Hello all you interested readers!

By Lasse Kronback Arildslund on 23 September, 2009

Categories: Norway, Telenor Norway

My name is Lasse, I am born in 1983, and I am one of 15 global trainees in the litter of 2009-2011. As this is my first blog post, I would like to tell a little something about myself, my reasons for applying to the programme, my first experiences as a trainee, and my expectations to the programme.

My background
Even though I am employed in Telenor Norway, I am actually Danish. I moved to Oslo from Copenhagen just two weeks ago, as the Telenor Headquarters are located here. In Copenhagen Business School (CBS) I studied on the undergraduate programme BLC (Business Language & Culture) and thereafter I graduated from the Strategic Market Creation programme. This means that my academic background is quite cross-disciplinary, as I have touched upon quite diverse subjects within management.

I was brought up in a small town not far from Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. Here I lived with my parents, two brothers and a sister. Luckily enough, this has given me some management experience, since I am the oldest sibling

Living in Norway means that I will have to do with talking to my family on the phone once in a while, just to catch up and so, and this is fine for me. Much harder is it to live so far away from my girlfriend, Kathrine. She is studying in Copenhagen, so I unfortunately have to miss her most of the time. However, I hope that she will very often come and see me here in Oslo, and that I can come home once in a while…  After all the two cities are not THAT far apart!

Why I applied
When I graduated from CBS in 2008 I first got a job which I thought would provide challenges that university had given me until then. However, the job proved to be just about meaningless in terms of ambitions and relevance for my career.

I decided that I would not waste any more time on such jobs, so I sought out a number of graduate- and trainee programmes in different multinational companies that could guarantee a steep learning curve, relevant challenges, ambitions, real experience and international opportunities. Telenor was definitely one of these companies, and as I am really interested in working with innovative products in an innovative and international company, Telenor was indeed the most attractive opportunity for me. Therefore I had to do my utmost to write a killer application that would render the HR-department sleepless at night, worrying sick that they did not have my signature on a contract yet…

The application and selection process
Apparently I succeeded in writing such an application, and I was invited to take some online tests, give an interview over the phone, then take another test, and finally to take part in an assessment centre, which was the last obstacle remaining. This was a whole day where I and the other 11 participants were scrutinized by a group of just as many Telenor representatives, consisting of HR-people, current trainees, and people responsible for the trainee programme.

We had to make presentations, take part in discussions, solve team tasks, and give another interview. Needless to say, no-one could just keep a straight face as we were challenged in all possible ways. On the way home I did not dare to believe that I would get a job offer, for out of the more than 4,000 applicants only 48 were now left, and these guys were GOOD! Nevertheless, I received a job offer the week after, and then there was nothing else to do than to quit my current job and move to Oslo.

My first experiences as a trainee
As said, thus done: I quit my job – what a good feeling that was - and went to find a place to live in Oslo. After a while I could sign a rental contract, and move here with the belongings that would fit into my somewhat smaller apartment, compared to the one I had in Copenhagen… But I guess it will do for now!

Last week, on the 14th of September, all 15 trainees, eight from Norway, three from Sweden, three from Hungary, and one from Serbia were to meet each other at Telenor HQ, for a seminar that would last the whole week. The days were certainly intense, and at times even action-packed, with a good combination of information about Telenor, exchange of expectations from trainees and from Telenor, and theoretical learning about finance in the telecom sector.

All activities required a lot of involvement and eagerness to discuss, and it was quite clear that everyone were willing to contribute! Also, one of the days was dedicated to meeting our personal mentors, who will be supporting us individually throughout our 18 months in the trainee programme. We had the chance to get to know our mentors better through a social arrangement the same evening.  Who would believe that curling is really THAT fun?!?

My expectations for the trainee programme
To judge from the application- and selection process, plus the quality of the first seminar, I really believe that Telenor means business with this programme!

My position for the first six months will be at Djuice, a mobile subscription targeted towards the younger segment, where I will function as Campaign Manager. I will be responsible for surveys and evaluation of current strategies for marketing, brand, and products in this department, and I am also going to design and roll out new strategies. I am glad that Father Winter is soon coming to Scandinavia, so there is no point in leaving the work desk anyways!! I hope that the other two positions I will be placed in during the programme will prove just as challenging, in order for me to become equipped for a future career at Telenor, which will hopefully comprise continuous challenges, and international experience!

Tags: Djuice

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