckiser.

Today I’m going to tell WHY it is so exciting!

If when you hear “Information Services” the first image that comes to your mind is of a bunch of geeks fixing printers and computers or writing programs that nobody on Earth would understand then you’ve got it all wrong!
This is not what the IS function does at Reckitt Benckiser.

The best thing about Information Services is the fact that we are one of the few functions that have an overall view across all the other functions within RB. IS touches our products from end-to-end. Our systems touch the products from the point of design through to manufacture, distribution through to the consumer.
This is one of the things that makes Information Services so exciting.

You can see in the video below what one of RB’s Global IS directors has to say about it.
He agrees that this is what keeps him coming back every day!
And also that it is the ideal place for someone who is interested in performing and excelling.

Since starting here I have had the chance to work in projects related to Finance, Sales, Marketing and Supply and that happened in less than 3 years!

But the most important thing about this was the fact that I had to really understand what were the drivers and goals of each one of these functions and how they related to the overall Reckitt Benckiser business objectives.
This makes all of us in Information Services understand what RB does and what the overall strategy is. Therefore everything we do is to deliver business value. We do not do a project just for the sake of doing it.

The other two things that are also very exciting about IS are the opportunities that we have to be international and the fact that we do not have a routine – every day there is something different, there is a new challenge and this is what makes me develop myself more and more.

When you are an international employee you have a chance to see different cultures and different ways of working. Plus, it allows you to see the organisation at different levels, locally and globally.
During the 3 years I have been here I worked on initiatives for Brazil, for Latin America and right now I am working in our Global Headquarters in the UK.
This experience is aggregating a lot of value.

If you have an open mind to understand different cultures and to learn different things everyday and if you all those thing I have mentioned here that make you excited as well, then Reckitt Benckiser is the place to be for you.
Check out our careers website for details about Information Services at Reckitt Benckiser.

From October 5-9 I was in South Africa for the 2009 IS Developing Markets Conference.

Developing Markets is one of the three geographical regions where Reckitt Benckiser operates (the other two are Europe and North America and Australia) and it encompasses all countries outside Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand where RB is present.
As you can imagine this is the region with the biggest mix of cultures, languages and nationalities.

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The theme of the conference was “Starscope: Future Ready”.

 The idea behind it was to bring together some of the best talents from Information Services (IS) across Developing Markets to work together during one week and come up with ideas to support the future of IS with Reckitt Benckiser and to understand what we need to do NOW to ensure that we can deliver sustainable and above-industry average growth in the coming years.

During the first 4 days of the conference I had the chance to work with great people
from all over the world; most of them were managers and senior managers. It was an amazing learning experience and all the work we were doing was being supervised by the IS Developing Markets BIG FIVE: The four IS Regional Directors and the IS Developing Markets Director.

In the last day we had to present all the work we did and our ideas and suggestions to the BIG FIVE and also to our CIO (Chief Information Officer)!
It’s really amazing the opportunities you have as an IS graduate at Reckitt Benckiser. I wonder where else in the world I would have had a chance to be there in front of a CIO presenting what me and my colleagues believed to be the best strategy for our future!

Besides working really hard during the whole week we had some breaks to recharge our batteries and to be ready for the next day.
During one of these breaks we went in a game drive and had the opportunity to see the African Big Five.

The chance to work with bright people, in front of your big bosses and you also have a chance to visit an amazing place like South Africa.
These are the opportunities you have when you work for Information Services in Reckitt Benckiser!