Hey JLT! It’s me, Erin!

For the past two weeks I had been preparing for a moment such as this one. Now it might sound dramatic but previously when people would ask for my help it was worded almost as a quiz, to see if when taking the information and putting it onto spreadsheets I was absorbing any of it. Not necessarily for their own benefit or to bolster their work but to rather make sure I was getting on okay. To be honest, the first quiz I failed – I was handed a voyage and asked to try and determine a rate based on past voyages. I found similar vessels on the categories of gross tonnage, their destinations and deliveries and how old their makes were, but I did not prioritize them in the correct fashion. I was given a “that helped” sort of look but obviously there was need for improvement.

This week I was finally able to prove that the database I was helping create would be used further in the recycling sector of the marine division. I was given two voyages and asked to differentiate the two as although they were similar vessels, both modern in age and similar deadweight and gross tonnage, they were coming and going to different locations and each taking different routes, one through the Suez and one around the Cape of Good Hope. I was able to not only figure out that even if the two vessels differed relatively in GT, DWT and age – the most important was location location location – my supervisor said: “like real estate!” Finally, I emailed the similar voyages in an attached word document and continued on with my work.

It wasn’t until an hour later that I was finally told it had been successful. This success then translated into another email query about what a rate should be based off of the history of rates for the same client. It was interesting and rewarding to find out that the work I was doing was not necessarily busy work but was actually contributing to the company even if it was on a merely small scale. Although I have a little ways to go with regards to finishing and organizing the spreadsheet (to sharpen my knowledge of filtering and ordering) the work that I have accomplished is not totally useless – which as an intern is motivating to know especially during such a tumultuous time that has become of the merge.

One thought on “Hey JLT! It’s me, Erin!

  • Well it’s always good when you don’t feel that your work is totally useless:) Sounds like you really nailed it with the calculations that mostly varied due to location; good work. And obviously your success was recognized as they then gave you the next step to work on and complete. I’m glad that you’ve been able to see your contributions, however big or small, make an impact on the organization’s business – that is great.

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