Internship abroad in Milan Experience report on the international office in Milan

I was very excited and eager to work in a new environment and expand my skills in an international context. The flight to sunny Italy took off on Saturday 15 April 2023. Once there, I went to my accommodation and explored the surrounding area. At the same time as me, another dual student from Rutronik (Patrick Malsam) was also assigned to Milan for about 3 weeks to get to know the field office.

The following Monday, on my first day of work in Milan, I was picked up at my accommodation by a colleague and received a warm welcome from my Italian colleagues in the office. At first I had a little difficulty adapting to the working environment and the Italian language, as I don't speak Italian. However, I was able to communicate well with English. During my time in the office, I had the opportunity to rotate through various departments and learn from my colleagues about the areas in which they work. It was particularly exciting for me to learn about the differences in processes and tasks compared to Germany. It was interesting to see how working methods and relationships with customers can differ depending on the country and corporate culture.

Alongside my work, I had the opportunity to explore the beautiful city of Milan. Milan, also known as Milano, is the second largest city in Italy and is located in the Lombardy region. With a population of almost 1.4 million, Milan is also one of the world's leading fashion metropolises. My Italian colleagues organised excursions for us, for example to Lake Como or to one of the largest and most famous shopping centres in the region.

We had the opportunity to accompany our Italian colleagues to the Fortronic trade fair in Bologna, where Rutronik had its own stand. During our stay, we were able to spend the day visiting the other stands and gaining valuable insights into the industry. This experience was not only educational, but also a great opportunity to deepen our relationships with colleagues from Italy and gain new perspectives.

We also had the opportunity to take part in a Rutronik Racing customer event at the motorsport circuit in Monza. The event lasted a whole weekend, with one day of qualifying and another day of racing. During these days, we not only had the opportunity to watch the race, but also to take a look behind the scenes by visiting the pit lane and taking part in the Grid Walk.

During my almost four weeks in Italy, I learnt an incredible amount and gained numerous valuable experiences that have left a lasting impression on me. In particular, speaking English all the time significantly improved my knowledge of the language and made it easier for me to deal with foreign languages. This experience will stay with me forever.