How I became an Influential Leader

I am extremely grateful to receive the ‘Best Influential Leader’ Award for Barclays GTIS US Interns 2023.

I am proud to say that I’ve marked my brand. And here’s how I did it.

Internship Day 1, Anita Coppola introduced us to the ‘Top 10 tips for smashing out of the park’ (‘Take the lead’ was my favorite) and I can confidently say that I have made the best out of my 8 weeks internship by practicing them constantly.

Every single day, I was greeted with opportunities to learn and grow. I was a product manager responsible for designing and developing an internal networking platform to promote meaningful connections within Barclays. The project envisioned to bridge the communication gap and foster team building across various teams. I managed the end-to-end delivery of the product starting from requirement gathering, formulating an execution strategy, devising a marketing and launch plan, gathering feedback and making sure we had the next steps- handover plan ready. Within the first week of product launch, we attained a 100% adoption rate globally among the early adopters making the launch a huge success.

It was a truly transformative journey for me. I embraced challenges, honed technical and soft skills, and immersed myself in the vibrant culture of Barclays. I adopted the Barclays mindset, took the lead, exercised stewardship, and hosted multiple events during the summer. Throughout the internship, I built lasting connections with brilliant minds and mentors by engaging in various training sessions, senior leader talks and industry events. I have witnessed and leveraged the culture of support and collaboration at Barclays. These connections will undoubtedly serve as valuable resources in my future endeavors.

Special Shout Outs!! ???

Huge huge thanks to Anita Coppola for inspiring me, believing in me, providing me with opportunities and encouraging me to achieve more.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Lucie Kresl and Jacqueline Solorzano for being great managers and mentors by guiding and supporting me throughout these 8 weeks. Thank you, Gareth Hall for sharing your success mantras of which my biggest takeaway was to ‘leave things better than you found it’.

I had the opportunity to work with amazing teammates Pradyumn Pundir Eric Song Jackson Reinhart Dera A. . Thank you for the great collaboration and congratulations on a successful product launch.

I cannot forget to mention Raj Malla who conducted my interviews and believed that I would be a great fit for the organization. Thank you so much!

I would like to thank the entire intern cohort. We’ve had so much fun together and learnt a lot from each other. This experience wouldn’t have been the same without you all.

Lastly, I thank Wendy Wienhoff , Lyndsey E. and the entire Eller MIS Career Department for their constant support, guidance and for helping me build confidence in every step I take.