Meet the employer:
Procter and Gamble
The world's largest international Consumer Goods Company
About the company

P&G was founded over 180 years ago as a simple Soap and Candle company. Today, it is the world's largest Consumer Goods Company and home to iconic, trusted brands that help make life a little bit easier in small but meaningful ways, such as Gillette, Pampers, Head & Shoulders, Ariel and many others. The company remains an industry leader thanks to its three simple pillars: leadership, innovation and citizenship.

The insight, innovation and passion of P&G's talented teams has helped them grow into a Global Company that is governed responsibly and ethically, open and transparent, and one that supports good causes and protects the environment. This is a place where you can be proud to work and really do something that matters.

What new hires experience at P&G builds C-suite potential – in fact, the company creates more future Senior Corporate Leaders than any other organization in the world. Through impactful work, expert mentoring, decision-making authority, and the opportunity to move across brands, businesses, and geographies to tackle new challenges, you'll be ready to join them.

99% of the company's Senior Leaders are produced within the company. They know what it takes to rise through the ranks and are keen to personally help young incoming employees carve out their own path at P&G. You'll also have the option of an assigned mentor, and access to the company's Talent Councils which will help guide your career and get you into the role you want.

    Enjoy the reading and feel free to ask P&G experts your questions during their presentation on June 23.
    What do you believe people need to think about when job hunting?
    Once you are more or less clear about your professional interests, like certain functions/roles you are eager to perform, you may narrow your search by going through the following steps (in no particular order):

    Define a list of 1-3 industries you want to work in: think about the lifestyle you want to have (e.g., ask yourself whether you are ready for regular business trips/willing to relocate) and where your choice could lead you – take a good look at the way your selected industry is progressing. Is it viable in the future?

    Think of the preferred type and size of an organization you would like to work in – private or public sector, a small firm/startup or a large corporation, your own business/self-employment or work for someone. Do you want to make a global impact working in an international company or it is not a priority for you? All these aspects affect culture of the organization, its values, employees' mindset which should be close to your heart and personality.

    Learn more about organizations through their social media, corporate and career websites – this might give you a broader picture and context of their culture. Sometimes you can get more clarity on what you might be doing from the supporting content like interviews with current employees rather than from the formal job description. To learn more about Internship projects at P&G, visit our Careers community on VK and read stories from our successful Interns.

    Ask for advice. Leverage your university network including other students, career centers and professors, consult with family members, reach out to current and/or former employees via social media. Collection of a reasonable number of opinions will help you make an informed employment decision.

    Avoid stereotypes. Do not make assumptions regarding your career opportunities and content of work based on your first impression of the industry. In fact, to stay competitive in the market, many companies have to adopt best practices from other industries. For example, cashback loyalty programs are mainly associated with banks. However, P&G also has its own cashback system in Russia that requires a pool of professional Data Engineers, Product Managers and Data Scientists who can fulfill their career potential.

    What skills do I need to get a job at P&G?
    Being a "build-from-within" company, P&G is committed to your professional growth and development. Since the majority of our employees (> 90%) are hired for Internship and Entry-Level positions during their University studies or right after graduation, we do not require previous relevant professional experience and/or hard skills such as Programming or advanced Data Analytics. This might give you a competitive advantage for certain roles, but this is not a must-have qualification to be considered for a starting role at P&G.

    We recruit and develop our people against key behaviors called "PEAK Performance Factors" (see the picture below) that create value by winning with consumers. These behaviors or personal qualities which we are looking for can be manifested in different life situations including academic projects and extracurricular activities like case competitions or hackathons.

    During the interviews, we also focus on the assessment of your soft skills like leadership, communication, strategic thinking, and problem-solving abilities which can be gained outside of work experience.

    What should a student start with?
    Start with your dream. We understand it is not always easy to determine your professional areas of interest and where you might best fit in. For that reason, we recommend you to begin with self-reflection: think of your hobbies, favorite school subjects and/or university courses, your personal values and principles. Sometimes it's also helpful to stretch yourself and engage in some extracurricular activities including volunteering, sports, community service, student clubs and organizations. As you expand your horizons and fill your life with new knowledge, skills and challenges, you are more likely to find what you really enjoy.

