ysaraf11

Week 2

ysaraf11 — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 11:34:14 +0000

As my second week of work ended, I felt less and less like a tourist and more like a person immersed in the Israeli way of life. Work has become a routine, I’ve become more familiar with the areas around me, and I’ve even been able to pick up some Hebrew. This week, my new task was to gather information about a certain company and its competitors. To find this information I would have to do research on the company’s history, background, market, share price, products and income statement. Doing this task did take a while but having this practice has made me aware of what key aspects to look for when trying to invest in any type of company. I’m always surrounded by experienced professionals who know their field very well, so I never hesitate to ask questions and learn from what they have to say.

On Friday and Saturday (June 17th and 18th) we went to Jerusalem to spend a shabbat with the Fellows as well as Jon Medved and his family. For those of you who don’t know, Jon Medved is a founder of one of Israel’s leading venture capital firms, Israel Seed Partners. So Friday night we went to Mr. Medved’s house and accompanied him to services. Once services were over we went back to his house and saw a huge feast awaiting us. Before we ate, we said the prayers on the bread and wine and got a little torah lesson on that week’s parsha (the weekly portion of the Torah). As everyone ate, we got to know Mr. Medved and his family a little better with conversations about Israel’s economy and other topics.

I’m really starting to enjoy the work I’m doing at my internship and this experience is really up to you and what you want to get out of it. The more questions you ask and interested you are about what your doing is when you will really get the most out of your job and trip.

Getting Down to Business

ysaraf11 — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 22:08:08 +0000

After three weeks of traveling around Israel with my Meor trip, it felt weird to wake up and get ready for work. My first day I sat down with the CEO, Daniel Furman, and had a quick discussion before he told me what my first assignment was. My first assignment was to read about this company called LFSMD which pretty much tries to develop lead free soldering materials. After I read the executive summary, I was given a list of venture capitalist firms who may be interested in investing with the company and I had to narrow it down to a few possibilities. As I was in the middle of doing my work I was surprised at how much of their work they are trusting me with. It actually felt like you were part of the company. Then we were off from work on Tuesday and Wednesday because of Shavuot and I got to spend time with family from both sides of the family. I was never a big fan of dairy products but this holiday has changed my view on them. Then by the end of the week I had a meeting with Daniel again to review the firms that I’ve chosen and now we’re sending out our business proposals to a few of these companies to see if they would be interested in LFSMD. Now we just have to wait and see how these firms respond.

The beginning of my Fellowship/Meor experience

ysaraf11 — Mon, 09 May 2011 02:48:27 +0000

It’s been a busy couple weeks but everything seems to be coming together as I start my three month trip to Israel. During my first month in Israel I’m traveling with a bunch of other michigan students through an organization called “Meor”. This organization helps Jewish students expand their knowledge of Judaism through various discussion sessions as we take a tour of Israel.

Once the trip with Meor is over I will be staying with my aunt until I am able to move into my apartment with the other TAMID fellows. It will be great to finally see and spend time with all my relatives that I haven’t seen since I was a little kid. However, that week of relaxation is over once I start interning at Arba Finance. Arba Finance is a venture capital/business development firm which is located in Tel-Aviv. I’ve always been interested in business and I feel that this opportunity will help me choose what path I want to pursue in the business field. I’m excited to finally be in Israel as an individual and see how wonderful this experience will be.

If anyone has any suggestions for good places to eat, good bars to go to or any other type of recommendations it would be greatly appreciated. I will keep you guys updated throughout my journey.

Hello world!

ysaraf11 — Sun, 08 May 2011 19:28:51 +0000

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