July 9, 2009
Hi! I’m Maurice Williams, a 2009 graduate with a degree Computer Science from WPI . My post-college plans are to work with GE Capital (commercial finance) out of Danbury, CT as an IMLP.
I stumbled (or googled) across the IMLP blog as well as other fellow IMLP’s and GE employees on Twitter while doing some background research on the program. This helped me get a feel for what to expect from working at a large and diverse company like GE.
Unlike most IMLP’s, I will not have to relocate until my second rotation; this is because I am currently living in Norwalk, CT which is about 22 miles south the GE’s Danbury office.
The time is drawing short, and my first day of orientation is getting near. As the days pass by, a storm of mixed emotions is taking place inside of me.
On one hand, I’m a little sad to be done with school and been able to spend as much time with my friends as we used to, but on the other I’m excited to venture on to a new journey while growing and achieve my goals and as watching my friends achieve theirs.
I am also looking forward to making new friends during bootcamp and contributing the other side-projects while on my rotations.
There is no doubt that this is a very exciting yet uncertain point of every recent college graduate’s life, but as I move on and welcome everything the future has instored for me, I keep the following quote in mind: “Knowledge is an unending adventure at the edge of uncertainty.”
Guest Blogger: 1st Rotation IMLP Maurice Williams
[Editor's Note: You may be seeing more of Maurice in our blog as time passes, as he's interested in joining our team!]
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Leadership Programs | Tagged: 1st rotation, 2009 imlp class, after graduation, CT, danbury, ge imlp, guest bloggers, IMLP, july 09 bootcamp, maurice, new bloggers, new imlps, WPI | 
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Posted by GE IMLP Guest
July 7, 2009
Schenectady Area Interns Gather for Annual Event
Thursday, June 25th marked GE Energy Infrastructure’s 4th annual Intern Networking Event and Career Fair.
The events is an opportunity for Schenectady-area interns interested in GE’s leadership programs to meet one another, interact with program representatives, and gain advice on career selection.
Over 125 interns and representatives from 14 leadership and affinity programs from throughout the capital district filled a conference room in Schenectady for the event, which featured a keynote address by the CIO of GE Power and Water, an ice cream social, and the opportunity to interact with leadership program representatives from across the business.
The presentation covered GE career paths and gave an overview of the Power & Water business – from the new Wind building in Schenectady to how government regulation changes have impacted our products. The message left the crowd feeling that it’s an exciting time to be at Energy.
Read the rest of this entry »
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Career Fair, GE Businesses, Internship, speakers | Tagged: events, GE internships, IMLP, internships, Leadership Programs, schenectady | 
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Posted by Alana Edmunds
July 6, 2009
- Geek 2.0 > Geek 1.0
We’re all aware of the common stereotypes of “geekdom,” as personified in the photo on the left.
As a techy, I prefer “Geek 2.0,” similar to how I prefer
Web 2.0 applications over
Web 1.0 technologies, as some things improve over time (cheese & technology included).
Collaborative technologies (social networking, blogs, microblogging) are most known as our external friends like
Facebook and
Twitter, but there is a corporate “flavor” of these fun technologies that can also be harnessed to assist in driving up our productivity during the work day.
Known as
Enterprise 2.0 (or Enterprise Social Software), the integration of Web 2.0 techniques within an organization helps to deliver a rich user experience, simplified global collaboration and knowledge management.
Take
GE Docs for example, which was featured on the blog a few months back- it’s a great example of Enterprise 2.0 technology.
And GE is no different- and as IMLPs we often get to have a role in integrating these new technologies and ideas into both our projects and overall strategic plans for the business. It was just yesterday when I learned about cool business-specific applications that are being developed for our blackberries!
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Leadership Programs, Technology, networking | Tagged: Energy, enterprise 2.0, GE, information management, Technology, web 2.0 | 
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Posted by Alana Edmunds
July 1, 2009
Bangalore IMLPs join a group of runners to race for the finish line!
“Run Maadi Run”
was the punchline of the recently concluded Sunfeast World 10K Bangalore marathon.
23,000 runners made their way to the start line on May 31st, 2009 to showcase the spirit of Bangalore and run for a cause. We had 50 runners from GE Bangalore, including a bunch of IMLPs, who took part in this event.
The GE runners participated in two categories. Most of us took part in the 5.7 km Majja Run. We ran the whole distance dressed in school uniforms to promote the theme “Education for All”. We were carrying banners which displayed captions like “Education is not preparation for life; Education is life itself” or “A great teacher takes a hand, opens a mind and touches a heart” and others.
