Change was the only constant during my internship at Ogilvy -By Darshil Shah from KJ SIMSR

Meet Darshil, a curious business enthusiast and a former member of AIESEC. He has excellent expertise in organizing events like TEDxPIMR, Hult Prize to name a few. After interning at Hindware, he has recently added one more internship experience in his resume. Read his internship journey at Ogilvy, Mumbai.

I was inclined towards Marketing from the beginning. I feel that it is a field that keeps the creative juices flowing. I never liked being stagnant and doing the same thing in a loop. And what can be better than an advertising agency to line up my thoughts? An advertising agency demands you to be creative and always be in a state of change and innovation. Hence, the decision to do an internship at Ogilvy.

Why go for an internship at Ogilvy?

Specializing in Brand Strategy, Advertising, Customer Engagement and Commerce, PR and Influence, Digital Transformation, and Partnerships, Ogilvy has grown strong since 1948. With 132 offices in 83 countries, they have carved a strong niche for building a creative network. This is one of the best and most creative agencies around the globe. I knew that it would give me the exposure to work with the best minds around and learn things that I wouldn't learn elsewhere.  

The process to get into internship programs at Ogilvy was quite simple and consisted of two rounds.

1. CV shortlisting
2. Telephonic interview

For cracking the selection process, I made sure that my resume makes for a compelling read and gets shortlisted for the next round of telephonic interview. In the interview, I tried to reflect my passion for marketing and learning new things.

My roles, responsibilities and valuable learnings

I was offered the role of a Client Servicing Intern. My duty entailed building a bridge between the creative department and the client, Hindustan Unilever, and its brands like Love & Care a premium detergent brand, Unilevers communication towards sustainable living, etc.

For this, I had to make presentations very frequently, or as they say ‘decks’. There hasn't been a single day when I didn't work on decks, hence it goes without saying that my presentation skills developed immensely. This taught me how to mix creativity with professionalism.

Apart from this, since I had to deliver presentations in front of the stalwarts of the industry, this helped me in my public speaking skills. It gave me the confidence and flair which I lacked before. During my internship at Ogilvy, I was exposed to a lot of research, even on-ground research. This taught me how to conduct the research efficiently and how their findings are implemented. To be specific, I learned how Kaizen is implemented in an advertising agency.

I was also a part of various brainstorming sessions, which imparted me with the knowledge of structuring thoughts and developing a framework. My role also included being a part of a product launch press conference where I was given an opportunity to manage the event which included numerous celebrities and industry aficionados. I must say it was an excellent platform to further hone my management skills.

Feedback and improvement go hand-in-hand

My mentor told me that having the curiosity to learn new things is a crucial skill, and I was encouraged and appreciated for the same. The review sessions and feedback helped me to tweak my methodologies and improve further. I learned about the value of time management, the importance of to-the-point presentations, and respecting the time of others through the review sessions. Fortunately, I was appreciated for my research findings, their intricacy, and spot-on accuracy.

Power-packed office and a positive team

Their office was not built on traditional space, they were more of an agile one. We had the liberty of sitting and working anywhere in the office. So, every day there was a new meeting place. Every meeting felt like an outing for me. They were interesting and informative, everyone had the leverage of putting forth their point and getting great insights in return.

I remember the team outing when they took me out for lunch on the last day of my internship. We went to an authentic Asian restaurant as being a Jain I had fewer options to try out. The team had one philosophy, ‘when you eat food, you talk about food’. We spent a nice time together talking about the variety of food we've had and personal stories. 

Thrilling moments of the journey 

I would never forget the connections I made during my internship at Ogilvy. There was a place in the office called ‘The chambers’ where all the interns spent time together, sitting and talking. We shared our progress on projects, roles, tasks, and brainstormed ideas. I will always hold these memories close to my heart.

One such day when everyone was busy working, the HR walked in and called a few of the interns in the meeting room. The HR informed us that there's an event tomorrow, a press conference and anyone can volunteer if they want. She warned that the job would be a tough one but promised that it'll be a hell lot of experience.

Obviously, we all said, “YES!” 

“Wear black, it's the dress code for Ogilvy peeps”, she replied back with a burst of motivation.

We reached early that day to manage the event. It was the product launch press-conference for Masaba's new sustainable clothing line in collaboration with UNEP. Masaba is one of the famous fashion designers in the country. Each intern was assigned to a celebrity which included Masaba Gupta, Dia Mirza, Afroz Shah, etc. and I got a chance to work with Masaba.

The event was wonderful, I also got an opportunity to meet the leaders of Ogilvy, including Piyush Pandey, someone I admire a lot.

I would never forget this wonderful day!

Enjoy learning and keep growing

I feel it is okay to be a jack of all trades and master of none, and I am one of them. I try learning every possible thing and love involving in a variety of things. I might not be an expert in any of them, but if you would name a thing I would have pretty much done that. Be it playing the ukulele, learning a language, doing meditation, or doing a professional course. I believe I am best at being the ‘Jack of all trades and master of none’.

In short, I can describe myself with three C's - calm, curious, and creative. Many questions keep me up at night and I continuously work to find answers to these questions. I think having a different perception, looking at things in a way that others overlook, gives one creative edge over others. After interning at Ogilvy, I figured out that they appreciate the learning attitude the same way I do and so I would love to work with them in the future. Every day was a new challenge there and I believe they stand by their principle, ‘Change is our lifeblood’.