1. Introduction
The internship is a great opportunity for students offered by an organization to gain practical experience and knowledge in an Industry. This report is designed for the purpose of presenting my overall placement experience of the company, in which I completed, was placed and worked. There are two sections in this report.
The first section of the report presents background information about the company. It includes the historical background of the company, type of business, in which it deals, and the business goals of the company. In addition to this, the report will present key details related to the department, in which I have worked. In addition to this, the report is effective to understand the organizational structure of the company, functions of the department and the objectives. Apart from this, the report will facilitate knowledge about placement role or job description.
The second section of this report will emphasize on a critical review of different tasks and activities performed by me during the job. Further, it will facilitate details of knowledge or technical skills gained by me throughout the year. It will also focus on the evaluation of other skills and knowledge gained by me like knowledge of organizational politics, time management, teamwork, the excellence of communication, etc. Moreover, this report will provide the positive and negative experiences of me while working on the job. It will focus on evaluating how my course program has helped me to prepare for placement. Finally, the report will present details about the experience and practical knowledge gained by me for my course program and for my career.
1.1 Introduction to Company
The GenSight Limited was incorporated as on 8 January 2002 as a private limited company. The company number of GenSight Limited is 2888584 (Gov UK, 2019). The co-founders of this company are David Munt and Michael Menard. As per the registration, the nature of business of this company (as per the records of Companies House, UK) is business and domestic software development.
GenSight Limited is the name of the company, in which I got placed and started work. The GenSight Limited is a computer software company that is situated at Hampton, UK. The company has achieved a leadership position in terms of web-based solutions. This company is well known in the industry for its support to promote the innovation process in mid-size and large size business enterprises. The clients of customers of GenSight Limited are leading global enterprises across the world (Gen Sight, 2018). GenSight clients
- Coca Cola,
- Johnson & Johnson,
- Baxter,
- Natura,
- Westing House Nuclear,
- SUNCORP,
- Glaxo Smith Kline or GSK.
This company provides its services in different sectors such as technology or science sector, industrial products, and the consumer products sector. The core focus of this company is on the complete process of bringing in a new product into the market. There are different types of strategic processes that are performed by GenSight Limited for meeting its business goals. GenSight Limited facilitates full-service solutions to clients (Bloomberg, 2018). Example of these activities of processes such as:
- Strategic planning
- Resource management
- Portfolio management
- Product development
- Research & development
- Idea management.
The main product of GenSight Limited is providing integrated solutions to different clients according to their need including end to end, top to bottom and it covers the entire process (GenSight, 2018). GenSight Limited also provides its services for product or project portfolio management software is given in the form of sales & marketing processes, new product development, research & development, capital projects, process improvement, six sigma analysis, and the IT (i.e. information technology) governance. As per the reviews of clients, The GenSight Limited provides highly advanced portfolio analytics functionality (Gen Sight, 2018). From the review of the integrated solution, one can understand that cross-functional working system in the industry has improved significantly.
1.2 Description of Department
I have worked in the development department of GenSight. In general, organization structure can be defined as the system, which provides flow or communication of different organizational decisions into different departments of the organization and performance progress is reported to the top management of an organization. The organization structure of GenSight is functional. Under this structure, different departments are developed in the organization according to the function to be performed (Khalid and Noor, 2013). Example of different departments such as:
- Professional services,
- Product development,
- Product consultancy,
- Sales & marketing,
- Technical support.
The function of the department, in which I worked, performs the functions of development of computer applications or software for different clients according to the provided specifications and instructions. Development department frequently meeting with higher level directors who worked with strategic planning executives to enhance the key marketing strategies to increase the business.
The main objective of this department was Developing new GenSight Web Application from Old GenSight Windows Application as well as maintenance of existing web application. The consultants talk to the clients and gather requirements, which are then handed over to the development manager. Using the Azure DevOps software, he prioritizes the requirements, based on the discussion he had with consultants. Tasks are assigned based on the priority of the task, as well as the seniority of the developer. Apart from this, version control is used to ensure that the work is not lost, and we have a clear history of the code changes that have been made over time.
1.3 Description of the Placement Role or Job Description
The job title for this job is Software Developer Intern. On this job, there will be a probation period of three months. One of the major terms of this employment contract was that the notice of termination of the contract can be given by either side for a notice period of one week (Mader-Clark, 2013). Duties or responsibilities are assigned by the company, should be performed by the intern with honesty and good faith. It is highly important for the person to always work in the best interest of the company. It was also a major directive of the employment contract that the employee will be accountable to Andrew Farmilo and is required to report directly to him unless otherwise the additional instructions are received from managing director of the company.
As per the employment contract, the normal working hours for this job will be 37.5 hours each week. At the same time, the timing for each working day is specified as 9:00 am to 5:30 pm. In addition to this, the working days for every employee will be Monday to Friday. The lunchtime of 1 hour on each working day will be given to the employed employees as well as there may be reasonable and normal flexibility in the working hours according to need of the job and agreed with the company. In case, if the company withdraws prior employment agreement due to any reason, the employee will have right to adjust its working time by half an hour in its regular start and finish time (Mader-Clark, 2013). Due to this adjustment, there will be no change in the tenure (i.e. one hour) of the lunchtime. Apart from this, the hired candidates will also need to work for additional hours at the time of need for their job or duties. There will be no payment for overtime unless the company has agreed to pay.
