Jamie Gustas
Risk Management Summer 2019
|
Role
Finance - Treasury Intern
Location
Purchase, NY
When did you work there?
Summer 2019
Please list your major(s) and minor(s).
Risk Management and Insurance Major
Provide a general description of the work at your internship.
During my 10-week internship at Sompo International, I had the opportunity to manage the liquidity of the organization through various projects. I was privileged enough to analyze premium deposits for our Lloyds Syndicate, manage our state guaranty funds, and implement business continuity plans for our essential processes. I was exposed to upper management through our lunch and learn series and learned in depth from some of the best in the industry.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
My mentor was an intern 3 years ago and since then, has completed his MACC and earned his CPA. To see someone who was in the program himself not too long along and has accomplished so much was really impactful. The closeness in age allowed him to grant me guidance on issues and questions I faced throughout the program and gave me insight to my possible future. He introduced me to senior leaders that he worked under at one point or another that made great vertical mobility. He also connected me with various teams so I could gain a holistic understanding of the company.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
Yes, absolutely. Understanding the language and connecting relevant baseline information and examples we learned from lectures, articles, and speakers allowed me to engage with the employees, leaders, and my own team on a deeper level. My counterparts who were not enrolled in a RMI program (finance and econ majors primarily) were unaware of what a lot of the content presented to them entailed and were often disinterested since they couldn't follow along very closely. I give great and many thanks to the program here at Temple.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I applied through LinkedIn. Although Sompo did attend the intern reception in the spring semester, I did not meet or interview with them there. I had a phone interview first with the HR recruiter and then a Skype interview since I was unable to make it into the office. During my Skype interview, I met with 2 managers (both from the team I ended up working on) and the HR recruiter. Before the Skype interview, I was provided a list of terms and topics we may discuss during the interview so I came prepared with relevant information and questions from that list. There was a week gap between the phone and Skype interview. From the Skype interview, there was a 4 day period (including the weekend) where they granted me the job. I had 2 days with no extension granted and I accepted it then. The total time between the first interview and the offer was about 2.5 weeks.
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
Yes. At the beginning of the program, my managers and team lead met with me to learn what I have learned in classes, what projects I had done in my past internships, what goals I had for myself, and what they were anticipating from me. My team lead emphasized heavily that he wanted my projects to be valuable and that I felt a sense of contribution to the team and organization. They described some projects and let me give my thoughts on them. From there, I was able to complete 5 main projects over the course of the summer while assisting and shadowing my own team and other teams with ongoing projects they had.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay?
1-2 Internship Lunches a week with food provided, Team building activities, Volunteer Work, Bi-Annual Party, Pay for travel Describe the company's internship program (atmosphere, work load, work, housing, outside work activities, etc.). The program was very unique compared to some of my classmates experiences I have heard about. There were 46 interns total across the country and in Bermuda, many recruited from UGA, St.John's, Penn, Columbia, Princeton, Illinois State University, and UCLA. I felt connected to the other interns, even if we were not located in the same office. They assigned us mentors, assimilated us to the fast-pace environment, and were open and available at any moment we needed them. I formed friendships with many of the interns and learned about their programs at their universities and learned the beneficial differences between our program here at Temple and theirs wherever else.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
I definitely expected something very different considering a lot of the work I was part of wasn't like that of the normal carrier. Working with the "boutique" side of the industry concerning the captives and syndicate gave me the insight into what could possibly come with my career in the future in that very specific sector.
Were you provided time off besides the weekend?
No
Finance - Treasury Intern
Location
Purchase, NY
When did you work there?
Summer 2019
Please list your major(s) and minor(s).
Risk Management and Insurance Major
Provide a general description of the work at your internship.
During my 10-week internship at Sompo International, I had the opportunity to manage the liquidity of the organization through various projects. I was privileged enough to analyze premium deposits for our Lloyds Syndicate, manage our state guaranty funds, and implement business continuity plans for our essential processes. I was exposed to upper management through our lunch and learn series and learned in depth from some of the best in the industry.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
My mentor was an intern 3 years ago and since then, has completed his MACC and earned his CPA. To see someone who was in the program himself not too long along and has accomplished so much was really impactful. The closeness in age allowed him to grant me guidance on issues and questions I faced throughout the program and gave me insight to my possible future. He introduced me to senior leaders that he worked under at one point or another that made great vertical mobility. He also connected me with various teams so I could gain a holistic understanding of the company.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
Yes, absolutely. Understanding the language and connecting relevant baseline information and examples we learned from lectures, articles, and speakers allowed me to engage with the employees, leaders, and my own team on a deeper level. My counterparts who were not enrolled in a RMI program (finance and econ majors primarily) were unaware of what a lot of the content presented to them entailed and were often disinterested since they couldn't follow along very closely. I give great and many thanks to the program here at Temple.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I applied through LinkedIn. Although Sompo did attend the intern reception in the spring semester, I did not meet or interview with them there. I had a phone interview first with the HR recruiter and then a Skype interview since I was unable to make it into the office. During my Skype interview, I met with 2 managers (both from the team I ended up working on) and the HR recruiter. Before the Skype interview, I was provided a list of terms and topics we may discuss during the interview so I came prepared with relevant information and questions from that list. There was a week gap between the phone and Skype interview. From the Skype interview, there was a 4 day period (including the weekend) where they granted me the job. I had 2 days with no extension granted and I accepted it then. The total time between the first interview and the offer was about 2.5 weeks.
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
Yes. At the beginning of the program, my managers and team lead met with me to learn what I have learned in classes, what projects I had done in my past internships, what goals I had for myself, and what they were anticipating from me. My team lead emphasized heavily that he wanted my projects to be valuable and that I felt a sense of contribution to the team and organization. They described some projects and let me give my thoughts on them. From there, I was able to complete 5 main projects over the course of the summer while assisting and shadowing my own team and other teams with ongoing projects they had.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay?
1-2 Internship Lunches a week with food provided, Team building activities, Volunteer Work, Bi-Annual Party, Pay for travel Describe the company's internship program (atmosphere, work load, work, housing, outside work activities, etc.). The program was very unique compared to some of my classmates experiences I have heard about. There were 46 interns total across the country and in Bermuda, many recruited from UGA, St.John's, Penn, Columbia, Princeton, Illinois State University, and UCLA. I felt connected to the other interns, even if we were not located in the same office. They assigned us mentors, assimilated us to the fast-pace environment, and were open and available at any moment we needed them. I formed friendships with many of the interns and learned about their programs at their universities and learned the beneficial differences between our program here at Temple and theirs wherever else.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
I definitely expected something very different considering a lot of the work I was part of wasn't like that of the normal carrier. Working with the "boutique" side of the industry concerning the captives and syndicate gave me the insight into what could possibly come with my career in the future in that very specific sector.
Were you provided time off besides the weekend?
No