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October 29th, 2019

A-PDF
The TextTeam,
Recruiting Replace DEMO: Purchase from www.A-PDF.com to remove the watermark
Hindustan Unilever Limited

Subject Line: Application for the Unilever Future Leaders Programme

Dear Ma’am/Sir

It is with great enthusiasm that I write this letter to express my interest in joining the Unilever Future Leaders Programme, in
the Sales and Marketing domain. I firmly believe that my self-motivated attitude, flexibility to adapt to change and my versatility,
coupled with sound leadership and team collaborative skills, backed by an innate passion to work in the high impact FMCG
space, makes me a perfect fit for this role.

While growing up, I had the privilege to pursue my schooling from various parts of the country (7 schools over 13 years). This
cultural exposure from a nascent age helped me become adaptable, empathetic, as well as perseverant to excel in every
endeavour of mine, including academics. Upon securing the State Rank 1 in ISC Class XII Board Exams, I pursued my under-
graduation in commerce from the esteemed Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC). In my final year, I received an admit from
ISB, via the prestigious Young Leaders Program, which necessitated me to join the school after 2 years of work experience
across functions and industries, which led me to undertake opportunities in the spheres of Consulting and Finance.

My inclination towards understanding business strategy and solving live challenges drove me to start my career as an Analyst
with KPMG India’s Advisory practice, where I worked with numerous clients across industries, ranging from Manufacturing to
F&B and Entertainment. At the age of 20, I was the youngest employee to independently lead a business review of a large
restaurant chain - 25 outlets across 7 states in 30 days - helping them streamline their operational costs. My stint at KPMG has
played a critical role in helping me refine my inter-personal and communication skills and sharpen my analytical skills.

I then embarked on a new journey with D. E. Shaw & Co., a global hedge fund, where I was an Associate with the Asset Backed
Securities (ABS) Strategy. I was working in a fast-paced, dynamic environment, in liaison with traders across the world, building
trade strategies on mortgage backed securities (MBS). I was instrumental in facilitating investment across sectors, like Aircraft
and Commercial Mortgage. I initiated innovative projects that augmented process efficiency, like developing an in-house
research portal, that has since then, been replicated across other teams. Here, I got the opportunity to manage multiple
stakeholders across countries and be an active part of organisation building by leading teams and training new hires.

In addition to my academic and professional achievements, my exposure to a vast set of extra-curricular activities has played a
crucial role in helping me develop a holistic personality. By holding positions of responsibility both at SRCC (Vice-President of
Dalal Street Society) and currently at ISB (Vice-President of Public Policy Club), I have learnt invaluable lessons on leadership
and resource management. Additionally, divergent experiences, like publishing and presenting my research paper at an
international conference in Malaysia during college; Representing our country as a part of the Indian delegation for the ‘World
Governance Expedition’ to Israel in 2019, have helped me widen my perspectives.

In the course of my 7 months at ISB, I have had an unparalleled learning experience, with the most important learning being -
discovering my interest in marketing and the FMCG sector. Through academic studies, through an experiential strategy project
for a marketing consulting firm, as well as through participating in and emerging as the National Winner of both the Reckitt
Benckiser Global Challenge’19, and the P&G Emerging Leaders Program, I was able to get a first-hand insight into the realm of
marketing and the industry FMCG, which has propelled my drive to venture into this sector post my MBA.

As an impact driven individual, I am eagerly looking forward to joining a company that has the power to positively influence the
lives of millions of people, through innovation at its core. This has, thus, drawn me so passionately towards HUL. The company’s
values centred on positive impact, continuous commitment, setting out aspirations and collaborative working deeply appeals
to me. Through its array of pioneering brands, and its host of community and sustainable development projects, ranging from
Project Shakti, to the Suvidha centre, to the Swachhata Curriculum, the organisation is committed to growing the business in
an inclusive manner by maximizing its constructive impact on communities and environment. By joining this committed
organisation, I will be able to contribute to this vision, which thoroughly excites me.

The UFLP offer, would be the perfect launch pad for me, to start my post-MBA career, amidst a pool of extraordinary minds in
an intellectually invigorating environment. I am keen to be a part of this network, learn from the experiences of people and
contribute to the company and its mission through my active personality.

Thanks,
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EDUCATION
Indian School of Business, PGP in Management (Intended Majors – Marketing & Strategy) Apr ‘19 - Present
Case Competitions:
● National Winner & PPI Holder (1/12000+): Reckitt Benckiser Global Challenge’19 – Won across 4 eliminative rounds spanning 3 months
- Presented an end-to-end B-plan for a pre-natal nutritional product portfolio for pregnant women to tackle maternal undernutrition
- Awarded a cash prize of ₹ 10 Lakhs with an opportunity to represent India at Global Finale in London competing against 13 countries
● National Winner & PPI Holder (top 70/2000+): P&G Emerging Leader; Created a precision marketing plan for a nascent shampoo brand
● Campus Finalist: Reliance Conquest (10/250+) & Accenture Challenge (14/200+); Undertook business decisions in a simulated setting
Leadership and Other Achievements:
● Vice-President, Public Policy Club: Youngest candidate in the history of ISB to hold an elected post; Leading a 6-member team
- Organised Deccan Dialogue’19 (300+ national delegates), with the MEA, Govt. of India, presided over by Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu
● Strategy ELP (ongoing): Advising GALE Partners, a marketing consulting firm, on devising a market-entry & growth strategy for India
● Admitted via the Young Leaders Program, amongst the top 6% from 2500+ applicants across India
Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi - B. Com (H) (85%, Top 5 percentile among 700+ students) Jul ‘14 - Jun ‘17
● International Winner (1/250; 20+ nations): Received SIBR Excellence Award for Best Research Paper presented at Kuala Lumpur
● International Exchange (10/400): Selected for an incoming Indo-Korean Exchange Program, led a session for 75+ on financial inclusion
● National Finalist (6/1500 teams): Market Mania - EY-Business Conclave, devised a go-to-market strategy for a real estate aggregator
Gitanjali Senior School, Hyderabad, [State Rank 1, AIR 5 out of ~70,000 students, ISC - 98.25%] Apr ‘13 - Jun ‘14

