Abstract
Internship in the Hawk International Trading Investment has been triggered by a good plan. There are several departments in the company, which are the reception, accounting, Procurement, operations, and human resource. The emphasis of this internship process is on the accounting and finance procedures, which are aligned with the different departments. It is a six-week internship, which is divided into the six-week activities. Different phases of the internship process such as reception management, procurement and accounting, financial/accounting, department, operation management, and head management of procurement have been elaborated. After this, the internship assessment regarding knowledge, skills, challenges, and recommendations have also been elaborated along with some key insights. Overall, the experience was good, and it seems the first step of the professional career. During the internship assessment, some skill such as decision making, critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication are illustrated. With the comprehensive knowledge of the process and perfect utilization of skills, career objectives can be met effectively. Being a professional, I have to sustain these skills and knowledge to enhance my contribution to different organizations.
Introduction
In the academic career, every student wants to gain some experience and skills to effectively emerging in the professional life. Being the student of accounting and finance, I always look to enhance my learning and capability to contribute prominently. The graduation requires the internship in an organization. It is important to choose the company, which conducts effective accounting or financial operations. Interestingly, these operations can also be aligned with the course theories and subjects. I have done my internship in Hawk International Trading Investment. In this internship, I have completed different activities. These activities increased my learning experience. I have adopted many organizational traits and skills, and obviously, it is going to help me in my professional career.
Internship Activities
I have done different activities in Hawk International Trading Investment Company. The internship process consisted of different phases. I have completed these activities or phases in several departments of the company. The mainstream activity was done in the accounting and finance department. However, working in all departments of the company was a wonderful experience for me, as it helped me to know the department integrations, structure, and culture of the company.
Reception Management
Starting with the bottom line of the company is the best approach. It was the first step of the phase of my internship process. I started working in the reception department. Different activities such as telephone calls, emails, fax, scan, and documentation were done in this department. Interestingly, Mr. Fred was the key person who taught me each and everything. The most important thing was the observation, as through observing, I learned how information flows in an organization from the bottom line.
I was assigned to integrate with the supplier of the company. In an integrated system of the company, I received many purchase orders. My duty was to take a print to different purchase order and contact with suppliers. Based on the instruction of the management, I required invoices from the supplier. It was an interesting activity for me, as it helped me to follow suppliers. Interestingly, the documentation was also a key process in this company in the reception department, which carries information to the top management. At the bottom-line of the reception department, I was also assigned by Mr. Fred to double check the material, received from suppliers.
For Instance, in the documentation process, I was responsible for scanning the document and marring the weight and country of origin. Interestingly, this sample is to be forward to the marketing and export department. Along with this supply, I forward the scan copy to Mr. Al-Ghashm, Ms. Mariden and Mr. Nabil, and hard copy to Mr. Al-Ghashm.
Also, when working in the reception department of the company, I had to read all emails and reply accordingly. In this activity, I have learned how to understand each email and reply accordingly. I improved my communication through this activity. I worked five hours a day in this week in the first phase, and it helped me to learn how to coordinate with the top management when working at the bottom-line.
Procurement and Accounting
Working in the procurement and accounting department with Ms. Meriden was a good experience. It seemed interesting to examine the integrations of procurement and accounting processes. Djibouti and Ethiopia branches were in the limelight due to some procurement requirements. It is necessary to enlist some key equipment or other requirements which are needed in branches to enable an adequate supply. First, I understood the possible requirements of the branch and predicted these needs. Of course, the company intends to take some requirements from suppliers at low prices. Thus, Ms. Meriden taught me how making price comparison and share the information with the relevant department. In this department, I also had to integrate with Mr. Al-Gashm to confirm purchase orders. In this department, there is an integrated system, which combines the documentation regarding procurement and accounting process. My role in this department was to follow and track shipment documentation. It is a fact that I got the shipment instructions from an export department of the company, and accordingly, check or examine the Invoice, packing list, certificate of origin, airway bill, and bills of landing. Thus, based on the information, reviews in these activities, I was assigned to make a dispatch list. I was assisting in the delivery process. This organization has depicted some core values, which align with the different process of the company. Thus, in all these activities, the expectation was to maintain the efficiency, as it emerged as the core value of the company. Everything seems in the loop, as I learned how to send or share advanced copies to Djibouti and Ethiopia for the customs clearance. It saved the time of the company, as it justified the core value of the company. Furthermore, to gain the exercise in the accounting process, I was assigned to prepare the petty cash transactions. Mr. Khalid is the auditor of the company; I prepared the bank statement, to be audited at the end of the month. In the procurement process, I also maintained or prepared the daily transactions in the accounting book. Overall, I spent a good time in this department.
