Abby's Reflections
Before leaving for Indonesia this May, I felt ambivalent about the trip, and somewhat anxious. I was a bit nervous for what the client dynamic would be like, and still felt like I didn’t know two of my team members well. Would we get along? Could we really add value to the client? What was my role on the team? I packed my bags and headed off, uncertain about the experience to come.
Two weeks, seven presentations, 18 stakeholder interviews, six departmental assessments, 50+ recommendations, and countless bowls of nasi goreng later... I feel incredibly grateful for the experience. It was a whirlwind of deepening relationships with my team members and the client, while working really hard and learning so much about myself, my team members, our client, Indonesia, and the consulting process. I found my initial concerns were unfounded - the relationships blossomed, and our work did too. This experience far surpassed my expectations; in many ways, it was the best of what I had hoped for in coming to Haas for my MBA.
Over the course of our in-country IBD project, I learned a lot about the consulting process. I appreciate the storyline, research, data analysis, and clearly structured approach to our presentations. This exposure to the traditional consulting process I really appreciate as preparation for my summer consulting internship.
Team Appreciation & Learnings They say a team can make or break your experience, and I’ve always found that to be true; which is why I consider myself extremely lucky to be part of our team and have Adi and Amay at Dagangan as our client. DJ, Savannah, and Alex were truly some of my favorite colleagues I've ever had the privilege of working with; our complementary skill sets and diligent work ethic gave us a solid baseline of respect for each other, while our personalities contributed to a dynamic and lively experience. This all combined to allow us to have a really positive attitude and experience despite the long hours, intense heat, and occasional inevitable frustrations - the problems shrank in the face of our team culture of enthusiasm and mutual support.
From Savannah, I learned about how financial analysis can lead to strategic insight. I admire her amazing work ethic, the fact that she’s down to earth and honest about who she is, the way she can be direct with the client and deliver hard news, and how she translates her strategic thinking to insightful slides. Her business and operational experience made her a great asset to our team, and helped set the tone for our group.
DJ we all considered the glue of the group; his presence held our team together, and his methodical, structured approach was helpful. I learned from watching him spend time with the client and humbly but confidently asking for data and information to develop a thorough understanding. From DJ, I learned about how to structure slide decks (with storytelling, headlines, process mapping -> gap analysis -> recommendations, strategic use of color and graphs, and using quantified outcomes to communicate impact) to interact as a consultant with stakeholders, and the value of being diligent in the details.
Alex drove the pace of our project while keeping us accountable to the client’s experience and expectations. I appreciated how she wasn't afraid to ask hard questions of our team, and challenge us to really make sure we had the right approach - even when the truth might mean more work for us; she was committed to producing a strong work result, and her questions helped us improve our deliverables. Her eager smile, easy conversation, good questions and interest in language were all helpful and natural ways she built a strong relationship with our client.
Savannah's Reflections
IBD has been the best and worst of times. Overall, Spring semester was an incredibly stressful time – from classes, to socializing, to trying to figure out what I want to do with my life – IBD often felt like an unneeded additional stressor. Whilst the client work was rewarding, the class itself did not add much value to my learning experience both at Haas generally and in reference to my client project. Therefore, before boarding my flight to Indonesia, I was not looking forward to the project. However, I feel so blessed to have spent the last 3 weeks surrounded by some of the best people I’ve met at Haas.
Our team, even when we were working late or feeling frustrated, kept a positive attitude. This pushed me to be and do better – staying positive myself, working harder for our client, and pouring energy back into the team. I have learned a lot about client management and the intricacies of profitability amidst hyper-growth, but I have learned the most about how to work in a team. I’ve learned when to speak up and push my opinion versus when to step back and let others take the lead – something I’ve previously struggled with in other jobs. Moreover, I’ve learned a lot about my teammates and now count them amongst some of my closet friends at Haas. And for that, I’m forever grateful to IBD and to Abby, Alex, and DJ for all the good times.
DJ's Reflections
IBD was definitely one of the best classes I have taken at Haas so far, and a large reason for it is because I was lucky enough to be paired with an amazing team and a fun client. There were 3 main takeaways that I got from this project:
Consulting is fun: IBD was a lot of work. Especially when we were in Indonesia, we were regularly working for 14-15 hours daily, and barely got any free time. We were constantly interviewing clients, meeting customers, conducting workshops with different departments, but all of it was a lot of fun! In the 2 months that I was in Indonesia, I got to learn so much about Dagangan’s business, the e-commerce industry, and the Indonesian professional climate.
Nothing beats traveling: I absolutely loved the travel aspect of IBD. There is nothing better than visiting a country and being guided by people that had been living there (our clients). Our clients took us out to restaurants we would never have otherwise tried, and we saw a side of Indonesia that might be quite invisible to regular tourists. By the end of my 2-weeks I had a huge admiration for Indonesian culture and values. Everyone in the country was so humble and nice, and constantly trying to help each other!
Teams can make it or break it: If it was not for Alex, Abby, and Sav, this IBD project could have been extremely difficult. However, everyone in the team was extremely supportive of each other both personally and professionally. Furthermore, there was mutual respect amongst each other. This allowed us to openly communicate our opinions on the project, and step up / step back as needed. Definitely could not have asked for a better group of people to undergo this experience with!
Alex's Reflections
I will always remember my time in Indonesia very fondly! Over the past two weeks I´ve probably learned more than in many full years, and I am grateful for many things on this trip:
Team: Thanks to Abby, DJ and Savannah, IBD was one of the best experiences of my life and one that I will always remember fondly. I am grateful to my team for its can do attitude, for being proactive and demonstrating high ownership at all times. Each time the client expanded our scope or asked us to look at a problem in a different way, our team knew that meant another long work night. However, despite the 2am nights, our group maintained high and positive energy, and found the motivation to push through the two weeks, while being professional and having fun! Spending 24/7 together for two weeks straight can be challenging, and I was impressed by our team´s ability to each pick our battles wisely, whilst capitalizing on each of our strengths and previous experiences.
Dagangan & Indonesian way of life: I feel grateful to have gotten to explore over 6 different locations in Indonesia, while eating some delicious (spicy) food and most importantly meeting incredible people during our time here. We were lucky to get to explore Indonesia through the eyes of the locals: Adi and Amay, and many more team members who took us to their favorite restaurants, showed the area and translated for us. We got to meet warung owners, suppliers, and Dagangan workers and most importantly open our eyes and minds to what it looks like to live and work in Indonesia. Indonesians are kind, hardworking and probably some of the most humble people I´ve met. After having learned to say thank you and you´re welcome in Bahasa, Javanese and Balinese I feel lucky to have gotten this experience and to say I took a little bit of Indonesia home with me! Thank you to IBD, Haas and my team for this incredible experience! Terimakasih!