Then and Now: Celina
During the summer of 2015, we profiled interns from around the world in a blog series called My Summer at Goldman Sachs where they chronicled their individual experiences at the firm. As our new intern class is about to start their summer experience, we wanted to check in with our former interns from three years ago to get some of their reflections and updates on what they are doing now.
Let’s catch up with Celina, an analyst in the Services Division to see what she is up to now.
Internship: Business Services, Corporate Services and Real Estate, Tokyo
Current Role: Business Services (Travel, Document Management Group (DMG), Event Management), Corporate Services and Real Estate, Tokyo
Path since the internship and blog series:
It’s funny and a bit embarrassing reading what I wrote three years back. I forgot how nervous I must have felt during my first day at orientation. Looking back on my internship, one of the biggest lessons I’ve taken away is being proactive. At Goldman Sachs, nothing is served on a silver platter, so you learn quickly that it’s important to take the initiative, put forth your ideas, and communicate effectively to your stakeholders. One of my intern projects involved consolidating the Business Continuity Plan (BCP), which is a plan that outlines steps to enable the firm to recover and to continue operating its critical functions in the event of a major incident. Naturally, I had no clue what BCP stood for or the importance of it at first, but by taking initiative and asking questions I was able to piece together my project with the help of my team and have the liberty to inject some of my creative twists. Along the way, this project introduced me to the world of risk management and vendor partnerships. Today, these two areas continue to play a significant role in my day-to-day work.
I joined the firm in the Singapore office and a year and a half later I relocated to the Tokyo office to expand my role from one function to three functions—Travel, Document Management Group, and Event Management. There is no shortage of challenges whether it is adapting to a new work culture or familiarizing myself with a new field; however, it’s because of these opportunities that I’ve learned more about myself and about being resilient during difficult times. Today, I am also part of the Event Management team and it’s been a thrilling ride (with plenty of curveballs) that demands attention to detail and encourages creativity. It’s especially an exciting time for the hospitality industry in Japan and for the team as we start thinking about the event programs we can host with the Rugby World Cup coming up in 2019 and Tokyo Olympics in 2020!
Question from a 2018 Summer Analyst: What can we (as interns) do to make the firm better this summer?
Celina: Challenge our thinking. What you might think is normal might be new to us.
Read Celina’s original My Summer at Goldman Sachs blog post and check in for more posts from the Intern Then and Now series throughout the summer.