Financial/Accounting Department
A third activity of the internship was working with Mr. Khalid. He is the financial head and accounting manager of the company. It was the mainstream activity in the internship, as it was a great chance for me to convert all concepts and theories into practices. I was the great opportunity for me to take part in the audit props, to be conducted by Mr. Khalid. Along with the help and guidelines of Mr. Khalid, I took all P.O for Dubai Branch. It was the new learning experience for me, as I did not know how to collect the information of pertinent documents, which are to be used in the audit process. Normally, the company relies on the shipment documents of construction materials to conduct the audit. I was assigned to separate different P.O, based on the country. After this separation of P.O, I started the auditing process with the help of Mr. Khalid. Examining every PO was a key in this auditing process. It looked interesting to match each PO and match the paid amount, with the delivery note. I took time to complete this audit process and share the information or documents to the accountant in Djibouti to predict the tax. The company added these taxes in the financial statements at the end. Thus, I was a good auditing experience, as it helped me to me to navigate all financial statements. Methods of accounting processes and the execution of the accounting system of the company were experienced effectively in the audit process. I also spent time in revising the petty cash of the company. Mr. Khalid asked me to reconcile it with the bank statement. These were some accounting skills that I intended to develop when working in this department.
In the second part, and I worked with different accounting experts to install the accounting system in Dubai branch. I was an interesting transformation process in the company, and instead of facing the employee resistance, the company managed to make this change to improve the accounting system and integrate with all other departments effectively. The intention was to improve the accounting system regarding rapidness, efficiency, and integration.
After the installation of the system, Mr. Khalid trained me how to different things in the new accounting system. Despite having the automated system in the company, he explained the structure of the whole software. Understand features of the software in the department were good for me, as it helped me in different departments further in my training process. Based on the business process, it is necessary for the accountant to make some changes in inputs. Thus, I learned how to make some changes or add something new. Moreover, the bank voucher and journal voucher were gathered to make the account chart tree.
During my tenure in this department, I asked different questions to Mr. Khalid. For Instance, I was confused regarding the data backup and access. Even when working on the laptop, accountants can have access to the whole system and backup. He explained many technical experts, which was also good run understand the accounting software from the perspective of the information technology. I am quite capable of entering the data into the accounting system and take some outputs. Different activities such as office rent, Etisalat phone bills, office stationery, and many others are to be entered into the system. The company has installed the same system for Dijoubiti and Ethiopia, and obviously, it enhanced the efficiency and integration.
Operation Management
My next destination in this company was the operational management. I worked with Mr. Nabil who mostly works outside the office. My aim was to learn how external activities are managed or controlled by the company’s operational department. He managed the buying process and shipping procedure of the company. Examining the overall operational process of the company was my first duty. However, I worked with Mr. Nabil outside the office. For Instance, the client asked for the specific 2 tipper truck. The company did not have the same specifications, and it could take time to prepare the same truck. Thus, to save the time and cost, Mr. Nabil asked me to visit different truck showrooms and stores in Sharjah, Dubai and Jebel Ali. In an organization, the most important thing for the operational department is to meet the requirement of customer in a limed time. Navigating the current resources of the company such as technology to find the required truck was a good idea. Finally, we got the truck and paid 25%. Mr. Nabil is a sharing person, contacted PIL Company to book the 40ft container for Djibouti. Finally, we received the trucks in Jebel Ali and handed them to our shipping agency.