    In most cases, your job will have a huge impact on your life taking up a significant amount of time. That's why the first thing you should take into account is whether the essence of the job is appealing to you. "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life," Confucius once said. At the same time, don't be afraid to make the "wrong" choice. But if you ever did, make a new one. In fact, there are no "wrong" decisions that can ruin your life and career when it comes to choosing a job, especially your first job. Most probably you will not work for one company for the rest of your life, while even basic relevant work experience such as a summer internship might give you a significant competitive advantage when applying for a full-time position after graduation.

    Moreover, if you consider FMCG, many companies from this sector develop their talents through rotational assignments in different locations, product categories/business units, within and even beyond the original functional area. For example, P&G follows skill-based hiring and staffing approach, which means that you can start your career in IT as a Data Scientist and after 2-3 years continue growing as an Analytics & Insights Manager where you will directly influence business strategy, product design, pricing, media investments via in-depth market analysis and consumer research. Thus, there is not always a need to change the employer if you feel like your current role doesn't suit your career aspirations – talk openly to your Manager and/or HR Partner to find a win-win solution together.
    What internship programs do you offer and how can I apply for them?
    The most important thing to remember is that there are no seasonal hiring or specific recruiting windows at P&G in Russia. We may post a new job at any time throughout the year, so we recommend you visit our Careers site to explore currently available opportunities. Every internship is offered with the intent to hire for a permanent full-time position upon successful completion of the project. For that reason, every Internship represents one or several meaningful business projects similar to what permanent employees lead at P&G. In 2020, 70% of all new managers hired for entry-level roles had completed an Internship at P&G.

    Our selection process is standard for all jobs except for Senior Sales positions. You may only apply for P&G via our Careers website where you will be asked to create an account, fill in an application form and upload your CV. Once you are registered, you will receive a link to the 2-part online assessment.

    The first part called "PEAK Performance Assessment" evaluates your background, experience, interests, and work-related attitudes, and then measures your compatibility against P&G competencies for predicting successful job performance. The second part called "Interactive Assessment" measures many factors of your cognitive ability – information that is difficult to assess from resumes, application forms, or interviews alone. This is important because the nature of our work is complex and constantly changing, and the work environment at P&G requires you to continually learn and grow over time.

    If you pass both parts of the assessment successfully, you will be invited to the first interview. In total, you should pass interviews with three P&G interviewers successfully to get a job offer. We use a combination of behavioral-based and situational interviews to get to know you – the real you. To do this, we'll ask questions about previous accomplishments or how you would handle situations in the future. We are looking to see how you relate to, compare with, and connect with our PEAK Performance Factors. This is also your opportunity to find out about us. We believe two-way communication starts from Day 1, so feel free to ask questions.

    You can expect to have one-on-one interviews or a panel interview, usually with two or three interviewers, which may be conducted online, via phone, or in person. Based on the requirements of the role, you may also be asked some additional questions specific to the type of work you may be doing in your first role at P&G.

    Your Hiring Manager or an HR Partner will reach out to you with a job offer once all interviews are completed successfully approximately within a week of the final interview.


    How are things with hiring and work now considering the situation we find ourselves in?
    P&G has not stopped or even reduced hiring since the beginning of the pandemic. We have successfully adapted to the new normal by switching to remote interviews and delivering all necessary office supplies to newcomers' homes. We have launched one virtual onboarding program for Europe which takes place over the first 4 weeks of your employment with us. This program complements a local (Russian) onboarding session which is also held remotely and most often on the first working day.

    Currently (June 2021), we provide our talents with additional flexibility – reasonable health care and effective team collaboration. All employees are expected to attend the office up to 8 working days per month according to their team schedule. The current setup allows us to keep the right balance between individual and business needs. We plan to increase office attendance at some point in the future once the Covid-19 situation becomes clearer and more favorable.
    The Skoltech Career Center thanks P&G colleagues Zarina Khairullina, Nade and Yanychev Alexey for this interview and support.
    Want more information on career planning?
    In the last couple of months, the job market has changed drastically and will never be the same again. We are confident that Skoltech graduates and students (hey, that's you!) are 100% ready to face these global changes, competition and remote work. use this guide to prepare for the job hunt — from writing a resume to passing a video interview with a top manager. Click to learn more.