MYRIAD OF RESPONSIBILITIES!

While working for Deutsche Bank 24 SA Polska I was given a myriad of responsibilities in various workings of the direct sales department and beyond. The internship placed me in the position of being an assistant to the head of sales in Poland, a young, energetic, and extremely bright Polish woman educated in Germany. Although she is a pleasant individual, her bosses required a tremendous amount of work from her on a tight budget, therefore she expected a great deal from her department. I was no exception and was immediately given a great deal of work and responsibility.

My two main responsibilities were helping the boss with the overflow from the tremendous amount of work placed upon her (giving me direct access to just about everything in the department) and translation (something I was inherently competent doing being Polish-American). I was involved in budgeting, sales figures, planning, interdepartmental relations, payroll, and other day to day tasks, but the most exiting parts were the side projects I was given and getting to attend the meetings with the department heads. One project I was given was to hire a new sales representative for the Lublin division of the bank. With Poland in a recession, I was flooded with resumes after placing the advertisement. It was my responsibility to find the person with the required traits, education, and experience for the position, set up interviews, and, along with my boss, interview these individuals. I had a direct say in who became the next sales representative for a major Polish metropolitan area.

Another project was negotiating our presence on the various financial Internet portals throughout Poland. Since our budget was tight, we needed to be placed without any initial investment, working on commission only, yet have a presence that competed with the gargantuan budgets of City Bank and GE Capital Bank. My part evolved from setting up meetings and planning them, to actually running the negotiations personally. I was also given the honor of attending the corporate meetings held on a biweekly basis. The issues discussed delved deep into Deutsche Bank's strategy for Poland, their budget, and the expectations and shortcomings of the various departments. It was an eye-opening experience to say the least. The novelty of my American perspective also helped me assist other departments in their quest for success. I was asked to help the marketing department in planning a new ad campaign. It was interesting to learn what works to attract the Polish consumer while trying to include an American spin on things. The part that I enjoyed the most was the openness of the institution. I met everybody, from the president (who was a German executive), through the department heads (professional Polish businesspersons), to the call center phone operators (Polish college students), and in the process made many personal and professional acquaintances.

In essence it was a thoroughly rounded experience where there was no one single role but a total immersion in the dealings of Deutsche Bank 24 SA Polska.