I am Muskaan Bhambri, a 2021 graduate from IIT Roorkee and currently working as an Assistant Product Manager at PayU. Specifically, I am responsible for the Payment Experience and Core Payments teams and work on several projects under these areas. :- www.deekpay.com

My journey with PayU began as a Product Management Intern. I moved from research to product, and ever since I got a taste of product management, I knew this was the direction I wanted to pursue. As a result, I continued to pursue product management roles despite offers of consulting positions on campus. One of the biggest challenges I faced when applying for product roles was a lack of practical experience with products. My previous internships had been in R&D, and product management was a completely different challenge for me. However, I was determined and passionate about product management and was willing to start, even if it was a late start.

I decided to apply for internships to get a deeper understanding of the DNA of the role before applying for a full-time position. In just three months, I was offered two product management internships and a full-time product analyst position.

The story of how I became an Assistant Product Manager at PayU is worth sharing.PayU was hiring Product Interns for the first time and I was lucky enough to get the opportunity. I knew that the problems and scale that I would have the opportunity to work on at PayU would be huge, and that's how I knew I had to take advantage of this opportunity.

The recruitment process was very well organised. I came across the PayU internship position through LinkedIn and sent in my CV and profile. Unlike other companies, where you usually need a recommendation to get an interview, PayU's hiring process is very rigorous. I didn't need a recommendation and I heard back from them a few days later. This reflects the fact that they value their employees' work culture and seek to increase accessibility and diversity in the hiring process!

After an initial screening based on profiles, I went through four rounds of interviews:

First round: general introductions

This was a great conversation with Naveen Athresh, Senior Director of Product, IXD, Process Design at PayU. We had a 30-minute dialogue about my past experiences, my inclination towards product, PayU's product vision, and internship expectations. The thought that I would have the opportunity to be mentored by some of the most experienced leaders in the product ecosystem kept me motivated.

Round 2: Mission Sessions

I was told there would be a mission to fulfil. What I didn't anticipate was that the tasks would be so diverse. The questions dealt with product thinking and design thinking, guesswork, metrics, and the everyday life of a product manager. In total, there were 12 questions and I had about 6-7 hours to submit the assignment.

These questions tested both the breadth and depth of product knowledge, and I really enjoyed the process.

Round 3: Product Thinking Session

This round was very interesting! I had an interview with Saurabh Kumar, Senior Manager of Merchant Experience at PayU. He asked about my favourite products, my thoughts on metrics and my understanding of user personas. I was asked to redesign Instagram for an older demographic.

It was an exciting dialogue and we ended up discussing the merchant experience and PayU's new product plans.

Round 4: Human resources session

The last round was with the HR department. It was mainly to assess my suitability for PayU. it was more about my interests, my personality and hobbies outside of work.

The whole process lasted about a month, and finally, one fine afternoon, an email popped up in my inbox with good news. I had received an offer for an internship position at PayU. I was very excited to begin this journey.

Transitioning from intern to full-time product manager

But the story is just beginning. My internship experience at PayU was great. Most companies don't give interns much autonomy; they are usually just hired to help the company with day-to-day tasks. Luckily, at PayU, I was given the opportunity to work on an innovation track project. And, guess what? I was in charge of the entire project, building it from scratch and scaling it from 0 to 1. One of the things I love about product management is that it gives complete ownership of the problem one is trying to solve. At PayU, I was able to exercise that full autonomy. The enthusiasm was very high.

It was a 6-month internship and luckily I was offered a full-time position as an Assistant Product Manager after 3 months. I chose PayU for two main reasons:

I love working at PayU.

More importantly, I really like the work culture and the people I work with. My mentor has always been supportive and it feels like I'm in the right place.

What I've been looking for is to kick-start my career in the product space. I was lucky enough to get my break at PayU, my job search had a happy ending and a new chapter in my career began.

Before I know it, it has been over two months since I joined PayU. Every day a new challenge awaits me, and I couldn't ask for a better learning experience.

So what's the biggest takeaway? Be patient and persistent. Sooner or later, you'll finish your puzzle.

Thanks for reading! I wish you all the best on your product journey!