In the next task, we worked for the renewal of resident of Mr. Khalid. From medical examination to emirate ID registration and Residence renewal application, we navigated several sources online and visited man departments. The integration with the ministry of immigration was also a good experience. The portal did not accept documents, and due to this effective integration, I resolved this issue. The company’s HR department usually uses the IOS operating systems, and it seems to complete all activities. Thus, after complaining it to the top management, I completed the online process on the laptop. The operational department contains some issues and challenges, and along with the sustained efficiency, all tasks were completed in an effective and lucrative manner.
Head Management of Procurement
In the head management of procurement, it was a great opportunity to work with Mr. Mohammed al-Gashm. He is the head of the overall procurement management department. He manages and controls all purchases for Dubai, Djibouti and Ethiopia office. He explained me to make the difference between direct and indirect materials and make several categories accordingly. When purchasing materials for the company, he assigned me to make the purchasing system. Steal, wood, cement, pipes, and volts were several direct materials, which were to be purchased under the name of engineer purchase requisition. Interestingly, due to effective training, I completed the purchase cycle for Dubai office. Indirect materials are cars, machinery, laptops and other tools are also in the limelight in the project. Interestingly, these materials were added to the company’s assets under the name of Site Purchase Requisition. After getting training from Mr. Mohammed al-Gashm has worked with different employees to ensure the safe use of materials and protect company’s assets.
Internship Assessment
The internship assessment revolves around knowledge, experience, challenges, and recommendations. The internship assessment regarding skills, knowledge, and challenges is as under.
Knowledge and Skills Gained
There are several skills, which have been gained from this internship process. The first prominent skill is the decision making. For instance, when working with different managers in departments, I have adopted many traits, which are effective in the decision-making process. It is a fact that the business contains some complex conditions with the passage of the time. Even in the financial and procurement department, some issues emerged. I have gained the ability to perceive the issue, navigate several alternatives, and make effective decisions in the best interest of the company. Furthermore, I have gained the communication skills in this internship. I learned how different departments work due to effective communication. I got the ability to depict both, written and oral communication as well. The third skill that I gained from this training is the critical thinking. For Instance, I have learned to assess different issues in the company and use the different platform to resolve some issues. The example can be derived from the HR department. Critically, I streamlined the impairment of the system, which caused disruptions.
Relative to the knowledge, I have gained the knowledge of new accounting system. The company installed the new accounting system to make some improvements in the accounting process. Thus, I know how to enter or record the accounting data and integrate with another department. Also, the knowledge of operations and procurement has been streamlined. I know the preparation of the purchase order, dispatch list, general accounting practices and delivery systems. The time and cost are two prominent factors, which are to be carried in the company.
Challenges
The lack of consistency in this internship process is a big challenge. It is a fact that one week in each department is not enough to observe and learn all aspects. I was assigned to almost all tasks in the department, and it seemed tough to work. Also, it has been revealed that all stakeholders of the departments are not supportive. They are usually busy with their job responsibilities. Thus, it seems a big challenge to learn the process through observations and navigation. On the other hand, I was so overwhelmed by the company management, which created the impact on my performance. Thus, being a professional, I had to face all these challenges and justify the purpose of the internship in this company.
Recommendation
Based on the knowledge gained from this process, there are some recommendations for this company.
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- Hawk International Trading Investment must have to streamline some efforts on the bottom-line, as it can help to reduce the burden of managers.
- Like accounting system, every department must have to install the software to enable the automated process in the company.
- Some standard training sessions must be introduced for employees and internship officers to maximize the learning process
- The change is the necessary process for this company to integrate with some new trends in the competitive market.
- Instead of supporting the individualism, it seems pertinent to enhance the visibility of the teambuilding to streamline different ideas and make the whole process unique.
Conclusion
In the end, it is to conclude that I have justified the purpose of the internship process. In this internship program, I have come up with a plan for each department. I have gained good support from top managers and head of departments. Working with different experts in the company boosted my learning and experiences, and I can contribute to the success of the company in an effective manner. The most important thing is to emerge in the different business complexities, and being an internship officer, I am quite up to it.
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