Kuhu joined the Oracle Financial Services Consulting (OFSC) team right out of college. This team of trusted advisors work with the world’s leading banks to help them harness the power of our industry-leading solutions. Kuhu admits that, as a recent graduate, the prospect of entering the professional world felt daunting. One year later, how much has changed? Read on to hear how she’s grown as a consultant and discover if you’d like to follow in her footsteps.
What did you study at college?
I studied electronics and communication engineering.
Why did you decide to join OFSC after college? What drew you to this team?
When OFSC originally came to our campus for placements, my first step was to contact a senior I know who was also placed there. The fact that she spoke so highly of Oracle really sold me. That, coupled with the fact that the job profile itself really interested me, and I was looking forward to working for such a prestigious company.
What was the onboarding like?
The onboarding process was extremely smooth and easy. We had someone guiding us every step of the way. We had sessions to introduce us to different aspects of the company, as well as several fun team-building exercises. It was a great experience and helped us get comfortable with the company and our fellow new joinees.
Can you tell us about your role?
Each team works for one particular region/set of banks. The work of a consultant involves analysing the incident reports of our FLEXCUBE banking software. We debug each of these incidents and go through the customized code to provide a solution. The other aspect is developing any other requirements that the bank wants in addition to the base code. We do our due diligence for each of these developments and make extensions to the code and our front-end interface as per the requirements.
How do you feel you have grown in the last year?
When I joined a year ago, I could never have imagined that I would be able to develop any code or debug an issue by myself but over the past year, with the guidance and help of my teammates, I have become so much more confident in my work. I have learned a lot and gained a lot of knowledge from the people I work with. I’ve become more comfortable with coding practices, which I previously wasn’t, having come from a non-IT background.
Do you feel supported as a woman in tech? How does your team foster an inclusive culture?
All my fellow colleagues have treated me with utmost respect and have always been supportive of me. I’ve always felt included in my team! All opinions and inputs are respected and every member of the team gets a chance to work on all aspects of a project. Everyone creates a friendly and comfortable work environment.
What inspires you in your role? How do you feel you are making an impact?
I work closely with my team on tough, challenging business problems, and this involves working directly with very senior, experienced people. I learn so much from everyone I interact with! Learning something new and working on a new part of the project or code in a new language is what makes my role exciting. The opportunity to contribute to a new feature makes me feel like I am doing something worthwhile. Also, the fact that each new challenge I overcome will further increase my knowledge keeps me inspired.
How do you find the work-life balance at Oracle? How do you spend your free time?
The work life balance at Oracle is honestly great. I’ve never felt overburdened by work and I do get lots of free time for myself. I love reading novels, especially thrillers, and watching movies. My free time is mostly spent catching up on my reading list!
Why is this an exciting team to join? Why would you urge other graduates to follow in your footsteps?
The work culture at OFSC is fantastic. All my senior leaders and colleagues are extremely helpful and are always willing to help me. The best part of being a consultant at OFSC is the variety of work I’ve been exposed to this early in my career. OFSC also provides its employees plenty of opportunities to further their knowledge with its excellent learning portal and other ample resources. And as I said, and I’d like to emphasize, the work-life balance is great. OFSC is great place for a fresher because you get a chance to learn, explore, and grow in a comfortable work environment.
Can you offer our readers any career advice?
The best career advice that I can give would be to first find out what interests you. Then based on your interests, choose a career and company that allows to work in that specific area. When you work in an area you’re genuinely curious about, you’ll automatically enjoy it and be excited to go to work every morning.
Sound like a team you’d be interested in joining? Oracle Financial Services Consulting is hiring in India! Explore our career opportunities and create the future with us.