This effort was well appreciated by many and a few of us were also captured by the TV cameras and shown on national television. A few also participated in 10 km Open Run and some clocked impressive timing of finishing the race in less than an hour.
The GE runners took up this opportunity and collected funds to support an institution called “Association for the Mentally challenged (AMC)”. AMC has been set up to provide support services to mentally challenged from all sections of society. Today it shelters and supports about 200 children, adolescents and adults.
Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Leadership Programs | Tagged: change, charity, events, India, India IMLPs, Races | Permalink
Posted by Alana Edmunds
June 26, 2009
Kenneth Parcell, on NBC’s 30 Rock, is one of my favorite characters on the show. I especially like this clip of Kenneth from season 1, pretending to be a guest on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. (Click the screenshot on the right to watch the clip on Hulu, a joint venture of NBC that provides streaming content of popular shows and movies from various networks and studios.)
During Junior Bootcamp, part of our IMLP class got a behind-the-scenes tour of the NBC studios at 30 Rockefeller Center from our fellow IMLPs who were working there.
Here’s a fun photo of some of us having our own “Kenneth moment” on the set of Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
If you’re not familiar with 30 Rock, Kenneth Parcell is a fictional member of NBC’s page program, which isn’t fictional at all. The page program has been around for over 75 years at NBC, and many famous personalities have gone through the program (including Ted Koppel, Regis Philbin, and Willard Scott).
In some respects, the NBC page program is similar to the IMLP program. Pages rotate through different areas of the NBC business (including public relations, marketing, and production), just like IMLPs rotate through different areas within IT. The page program recruits competitively from a pool of college graduates that demonstrate “leadership, strong work ethic, and outgoing personality” – add a strong technical background and you’ve got the characteristics of an IMLP candidate.
1 Comment | Leadership Programs | Tagged: Bootcamp, IMLP, nbc | Permalink
Posted by Randy Askin
June 24, 2009
Awkward Photos of Alana: Visa Application Style
Why is it that passport photos always have to make you look so awkward?
So, for you readers out there, I have a special treat- my own personal awkward photo.
You’re probably wondering why I took this photo, or why it’s up here. Good Questions.
One major aspect of the IMLP program is training- we spend a month in Danbury, CT for “junior bootcamp” and then, a year later, we travel to Shanghai, China for “senior bootcamp.” Junior Bootcamp focuses on project management, business/IT finance, presentation skills, basic coding and leadership skills all in the context of a business “case” problem.
Senior bootcamp is the continuation of this “case” – where you focus on different aspects of technology, but also focus on leadership skills.
As a 2nd rotation IMLP, I’m preparing to travel to Shanghai for this exciting training event with my peers from across the globe. But, the first step is sending in your paperwork (and awkward photo).
Don’t worry though- I’ll be updating the blog with cool photos and stories once I’m there!
1 Comment | Leadership Programs | Tagged: China, Senior Bootcamp, training, travel | Permalink
Posted by Alana Edmunds
June 22, 2009
A little background about me… I’m Matt, a soon-tobe- first rotationer with the IMLP program with NBC Universal in July.
I first heard of the IMLP Program when GE came to visit Syracuse University (where I got my degree in Information Management and Technology) for a Career Fair. At first,I didn’t realize that NBC Universal was even a part of the IMLP Program until I met a recruiter for my first interview.
Following the first interview, came a phone call about a 2nd interview that would be held over the phone, and if NBC liked what they heard, I would be eligable for final round of interviews.
Shortly thereafter, I was flown out to Burbank, California to do a series of on location interviews at NBC Universal’s HQ in Universal City, California. The interview consisted of 5 different 30 minute interviews (don’t worry, I had a break in between).
After learning of my acceptance into the program a few weeks later, I was paired up with an IMLP “buddy” who is already on program.
On top of this, we have one full week for “orientation” at 30 Rock in the Big Apple, followed by the Junior bootcamp, whereall GE and NBC Universal IMLP’s train for a month in Connecticut.
Despite being more then a month away from starting, I am preparing for my move out to California (I’m from New York) for my first two rotations. Packing, finding living arrangements, and getting my things out there, has really been keeping me busy.
Posted by: Matthew Bellezza, SU ‘09 Grad, NBC IMLP and the newest member of the blogging team!
Leave a Comment » | Leadership Programs | Tagged: Bootcamp, California, IMLP, junior bootcamp, moving, nbc, NBCU, NBCUniversal, rotations, travel | Permalink
Posted by GE IMLP Guest
June 17, 2009
“
![Behind the Scenes... [Thanks to flikr's StephenMitchell for this photo]](http://imlpblog.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/bird_computer.jpg?w=240&h=160 "bird_computer")
Behind the Scenes... Thanks to flickr's StephenMitchell for this photo!
