CQ FMCG_Luminaries| Bharat Chandra| AB InBev

Sure! I would first like to make it clear that my job is not of the core profile. My field of work during my internship was operations in Innovation Brewery which is part of the New Capabilities function. And now, after my PPO, I have been offered a role in the Operations function of AB InBev. My job profile is of that of an Analyst in operations. And if you speak about the different companies that one may target in the FMCG sector, I would like to mention that there are a couple of companies that arrive on Day 1 or Day2, like ITC, HUL, P&G. P&G, however, is a new addition and didn’t hire for internships during my time. Another set of firms which offer operations roles are different start-ups such as Blackbuck, Oyo and Udaan.

AB InBev was the only firm that I gave an interview for, during my internships. AB InBev is open to hiring from all departments, so everyone can write the screening test. After a preliminary test, 50–60 students were shortlisted and divided into groups of 10, for a group interview round. Now, group interviews are not exactly like group discussions, but more like an interview taken in a group as the name suggests. Everyone was asked about their strengths, their weaknesses and other basic interview questions. Interviewees were also asked to elaborate and discuss the points that they were putting forward. After the group interview, around 10 candidates were shortlisted and interviewed, and out of this, 50–70% of them were selected for the final offers in 2018–19 and 2019–20. They followed the same procedure for placements as well. Basically, this is the standard procedure that AB InBev follows. Firms like P&G also have a very similar process.

As I mentioned, the group interview round consisted of questions that are usually encountered in an HR round. They also ask some basic questions about the company apart from these. In the final interview round, the set of questions varied from person to person. AB InBev was actually trying to select people on the basis of the projects that they had mentioned in their CV. One of my friends was asked questions only on Data Science because he was aiming for a Data Scientist role. He was asked technical questions purely on Data Science. Another one of my friends was aiming for a more supply chain and logistics oriented job, so he was asked questions based on that. I was more inclined towards innovation and operations, so I was asked questions from that domain. One important thing to notice is that this was possible only because the firm already had projects in all these sectors — operations, supply chain, data science, DevOps.

Everyone has their own style of preparation. When I was preparing, I focused more on an Analyst type of role, where one should have a clear understanding of the mathematics and the statistics involved. In big firms, the interviewers basically focus on your process of solving the question. Your thinking process matters a lot. And if you want to go for an operations role, everything depends on your CV and you should be able to defend everything that you put on it. This is because operations is not a very technical role. It is mostly about the experiences you’ve gained on campus, and how your contributions would help the firm grow. Some internship-related questions that we asked me related to my CV were — How did you get this particular internship? What exactly did you do in this internship? What are the skill sets that you learned in this particular PoR? and similar questions.

The Pandemic has definitely affected the firms financially, but they still might come to IIT Kharagpur, due to its tag, although it is true that they might not have as many opportunities for students that they had earlier. The number of offers will probably be lesser due to obvious reasons. But, the students should not lose hope. Be more proficient in communication, because they most probably will have an online interview where it is very important to communicate well. If you are not able to explain your idea to the person on the screen in front of you, then it won’t even matter if you have the best CV out there. So, for this scenario, I would suggest people focus a lot on their soft skills. Try to do mock interviews on video calls and phone calls to get some practice before an actual interview. This will help you understand what kind of pressure you will be facing, or what kind of problems you can face during a video call. Prepare for at least two different types of roles and make a proper CV specific to those roles. Don’t underrate the HR round. Also, there is nothing to worry about if your internship stands cancelled for this year, or there is a gap in your CV for summers 2019–20 because companies do understand that. Do not panic. It is important to contact as many seniors as possible, get your CV reviewed and prepare yourself to anticipate the questions that could be asked.

Your Welcome !!

Sure! I would first like to make it clear that my job is not of the core profile. My field of work during my internship was operations in Innovation Brewery which is part of the New Capabilities function. And now, after my PPO, I have been offered a role in the Operations function of AB InBev. My job profile is of that of an Analyst in operations. And if you speak about the different companies that one may target in the FMCG sector, I would like to mention that there are a couple of companies that arrive on Day 1 or Day2, like ITC, HUL, P&G. P&G, however, is a new addition and didn’t hire for internships during my time. Another set of firms which offer operations roles are different start-ups such as Blackbuck, Oyo and Udaan.

