Company: Sterling Bank Plc.

Current Designation: Relationship Manager

Program: M&S March 2021 Intake.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-e-idiong-mcib-27132830/

My internship has been with a micro finance bank called Baines Credit. The company extends credit facilities to SME’s and individuals in need of financial assistance either to augment working capital, or for other crucial, or personal reasons. The micro finance space is very competitive in Lagos.

Despite the growing needs of financial assistance in the economy, it is clear that the competition is very high. My supervisor who is the Head of Marketing in Baines Credit Micro finance bank has systematically shown me lots of business strategies which the company formulates in order to meet up with their targets, to achieve the goals and objectives of the company. These strategies include:

Business planning

Project management

Red open/Blue open strategies

Market Surveys

Product Evaluation

Digitized marketing and more

In addition, for effective internship, I was allowed to join some basic meeting sessions and presentations which has greatly aided my business knowledge. Methods used are practical presentations and demonstrations using graphs, computerized projections etc. to illustrate marketing strategies.

In conclusion, the internship is a good process as the experience is actualized in real time and you can quickly learn from real situations and case studies. It helps you to rationalize and understand market situations, economics, demand and supply, critical thinking, solutions and core next steps to take in dire situations.