Hey, it’s Alana- your friendly blog editor.
Although you may not be able to tell just by reading this blog or one particular post, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes…
The IMLP Blog “went live” in August of 2008 (so we’re coming up on our 1 year birthday) and was the first leadership program blog of it’s kind here at GE (We’re pretty proud of it!).
The premise behind the blog is to provide you (the reader) some background on what life is like as a member of the Information Management Leadership Program directly from those who are currently experiencing it (interns too!). So, as IMLPs, we write in this blog as a side gig (in addition to managing systems projects).
Every six months, members of the IMLP program take on a new project and learn to work directly with a new team… and sometimes this takes place in a different city, state, or country.
Take June 2009 for example. Right now, those in their 4th (and final) rotation of the program are interviewing for off-program jobs, while 2nd/3rd rotationers are waiting to hear about their next assignments, and 1st rotationers are getting ready to kickoff the program at the end of this month before heading to Junior Bootcamp for the month of July.
So, let us know how we’re doing. Send me an e-mail directly (I’m nice, I promise), leave us a comment, or bookmark our site to keep up-to-date on the life happenings of an IMLP.
life update 6/17: My next rotation will be in Houston, Texas for Oil & Gas. More to come in the blog on my cross-country adventure.
1 Comment | International Rotations, Internship, Leadership Programs | Tagged: about the blog, background, blog, editor, GE jobs, houston, IMLP, Leadership Programs, locations, off program, rotations, texas | Permalink
Posted by Alana Edmunds
June 11, 2009
Over the weekend, Meagan, a reader of the IMLP Blog, commented on Randy’s recent post asking for questions.
She asked,
I’m a recent college graduate interested in applying for IMLP in the fall. I majored in mathematics and computer science … I am really curious as to what majors people in the program had, as well as what the IMLP program looks for in a candidate.
Meagan, thanks for your question!
The GE Careers website lists the following as the criteria for IMLP:
All candidates must have unrestricted work authorization in the region into which they apply.
- A minimum of a four-year technical degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, Business
- GPA greater than or equal to 3.0/4.0
- Unrestricted authorization to work in the country you are applying.
As the official titles of majors differ amongst universities, many of my coworkers (IMLPs) have had the following majors:
- Computer Science
- Computer Engineering
- Information Management & Technology
- MIS (Management Information Systems) or CIS (Computer Information Systems)
- Systems Analysis
- Electrical Engineering
- Double Majors: Finance, Accounting, Marketing, Math, General Engineering
- Advanced degrees: MBA, Masters in Electrical Engineering, Masters in Computer Science
But a very important aspect of the program is an interest in technology and it’s application. As a leadership program, IMLP is structured in a way to provide experiences and visibility (through a variety of projects and training courses) to help members become leaders in the field of information management.
Leave a Comment » | GE Businesses, Leadership Programs, training | Tagged: campus, IMLP, majors, q&a, recruiting, training | Permalink
Posted by Alana Edmunds
June 9, 2009
New Rotations, Locations, and Projects. IMLP!
In our recent Q&A post, one commenter askedhow members of the IMLP program choose each of their four six-month rotations (Background on the program: members change projects four times in two years.)
Since GE has multiple businesses, including NBC, Technology Infrastructure, Energy Infrastructure, and Capital, the rotation selection process varies depending on which GE business you are hired into.
For additional information on what’s going on in the GE Businesses, visit GE Reports.
Upon arrival at GE, the first assignment is assigned to the new IMLP before they start work. Also, keep in mind that locations and projects also vary depending on the business!
For the remaining three rotations, a list of available IMLP projects is presented to all of the IMLPs in that business and the IMLP submits their preferences anonymously. Assignment Leaders (what we call our managers while on a project) also present the projects on a conference call so the IMLPs can better understand each project and ask questions.
Next, a program representative then compiles the preferences of all of the IMLPs and assigns one rotation to each.
This question is actually quite timely, as many of the GE businesses are currently participating in the rotation selection now, as rotations and projects tend to wrap up at the end of August!
Note: Your comments are very helpful- please continue to submit them via the commenting function on the blog, or visit our facebook page!
2 Comments | GE Businesses, Leadership Programs | Tagged: facebook, GE Businesses, IMLP, moving, projects, q&a, questions, relocating, rotations | Permalink
Posted by Randy Askin
Hi! I’m Maurice Williams, a 2009 graduate with a degree Computer Science from WPI . My post-college plans are to work with GE Capital (commercial finance) out of Danbury, CT as an IMLP.
