Uncategorized – Page 7 – UF in Vietnam Internship

Apartment Hunting

During the past few weeks, the most challenging aspect of my internship has had to be knowing whether what I am doing is right or wrong. Unlike in the United States, here in Vietnam, we don’t really get a lot of directions when we are assigned a task. This has brought me the opportunity to understand that not everything has to be planned out in order for it to be good. An example of this is the competitor shopping project I was assigned. For this project, I was sent a file with what competitor shopping is and I had a quick chat with my boss before embarking on the challenge. Now that I have finished the research, I have to make 3 different analysis and a presentation. Since I wasn’t really instructed on how to do them, I have the freedom to make the presentation however I had like. This is a gift and a curse because, with the freedom, there is a lot of ways I can take the presentation and the analysis.

The best features of my internship are the work culture, the flexibility in the tasks I do, and the ability to not only work at the office but also go and see properties. First, I really enjoy our work culture because when it’s time to work we all sit down and do it but when lunch time comes around, we all unwind, and it doesn’t feel like we are in such a professional setting anymore. This is different from what I expected because I thought that everyone would be professional and serious at all times. Second, I like that I get a lot of flexibility in the tasks I do because I feel like as I navigate trying to figure out things, I learn more than if someone told me exactly what to do. Third, I get to go out, meet other agents and see properties around the city. This has been the most surprising feature to me because I have been trusted to go and see all of the properties alone. I have learned a lot from this experience because I have gotten an insight into Saigon’s housing market, gotten to see the agents in action, and an understanding of the different leasing contracts that are being used around the city.

I have gotten to try a lot of delicious Vietnamese plates while staying in Saigon. Out of all of them, I would have to say my favorite has been Com Tam from a restaurant called Com Tam Ba Ghien. The dish combines grilled pork chops over a bed of rice and although it might sound really simple, it is one of the best meals I have ever had in my life. I tried the dish at work while we were on break and from looking at everyone around me, I could tell I was not the only one that found the meal mouthwatering. Com Tam is definitely a food you have to try when you come to Vietnam.

All about the people

When it came to reaching out to other coworkers for assistance and getting to know them better, I feel like I excelled heavily. Being an outgoing and active member of a company is something I noticed is very absent in Vietnam. For some reason, many workers here lack the social skills to completely get to know the people they are working alongside with. I grew up with the mindset that relationship building was a very important skill to have in order for the road to success to become much more accessible. These relationships will further drive a person’s growth towards improvement and help a person overcome obstacles they were unable to conquer on their own. If it were not for this skill, I would have failed miserably at my host company as a person and as an employee.

I did lack in the actual legal department of my position here at my job. I had never tackled legal matters before so it was difficult at first getting used to the lingo and technical aspects of the position. Overtime I became much more adept at completing my tasks which I have to thank my coworkers for. Without them I would have been lost throughout this entire process.

This job has taught me a lot about possible career options for me down the line as well as showing me some aspects of my current career path that now seem unappealing. I like to think that these new realizations will help me in making the best choices for myself as I grow older and have to start making decisions that will affect me for the rest of my life. I will cherish the key takeaways from the experiences working for my host company and they will be with me for the rest of my life. The main one would have to be the acknowledgment of a business environment. It is important to work in a space where you can feel comfortable and happy. If I had worked every day in a space where I didn’t enjoy myself, I would not have been able to get up every morning and drag myself to work for a full nine hour workload. Even one genuine conversation a day can make all the difference and I have found that to be very important in a person’s career.

No hand holding

I would have to consider the moment I submitted my first assignment to be the greatest moment of my internship. Not because I had done such a good job, but because there were so many errors in my final submission that I quickly realized my work ethic would have to change in order for me to perform at my best. Thinking back on it now, I had gained way more out of my mistakes than if I had actually completed my assignment with minimal errors.

