I had to double check to make sure earlier today when I realized I had left home less than a week ago. From a very hospitable welcome by the Penn Club of Delhi and UPIASI in Delhi, to very personal and accommodating introductions and overviews by our host organization Jana Urban Foundation and Janalakshmi Financial Services, to Kevin putting up with my hunger at odd hours, I have a number of people to thank for the (mostly) smooth transition to my new home for the summer. 

As for my work with Jana, Kevin and I are both putting time into two projects. The first consists of defining a financial strategy for potential new implementations by Janalakshmi. Through secondary research, field research, market analysis, assessment of existing products and competitors, and financial modeling we hope to present an accurate view of the current market, and our recommendations for things Janalakshmi might focus on. 

The second deals with customer insights and analytics as we will conduct and analyze surveys of business operators within specific areas of Bangalore. This project is quite interesting as it will give us an opportunity to go out into the field and conduct these interviews ourselves, really getting an idea of what business is like for these business owners, allowing for a much more personal analysis in addition to the broader statistical analyses we’ll perform once the data is collected. 

These projects encompass everything I hoped to gain from the internship and more, and really set the stage for a rewarding summer with the talented people at the Jana Foundation and Janalakshmi. Although I am definitely not fully adjusted to life in this completely new place, I couldn’t be happier to be here. Looking forward to what lies ahead!

(Sorry for the lack of pictures, I’ve been a bit too caught up in avoiding oncoming traffic to find time to get a camera out…I’ll work on it)