AB InBev was the only firm that I gave an interview for, during my internships. AB InBev is open to hiring from all departments, so everyone can write the screening test. After a preliminary test, 50–60 students were shortlisted and divided into groups of 10, for a group interview round. Now, group interviews are not exactly like group discussions, but more like an interview taken in a group as the name suggests. Everyone was asked about their strengths, their weaknesses and other basic interview questions. Interviewees were also asked to elaborate and discuss the points that they were putting forward. After the group interview, around 10 candidates were shortlisted and interviewed, and out of this, 50–70% of them were selected for the final offers in 2018–19 and 2019–20. They followed the same procedure for placements as well. Basically, this is the standard procedure that AB InBev follows. Firms like P&G also have a very similar process.

As I mentioned, the group interview round consisted of questions that are usually encountered in an HR round. They also ask some basic questions about the company apart from these. In the final interview round, the set of questions varied from person to person. AB InBev was actually trying to select people on the basis of the projects that they had mentioned in their CV. One of my friends was asked questions only on Data Science because he was aiming for a Data Scientist role. He was asked technical questions purely on Data Science. Another one of my friends was aiming for a more supply chain and logistics oriented job, so he was asked questions based on that. I was more inclined towards innovation and operations, so I was asked questions from that domain. One important thing to notice is that this was possible only because the firm already had projects in all these sectors — operations, supply chain, data science, DevOps.

I think one underrated part of the whole process is the HR interview round. During my whole Placecomm tenure, I have seen people underrating/undervaluing the HR round, which I believe is very misplaced. And sometimes because of this, people end up not getting selected despite performing really well in the technical rounds. In the technical rounds/test, the company has already seen that you have the required skills, but it still needs to check you on the grounds of your soft skills, your ability to learn and collaborate. Therefore, it is extremely important to give emphasis on your soft skills and work on polishing them. This goes a long way in not just the HR Rounds of the interview, but also the technical rounds, where being able to communicate well and sell yourself creates a good impression. More so, if you are interviewing for an international offer. You also have to frame your answers in such a way that shows that you gel well with the principles and values of the firm. It will definitely be of help to visit the company website and read about their principles and what they look for in their people. Also, a lot of students with high CGPA are asked questions on whether they would like to go for an MS or PhD, i.e, pursue higher studies, and an incredible number of students aren’t able to answer this convincingly. Another question that one might face could be on the coherence of what’s mentioned on the CV. A lot of times students would have done projects in AI-ML, Finance or something unrelated to one another. Such CVs are prone to questions on why they have such varied projects/internships on their CV and it’s going to be helpful to keep an answer ready for that too. Additionally, one must know their CV in and out. You should be able to explain everything that you have put on your CV.

Everyone has their own style of preparation. When I was preparing, I focused more on an Analyst type of role, where one should have a clear understanding of the mathematics and the statistics involved. In big firms, the interviewers basically focus on your process of solving the question. Your thinking process matters a lot. And if you want to go for an operations role, everything depends on your CV and you should be able to defend everything that you put on it. This is because operations is not a very technical role. It is mostly about the experiences you’ve gained on campus, and how your contributions would help the firm grow. Some internship-related questions that we asked me related to my CV were — How did you get this particular internship? What exactly did you do in this internship? What are the skill sets that you learned in this particular PoR? and similar questions.

The Pandemic has definitely affected the firms financially, but they still might come to IIT Kharagpur, due to its tag, although it is true that they might not have as many opportunities for students that they had earlier. The number of offers will probably be lesser due to obvious reasons. But, the students should not lose hope. Be more proficient in communication, because they most probably will have an online interview where it is very important to communicate well. If you are not able to explain your idea to the person on the screen in front of you, then it won’t even matter if you have the best CV out there. So, for this scenario, I would suggest people focus a lot on their soft skills. Try to do mock interviews on video calls and phone calls to get some practice before an actual interview. This will help you understand what kind of pressure you will be facing, or what kind of problems you can face during a video call. Prepare for at least two different types of roles and make a proper CV specific to those roles. Don’t underrate the HR round. Also, there is nothing to worry about if your internship stands cancelled for this year, or there is a gap in your CV for summers 2019–20 because companies do understand that. Do not panic. It is important to contact as many seniors as possible, get your CV reviewed and prepare yourself to anticipate the questions that could be asked.