John Baltay
Career Lab UK Summer Internships are an exclusive opportunity to undertake a six-or eight-week paid internship with a UK employer during the summer vacation. In 2023, there were over 150 internship vacancies exclusive to second or penultimate-year students at Sussex.
To gain an insight into our student interns' perspective, visit here: Career Lab Internship - Perfect for gaining experience in fields that may not be directly related to your degree
We connected with internship host John Baltay, Managing Director and founding partner of Fenrix, a boutique management consulting firm based in London.
Which organisation are you with, and how would you describe it in a couple of lines?
Fenrix is a boutique management consulting firm and we help global organisations address their growth challenges. We help our clients identify ways to drive sustainable growth through designing and marketing strategies and implementing sales performance programmes.
What type of employment do you offer to students and/or recent graduates? E.g., part-time, summer internship, 1 year placement, graduate job
We tend to offer part-time or summer internships and we are big fans of the University of Sussex internship programme. We have participated for 3 years running and often students wind up staying on longer as the projects get extended and we have had very strong junior analysts from UoS!
The junior Analyst roles include conducting market analysis, competitive analysis, new market entry strategies, and industry-specific deep dives. We tend to do a lot of work in commercial real estate, logistics and financial services. Some assignments include marketing and sales performance client support and the Junior Analyst might be designing performance dashboards and working with clients to define key performance indicators for example.
What experiences have you had with hosting students for an internship previously?
We have just completed our 3rd year running with the University of Sussex internship programme and it has been extremely positive overall. Students have been applied, engaged and eager to learn. Our 3 University of Sussex interns have all been open and have pointed out that they really liked working and learning about new industries and gaining new skills (Excel, PowerPoint, and most importantly, writing a strategy pitch for the client!)
What sort of characteristics are you looking for in someone you would hire for an internship?
We are of course selective and look for students with strong analytical skills, critical thinking and good numeracy. We know that we might get candidates who are stronger in some areas than others, but that is where the skill-will matrix is important. What I mean by that is, if a person has strengths in one area but has good self-awareness and demonstrates a strong ‘will’ to work on learning another development area, then we are eager.
What makes a good application?
As the adage goes, ‘luck is when preparedness meets opportunity.’ Prepare your interview, learn about the company, learn about the type of work and learn about who you are interviewing (there are so many sources on the internet today!). This sounds like basic stuff but it really makes a difference when we compare candidates – and this is what will make you stand out. Oh, and prepare your questions for us! This is also the opportunity for you to do your due diligence. It also demonstrates you care and have thought about the role.
Finally one last thing – we like to see how people think on their feet, so we may have a case study-based interview problem for you to solve. It might be a business problem to solve or a logic problem. We are focused on HOW you think and how you might solve a problem. If we do spring this on you, take your time, take notes, don’t guess, keep cool, ask questions and walk us through your thinking and approach. We care more about that than the precise ‘right’ number. Be concise too.
Why do you think students should take part in an internship?
It is a great opportunity to prepare for a full-time role, learn about how a business works, and get exposed to different industries and business challenges to solve. It also is a chance to learn about what you like doing and don’t like doing. One of our University of Sussex interns joined unsure what he wanted to do after graduating and at the end of the internship he said, “I definitely want to go into management consulting!”.
What would you say to students who are unsure about applying or taking part?
Do you like learning and do you want to continue learning throughout your career? Imagine you get paid to continue to learn but of course, you are applying your analytical and critical thinking skills. Then management consulting is the best job for this (ok I am very biased). Are you curious? Do you like working with people? Then apply!
How will the scheme help students to develop the skills you would look for in someone you would hire for your company?
The scheme exposes the students to real client challenges and exposes them, in some projects, directly to senior client management. They learn to sharpen analytical skills and use empirically based methodologies to find solutions for real business problems. They will also work with senior executives and also get to present their ideas and the team’s proposed solutions.
If students are interested in finding out more about your organisation or your sector, where should they look?
Read about the student interns' perspective of working at Fenrix here:
Career Lab Internship: Perfect for gaining experience in fields that may not be directly related to your degree
Interested?
Career Lab UK Summer Internships are open to all second, third and final-year undergraduate students. Applications open in March 2024. Early applications are advised, as vacancies may close at short notice.
The programme is part of Career Lab, a series of opportunities designed to develop students' skills, experiences and confidence, to help boost career prospects. Places are prioritised for students from underrepresented backgrounds, and we particularly welcome your application.