From that first assignment I learned how to better interact with my coworkers and how to accurately extract only the most important information and present it in a format even a child could understand. That is why I do not regret submitting an assignment I deemed okay, but the company saw as incomplete or missing essential information. I learned much more from my failure than from a success.

I think my greatest professional accomplishment at my host company would be the attitude I present when I meet new partners for Emerhub. It is important to be confident in one’s ability to meet new people and make them feel welcomed and content in an unfamiliar environment. Many client’s Emerhub deals with are mainly foreign, so giving them a place that feels homely and comfortable is very important. We need them to trust us to do business with them and provide them essential services necessary for the success of their company. This is an important factor my boss expected of us when conducting interviews or just having a meeting with new businessman.

In my time living here in HCMC, I have learned that not everything will be served to us on a platter. Out here we are mainly on our own. If we want to talk to someone, we have to take the initiative. If we want something done, most of the times it has to be us to start the process for said task to be carried out. No one will hold our hands when we finally set out to live on out own in the real world. Living in HCMC has shown me that the real world will be what we make of it.

A strategic company

During my time at Emerhub, I have learned that the consulting industry as been on the rise recently. With the trade war affecting many small and struggling business whom were getting by through outsourcing, Vietnam has been acting as a remedy for these companies. Vietnam is slowly becoming the new China as a result of their cheap labor and lack of taxes on foreign investments. The consulting industry has aided many new businesses unsure of regulations and policies in foreign countries establish their entities without having to deal with those obstacles. The increase in relocations from China to Vietnam has motivated consulting companies to take advantage of this situation and produce incentives for foreign companies to choose their consulting agency for partner up with.

The main strengths of Emerhub is that they’re a branch of an already existing HQ in Indonesia. My office is not the only location that can provide services to companies looking to enter Vietnam. This allows companies to acknowledge the experience that Emerhub carries with it. In addition, the company has partnered up with an ample amount of other companies that can provide foreign businesses with different services separate from just legal and financial consulting. This allows prices to be much lower than if these foreign companies went to independent companies that provided the same services. The head of the branch in Vietnam has been working with Emerhub even before it got its name. Therefore, she has the knowledge to help any new potential clients set up their businesses with ease.

Something the company does lack is informative articles or guides for foreign companies themselves to become knowledgeable on the subject. While it may remove some reliance on Emerhub the client’s success is Emerhub’s success.

An amazing moment I had was learning about the kindness everyone here in Saigon has. I can’t even begin to describe the number of times I had left something behind without even realizing it. Whether it was leaving a taxi or at a market, someone always came up to me and reminded me about the item I had left behind.

Figuring it all out

I found the most challenging aspect of my internship to be the lack of control put over all of my tasks. The moment I am assigned a task to complete I am given very little details as to the way it should be formatted or presented in its final form. I had been told that some people transitioning from the US to Vietnam would find this challenge very difficult to overcome. Unlike those people I found it to be a very unique experience I would not have gained otherwise. I think this challenge helps me become closer with my coworkers on a professional and personal level. I can engage with them every time I have a question or just need a different perspective on some task. They are like a library full of knowledge, but it is my responsibility to go forth and try to obtain that knowledge from them.

I think the best feature of my internship is the work environment. Coworkers are usually conversing among each other and trying to keep the mood light and warm. When it gets too dull and everyone is hard at work someone will usually bring up something funny or just try and liven up the room with some funny quip or banter. Even lunch time is something I found to be essential as we can choose to eat among each other or catch up on some necessary sleep through a nap. It is different from what I expected because I thought it would be a very work-consuming job. It ended up being the opposite. Work, even though I do make sure to complete my assignments on time, is probably the last thing on my mind while I am in the office. I expected to dread it, but it is actually something to look forward to during my time here.

I recently ate at an establishment near my office which I can’t remember the name of but had one of the best dishes I had ever stumbled upon. The dish was called takoyaki and I cannot express enough how much I am going to miss this dish when I move back to the states. The best way to describe it is squid or octopus enveloped in a ball of warm, creamy dough like a heated up mochi ball. It is lathered in mayo and another sauce.