2. Internship Activities
In general, internship activities play a vital role in the generation of learning in an individual. The active participation in internship activities enables a person to stay able to perform the assigned roles and duties in an effective and efficient manner. There are different internship activities performed by me during the probation period in the Company. My journey of internship started in the month of September 2018. I have completed the company induction program, which helped me to enhance my knowledge about the background of the company and its work culture. The development manager Andrew has helped me to understand the usage of GenSight application. In addition to this, I also learned the company architecture.
As part of my internship activities, I have also completed the training program of Kendo Control that is used for the development of new web application. In addition to this, I learned the conversion of window client application into a web application. This way, I come to know Kendo Telerik control is very important for web application development furthermore my career progression. In the subsequent months, I have learned the different kinds of variable configuration, usage of GenSight formulas and different sources related to the formula. At this time, I created the matrix of settings for all formulas for the purpose of handling the complex logic. The Big Data LDN Event of London was also a major internship activity for me that enhanced my learning and knowledge. In the month of November 2018, I visited the Big Data LDN an Event in London with my colleagues. This event has contributed to my learning in terms of real-time AI or artificial intelligence, storage and maintenance of complex data on the cloud, etc. I worked on GenSight main project and performed the tests of GenSight application through the usage of test scripts for PFT document. As a result of this, I have effectively resolved the issues related to uploading, downloading and calculations. My contributions to the development of GenSight’s enterprise software has been primarily based on requests by a recent client including Baxter, SUNCORP, Johnson & Johnson. In addition to this, the other activities were also given to me like working on the test web application, the requested tasks and to ensure that everything is running in a smooth manner.
2.1 Review of Tasks Performed and Analysis of Technical and Other Skills Gained
There are different areas of experience of me while working in the GenSight. Example of these areas of experience includes product development, report writing, planning and the presentation to the client. I have attended different events like Big Data LDN London and Christmas Event in the company. These both events have helped me to learn different things like teamwork, technical knowledge, etc. I have started working in the company in the month of September 2018. There are different activities that were scheduled for this month.
- Induction
- Meeting with colleagues,
- Setting up the computer with the use of my first name and last name Ambaji.jamalpur@gensight.com,
- Introduction to the codes of GenSight,
- Generating knowledge about standards and architecture of GenSight,
- Kendo Telerik control training,
- Variable and iForms Configuration.
I have completed the induction program of GenSight in 4 hours. As a result of this, I have generated understanding about the background of the company as well as the foundation of the company. I have come to know that the company has many clients. It follows the standard rules and regulations while running the business. From participation in the meeting, I have experienced that the staff of the company is very friendly and supportive to new and existing employees. With the help of development manager Andrew, I have seen the GenSight application and the technologies used by the company in this application.
Next, I have focused on the development and understanding of GenSight Architecture. This software was built in Microsoft technologies. I understand the application insights for the purpose of real-time demos and web-meetings. After this, I have started the training of Kendo Telerik Control that was provided by the company. Kendo Control is considered for web-based applications. In addition, the development manager of this company has started assigning different tasks to me on variable configuration, and reports configuration using Kendo Telerik Control.
In the month of October, I have actively performed individual tasks, which contributed positively to my learning. Initially, I have performed different tasks with the use of Microsoft technology in MVC. I created new controllers and views as well as executed different reusable codes for formulas. The reusable code can be defined as the function that can be used on different pages for the same logic. In the current month, I also performed independent tasks that are related to the GenSight Variable Configuration and created the matrix of settings for all formulas for the handling of the complex logic. On completion of October 2018, I have experienced new learning in terms of Kendo Telerik, MVC and the GenSight Variables and iForms, besides I took annual leave of two weeks, due to which I worked less in this month.
In the month of November 2018, I and my colleagues attended the Big Data LDN event in the city of London. Different data analytics companies were present in this event such as ThoughtSpot, Confluent, Tableau, TIBCO. Additionally, I actively involved in the conferences and seminars given by these companies on real-time AI (Artificial Intelligence). The other topics were also covered like storage and maintenance of complex data on the cloud. All the learning gained by us was presented in the GenSight in the month of December 2018. I also developed different setting configurations like reports, project settings, stage gate, address modifiers, and GenSight time intervals.
In addition to this, I also complete the test of GenSight Application with the use of test scripts. This test was performed through the PFT (Project Financial Tool) document. I have encountered and resolved more issues like calculations, downloading and uploading. Moreover, provided support to junior developers with regards to different doubts related to kendo Telerik Control. I enjoyed a lot this month because I went to conferences with my co-workers, experienced improvement in different skills and knowledge like PFT testing and GenSight settings configuration.
