Maverick Indonesia

An Intern life at Maverick

Aditya Fajar is a student in the Edith Cowan University – Australia, taking Bachelor of Communications majoring in Public Relations. He interned with Maverick for the past three weeks and this is his impression of Maverick today, his last day as an intern. We found Adit great to work with: his IT and new media especially impressed us. He also wowed us with his get-the-job-done attitude and great ideas. We look forward to working more with Adit in the future.

A Maverick Experience

“… We want people so good and so confident they can afford to take risks and be unorthodox. A maverick, however, is not a renegade.” – Maverick Survival Kit

I’ve been very fortunate to be given the chance to have my internship program at Maverick. Although it lasted only for three weeks, the experience has left me with a very favorable impression about the company.

How I got to intern there is actually a complicated path. About a year ago, I got myself a copy of the PR Society of Indonesia’s PR Directory. Going through the directory I got an idea to create aboutPR an online community for PR practitioners in Indonesia where they can share their thoughts, opinions, experiences and PR expertise.

I invited a number of people from the directory to join aboutPR. One of them was Ong Hock Chuan, the Technical Advisor of Maverick. Later on, Ong and I would communicate occasionally via e-mail. I regularly visited Maverick’s blog and posted one or two comments there.

Some time after that, I came up with another idea: to create a portal for retirees in Indonesia. I consulted Ong and he invited me to come to Maverick’s office. We met a week later.

It was a very good meeting and I was impressed with their hospitality. We had a good discussion and at the end of the meeting he offered me an internship opportunity. I couldn’t resist such a generous offer. I had to take it, and I’m glad that I did.

One thing I noticed early about Maverick is their organizational culture. They are very open and have a solid team. Work doesn’t seem to interfere with co-worker relationships. Everybody is given the chance to lead but at the same time they are expected to become good followers when required.

I’m particularly impressed with the company leadership. Mba Lita and Ong are successful in creating an atmosphere where people feel they are not just part of an organization, but also a family. Even for an internship student. I could almost immediately feel how associates are willing to help me so I can become part of the team.

Being open to ideas and to constructive criticism, willingness to share knowledge and having a good sense of humor are the things that, I think, make this company attractive.

Maverick is proud of their unorthodox approach to doing business. For example, their one-page and non-clickable website is like no other. I was confused at first, but then I can understand why they decided to use this strategy.

The slogan ‘Clear thinking. Clear Execution’ is another example that reflects their confidence in their business strategy. Maverick believes innovation and creativity (being different) are the keys to success.

I enjoyed working with the people at Maverick. Working here opened my eyes about the future of PR career in Indonesia… very bright!

Thank you Maverick for giving me such a wonderful opportunity and experience! I hope in the not so distant future, I can become part of the Maverick team (again).