Vietnam, you’ve been real!

Last weekend in Vietnam is towards its end. Two months felt for a moment like a lot of time, but know, I wish I could stay more. Despite the traveling and the excellent work experience, I definitely feel that this was not enough time to truly explore this amazing culture.

Regarding my work experience, I feel lucky for my opportunity. Being at such a great company that does something I found passion for, represented a lot of motivation. This translated in a fulfilling experience that led to exceptional personal growth. Being in a completely different culture helped improving my communication, interpersonal and cross-cultural skills significantly. My networking reached another level as I managed to create meaningful connections that resulted in more responsibility, more feedback and appraisals. On the other hand, despite growing in certain areas, there are some details that can be further improved. My time management for example was better as I was busier and busier as the days went by. Managing work, attending networking events and traveling did require good organization, but still sometimes I found myself stressed with many things to do at once.

Overall, I take with me many more positives things than negative. Creating contacts, interacting with people from different cultures and learning so much about blockchain technology helped me shape my vision and discover a new passion. As I developed as a professional, I also found a more specific goal for me regarding what role I wish to develop. This truly benefits me and my career path as I can focus more on details, certain topics and gaining deeper knowledge to prepare myself to thrive on the market I want to be in.

From this amazing experience, I take with me the cultural variety of Saigon, the numerous people I connected with, the knowledge I gained through all the research and the friends I made on this trip that are going back to the US with me to attend UF next semester and be my fellow Gators! The latter was a significant one as I did not know anybody from this big group. Showing how fulfilling going abroad can be and how can it change your life.

Good night Vietnam?

Many were the learnings, accomplished goals and experiences through this internship. Entering the last week, the time of look back (only to analyze personal performance) has come. Some personal goals, like expanding my network, were met. Other goals were just set along the way. But, for me, the moment I felt most proud of myself was during a networking event during a conversation with a C-Level executive.

Despite having grown this past 7 weeks and see improvements on involvement, problem solving and task development, impressing this executive made me feel the proudest. Approaching people during networking events can be tricky sometimes, as it can happen smoothly without need for unnatural efforts. In this case, I started talking to guy that was just arriving the event and was starting to set himself in a table. The first thing I learned is that he is half Vietnamese and half US citizen. Working in investment banking, this person rapidly showed plenty of knowledge in several economics, politics and social topics. One woman approached us and joined the conversation. When I said I work in a blockchain company, both were very interested in knowing more about this technology. That’s when the question came up and I felt like I was not prepared for it. I only had 2 weeks working in this company and was still learning what the projects were about. He asked me how the company planned on making money. After maybe 10 min, I finished with my answer and because of his look I was expecting him to not believe one word I said. Then, he just told me how people always go around the bush when talking about the topic and blockchain in general and finally said that I was the first person who actually gave him a proper and concise answer.

In regards of accomplishments, this was a personal accomplishment for me as it gave me plenty of confidence, which translated in positive changes in my internship performance and results. One of my biggest accomplishments was receiving the responsibility of editing and creating official documents for the company’s website. Also, I managed to link to prospective clients to the company through networking. Which helped receiving more and more confidence from my supervisors on more important tasks.

Life in HCMC has been something else for sure. The environment, culture and people have all bring remarkable experiences and have combined to help me see outside of the bubble. Moreover, this has help me emphasize more my international approach when it comes for professional goals. I feel more confident on how I want to keep learning about new cultures, travel and someday work at a different continent.

“Infinity Blockchain Labs”

As much as attracts people’s attention, the word “blockchain” sometimes repeals people. I learned that during a networking event this week. Either I had amazing results or people just started saying that Bitcoin is a scam. Well, let me just start by saying that Bitcoin and Blockchain are not the same. A simple explanation could be that Bitcoin is to blockchain what email is to internet.