In the month of December 2018, I have experienced learning of different types of skills such as usage of code compression and the code refactoring technique. I have also learned other skills such as project settings configuration and iForms. After completion of this month, I am confident that I can use the Kendo Telerik for all controls. It is so because the loading process of this application is very fast. There is higher confidence that is developed in me about the usage of kendo Telerik controls in applications. Example of these tasks and learning activities involve JavaScript functions, GenSight rules, added rule variable settings, new views, and controllers, etc. I developed different settings configurations during training in December 2018 such as creating reports for different iForms, audit history, Address settings, etc. Apart from this, I have learned that code refactorization can be defined as the systematic process of restructuring the existing codes without changing the existing behavior of the application.
Like this, I have developed different types of learning by performing different tasks and activities in January 2019. In this month, I also attended the webinar meeting with Kendo UI Telerik R1 2019 Release. I experienced the new learning in terms of dealing with deadlines, and multitasking. By the end of January 2019, I am confident that I will use the Kendo Telerik controls for fixing any browser compatibility issues for the iForm layout. In this month, I have also performed the tasks like rewriting codes of controllers and views for purpose of making it easy to read and understand for other developers without changing the existing web pages and business logic. As a result of this, I have come to know that now the codes are consistent with other views and controllers. This month was very exciting for me because I had a made few changes on the main GenSight application for a real client, the name of which is SUNCORP client.
By the end of February 2019, I have learned different skills and knowledge such as presentation skills, self-reliance, and interpersonal skills. I also experienced improvement in different skills such as GenSight iForms and report configuration. In February month, I have performed different tasks such as enhanced loading HTML page and the appearance of web app changes. I have experienced working on different tasks related to a demo of the application such as discussion with non-developers, making understand the other developers that how I have structured the code, explaining the code factorization with examples and presentation of new GenSight web application. February month of 2019 has proved to be highly beneficial for me. As a result of active participation in different learning activities in February 2019, I had come to know that the technical demo is helpful to explain the actual goals or purpose of using the code. In addition to this, it also helps to understand code formation with different examples about how I achieved the requested time in very less time through the usage of the same logic and functions in different places.
In the month of March 2019, I have performed different tasks and activities and gained different skills including documentation. As mentioned earlier I performed Gensight application financial test through PFT in November 2018. I have experienced working on PFT (Project Financial Tool) to test the uploaded SKU’s data displayed as expected in the application for Jonson & Jonson client, I found an issue when changing the “ship-to-trade date” column in the document and the error was “the following SKU’s need to set up to a valid ship-to-trade date”. In addition to this, completed the requested tasks related to iForm chart editor settings such as chart axis and series. I was also experiencing to reviewing and approve the junior developer’s code. The development manager had set up several meeting to explain the reports, dynamic documents, and main project code behind logics. Apart from this, I actively participated in every meeting with the development manager and co-worker’s discussion on upcoming changes in the web application. Generally, the development manager will do the documentation and gives detailed information about each setting in the task subsequently, it is my responsibility to do documentation as well as development.
In the month of April 2019, as part of the training and work experience, I have performed different tasks and activities. As mentioned earlier my work is individual, in addition to this working at GenSight from this month onwards, it is a challenging task because preparing the document for each setting as well as development. In this month, I actively participated in the web presence with the company support team. The main aim of the web presentation was to understand the database level knowledge as well as update the client changes in the database. Furthermore, it is more beneficial to the developers because they will concentrate on the company upgrades or new development. This has not only consolidated my knowledge of GenSight’s database but has also given the support team a working knowledge of SQL, allowing them to make changes to the data in the database. My work on stored procedures has allowed consultants and developers to re-use queries. Apart from this, I spent most of the time working on the main project (GenSight), changes suggested by a support team of Baxter. In addition to this, the other tasks were also performed like completed the iFrom chart editor settings as well as new views created. I have performed all my duties and responsibilities in a well-organized manner.
2.2 Analysis of Positive and Negative Experience
I have distinct types of positive experience from working at GenSight. The discussion with the development manager on complex tasks and the knowledge shared by him was a positive experience for me. The friendly nature of all staff of GenSight group was also a positive experience for me. I highly liked the work-in delivery as well as workplace culture in the company. I extremely enjoyed helping junior developers. Solo working was also a positive experience for me while working in the company. It is so because everyone in the organization is friendly and helpful towards their colleagues and subordinates. Furthermore, the management of the company is supportive of the new persons in an organization by helping them about latest training programs and events that are going to take place in the city or surrounding regions. They help the newly joined manpower like me to know about the exact procedure that needs to be adopted for getting registered for the event. It had a great opportunity to understand the code-behind logic of main GenSight application and ownership of the current web application. They are also ready for financial support if anyone is in the situation of financial assistance. This type of work culture of the company has influenced me in a positive manner.
At the same time, there are different types of tasks and activities, which were a negative experience for me. It was a negative experience for me that I was not in direct interpersonal communication with the vendors. Due to this kind of issue, the development activities get delayed. This can hamper the timely completion of a web application project.
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