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Culture

Life at RICE

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Before I embarked on my internship at RICE, I never expected I would end up trying my hand at PR. I had never taken any PR modules in university. I barely even knew what an account executive did in a day, much less an intern! I first got to know of RICE during an agency tour that my university (NTU) organised, and I was sold.

What stood out to me during the 1.5-hour tour was how warm the culture at RICE felt. We were tasked to conduct mini “interviews” with people to find out what makes RICE, well, RICE. My group interviewed James, Managing Partner, and he shared that what makes RICE special is its people.

After spending six months here, I can’t agree more with what he said. Even though I was a total newbie to PR, I never felt like I was thrown into the deep end. My team had weekly huddles where we share the tasks we’ve been working on, or little updates about our week. I always secretly looked forward to them, as it added a human touch to what a corporate career is usually perceived to be like. They made me feel part of a larger community.

RICE Communications, The Future of our Pasts

Empowered

If I had to pick just one instance of how seriously my team took my learning here, it would be this incident during my second week. I had drafted a media pitch for the first time in my life. If you’re waiting for me to say that it was bad, you’re right. It was terrible. But instead of redoing the whole pitch and sending it out herself, my colleague printed out my pitch and edited it. She then talked me through line by line on how to improve my first draft. It’s been half a year, and I still keep that print-out!

While my team was extremely helpful, it isn’t to say that I was handheld all the way. As I slowly familiarised myself with the accounts that I was working on, my team started to trust me with more tasks. I even got the opportunity to sit in on a client’s panel discussion alone and drafted a byline based on the content shared.

Apart from writing media materials, I also managed to work on new business pitches. I drafted briefing documents and interview responses for clients. Not forgetting the day-to-day tasks such as account management reports and media monitoring.

Life-changing

Having said all that, it’s not all work and no play here. There is a weekly Friday breakfast session, where RICErs gather to have a hearty breakfast and share updates for the week. Sometimes we even get external speakers to share about their experiences. We have had speakers from Shopback, BMW, and London-based creative agency Wednesday. On the last Friday of every month, our breakfast gets switched out for #LastFridayNight, where we have drinks and small bites.

Back in 2018 when I was planning my schedule for this year, I expected to feel liberated after my internship ended. After all, half a year isn’t exactly the shortest amount of time. Instead, it feels bittersweet as I near my last day here. I’m definitely grateful for this glimpse into the world of PR, and to have gotten to work with such capable people.

A few Fridays ago, a speaker said something that stuck with me. He said: “If it’s easy, it means you’re never going to make it”. While my journey here has been challenging at times, I hope it means that I’m leaving RICE as a better person, and a better employee.

Interested in doing an internship at RICE? Get in touch!

Adele Chiang 02.9.2019
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