Blockchain is a system that is used by Bitcoin, an application. IBL uses this technology and looks to implement it in everyday operations through many projects. Including the one I have been assigned to, called GINAR. It is a random number generator used to provide fairness in games that require, well, randomness. For example, online poker; where a lot of people play with the feeling they are being cheated by the host or other players. Besides iGaming and Gambling, this project aims for the Banking sector too as well as Lotteries. To better understand how this project can succeed, I provide a brief analysis:

STRENGTHS

Pioneers in many fields
Introducing this technology in different presentations
Provides fairness and transparency in a field where cheating is abundant
Strong reputation in the technical matter

WEAKNESSES

Need for bigger marketing team to extend reach
Cultural and interspeaker differences
Unable to link GNAR to more popular interactive games

OPPORTUNITIES

Generate exposure at poker tournaments
New technology with high customer interest
Gaming is an endless and growing industry

THREATS

Corruption in gambling market from actual host
Cryptocurrency reputation can affect the company
Government regulations

Being involved with this company has brought fulfilling experiences. But, so far, the most amazing moment during my time at Ho Chi Minh has been looking at the city’s most impressive buildings from the top of a high-scale penthouse. This, while sharing a conversation with people from France, England and Germany for example. One of them being the owner of every education building in Vietnam. That experience made me realize even more about the opportunities that this rising economy and fascinating country offer.

“-Blockchain as a service?-

At the beginning of my internship, I felt excited about learning more about Blockchain technology. Knowing that Infinity Blockchain Labs does not relies on cryptocurrency motivated me. They try to implement Blockchain technology in everyday operations, so people can find use for it and realize how important it can be.

After a couple of weeks, I was requested to search for use cases. Going into details about this technology can be demanding, as there are plenty of concepts to learn in order to explain how to apply solutions to customer needs. Despite of this challenge, this represented an opportunity to show how my understanding of Blockchain has developed. Also, to create new ways of applying our product to companies everyday operations and help expand our market opportunities.

Dealing with professionals from this culture has made things differently. Also, having such a mixed workspace, counting with people from Europe and several parts of Asia. This has definitely helped improve my communication skills and expand my network. This differentiates from previous experiences as this people are focused on other things, have another level of knowledge and they all share the same goal.

But not everything is work here in Vietnam. I cannot stress enough how much I have enjoyed food. The spiciness is something delicious. Choosing a favorite among all these dishes is not fair. But, as hard as it is, I think I will finish this with my favorite dish so far: Beef stew noodles (and a side of shrimp rolls)!”

Breaking Free

As compared to other interns’ experiences, I would say that my performance was excellent with Axis. The entire summer, I was given the large task of restructuring the website through client research and data collection, along with smaller tasks such as preparing presentations and working with reports. That is vastly different than the typical business intern experience of being either a coffee runner or a warm body in a chair to do meaningless tasks. Although I did not earn an official wage within Axis, I would say that I earned my keep along with the other experienced employees. The only room for growth would be to gain more experience through specific tasks throughout the organization. My production rate was excellent along with my dedication to the task. The only thing I can speak for is having more types of diverse experience, and that will only come with time and other tasks.

I feel that it has put my aspirations and growth in alignment. I finally was able to travel internationally in the name of business, and having this experience is a giant leap toward my lifelong goal of consulting internationally. I wish to assist people and be able to travel across vast lands in search of that journey, Axis has provided the benchmark for at least working for an international company. I also strongly feel it has shown the experience for striving personnel of Florida Women In Business, which is an organization on campus that I’m an active participant of. This internship will benefit my future career as it already shows my interest in international business with a willingness to work for it.

The key takeaways that I could say is that you only have one life on this Earth. If it’s a priority to see every part of it before your time is up, then make it not only part of your goals, but your mission to align it with either your personal life or career. Working diligently and building important relations with clients, employers, employees, and other figures throughout life will not only help you succeed, but also will introduce you to a variety of characters. I feel more in touch with not only myself, but the world in a whole. This journey is not complete yet as I feel like I’m finally breaking free.