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
D.E. Shaw & Co. | Associate, Asset Backed Securities (ABS) Dec ‘17 - Mar ‘19
Worked with the NYC Trading Desk on building trade strategies and steering pre & post trade analysis on mortgage backed securities (MBS)
Key Recognitions:
● Awarded ‘Exceptional’ rating, (top 5% employees), in 2 consecutive reviews & received formal appreciation from MD, ABS
● Recipient of the ‘Young Leader Award’ (2/25 associates) in ‘18-19 for displaying strong leadership skills & undertaking initiatives at work
Key Engagements:
● Facilitated a $12 Mn investment across 3 Commercial MBS deals by developing a property analysis tool based on 8 unique parameters
- Led to an in feasible-property identification through evaluation of property occupancy, tenancy, bankruptcy & auction
- Reached a firm-wide readership of 200+ on monthly studies published on retail bankruptcy in US, evaluating 10+ bankrupt retailers
● Sole Associate (1/10) handpicked to work with the SVP of ABS, to identify a new investment opportunity in the ABS space
- Identified & structured an ~$18 Mn investment in 2 deals of Aircraft ABS by analyzing 10 KPIs, & assessing macro & liquidity risks
- Evaluated deal performance based on Aircraft appraisal value, servicer performance, loan-to-value assessment & cash flows
● Created a custom REIT index by undertaking financial modelling for 10 Equity REITs & benchmarked performance against S&P Index
Process Efficiency:
● Condensed cycle time from 5 to 2 days/week & reduced errors by 75%, by streamlining process of counterparty trade reconciliation
● Saved ~200 recurring annual hours by creating an in-house research portal to collate & track 40+ daily reports & calls across sectors
Stakeholder Management:
● Convened bi-weekly internal investment committee meetings with 8 senior stakeholders from across 4 teams globally across the firm
● Mentored 4 hires & reduced training time by 2 weeks (avg 5) by leading a 3-member team to design a standardised training program
● Implemented pre-placement initiatives at DU, which led to 120% rise in hiring YoY, by working alongside the recruitment team
KPMG India | Analyst, Risk Advisory Services Jun ‘17 - Dec ‘17
Worked as a front-end consultant with Manufacturing, F&B and Entertainment clients for process assessment, control & risk mitigation
Key Recognition: Youngest employee (20 vs avg-age 25) to independently spearhead a project; Received special recognition from Partner
Project Management:
● Helmed the business review of a large restaurant chain across south & east-India (25 outlets across 7 states in 30 days)
- Reduced losses of ~$40K arising due to overpayment to seasonal employees, by mapping attendance, over-time & incentive pays
- Trained 6 associates for the review & managed their fieldwork; Presented the findings to Client as the Southern & Eastern Lead
● Saved ~$100K in costs for a public sector manufacturing company, specialising in production of metals & alloys for defence uses
- Reduced lead time per order (6 to 3 weeks) by recommending instituting long-term contracts & by training staff to use online portal
Client Acquisition: Onboarded 2 new clients worth $45K, competing against 3 major firms; sole analyst involved in proposal pitching

EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACHIEVEMENTS
Performing Arts: Lead Actor in a TV-Show aired on Doordarshan, ‘Adventures in Odyssey’- Indian adaptation of an American radio show
Student Leadership: Vice President, Dalal Street Society, SRCC (‘15-‘16)
● Led a 90-member club, comprising 5 teams, to conceptualize & execute the flagship, 2-day finance & stock market fest- ‘Bullzire’
● Garnered maximum footfalls (1500+ students/day-20% increase over previous year) through social media campaigns & new events
Government Fellowships:
● World Governance Expedition Israel (10/2500): Youngest Delegate chosen by Govt. of India & Israel to represent India in Israel (‘19)
- Led discussions with the Isareli NGO ‘Rescue Union’, for an Indian chapter for rapid emergency response, mediated talks with 2 NGOs
● Telangana Jagruthi India Youth Fellowship (1/8 of 1500+): National fellow, under the mentorship of TRS MP, Mrs. K. Kavitha (‘19)
- Conducted primary research in Nizamabad; devised strategy for skill building & presented ideas to the District Collector’s Office
● Policy in Action Fellow, Office of Narendra Keshav Sawaikar, MP from Goa (‘18)
- Studied the Dual Citizenship issue in Goa & proposed a hybrid-citizenship model, study led to appointment of 2 District Magistrates
Community Outreach Project: Senior Co-ordinator, Vittshala – Financial Literacy Cell, SRCC, Launched by ex-FM Shri Arun Jaitley ('16-‘17)
● Impacted 250+ citizens in Haryana by collaborating with SBI for opening bank accounts & spreading awareness through nukkad nataks