Wilmar Distribution Pte Ltd (WDPL) is the distribution arm of Wilmar International, one of Asia's leading agribusiness groups. Our Singapore operations oversee the end-to-end distribution of food ingredients and consumer products across modern trade, general trade, and foodservice channels.
Role Overview
This internship is designed for students interested in applying Generative AI, automation, and process digitalisation to real-world distribution and supply chain operations. The intern will be embedded directly within the WDPL business team, working across Procurement, Sales, Trade Support, and Warehouse & Logistics to observe daily workflows, identify improvement opportunities, and support the development of AI-driven solutions.
The intern will contribute to a Business Improvement Handbook informing WDPL's AI adoption roadmap and will have the opportunity to go further — prototyping lightweight AI agents and automation tools that address real operational pain points and are ready for immediate use.
Key Responsibilities
1. Operations Shadowing & Process Mapping
- Shadow business teams across Procurement, Sales/KAM, Trade Support, and Warehouse & Logistics to gain first-hand understanding of end-to-end distribution workflows.
- Document current processes, manual touchpoints, and inter-team handoffs across the order fulfilment cycle.
- Create workflow diagrams that surface pain points, bottlenecks, and opportunities for automation or process redesign.
2. AI / Automation Use Case Development
- Identify and prioritise tasks suitable for GenAI or automation support (e.g. order processing, document parsing, customer requirement management).
- Test AI models such as Microsoft Copilot Agent, Claude Cowork, and ChatGPT against real operational problems encountered during shadowing.
- Prototype AI-driven workflows with clear feasibility and risk assessments.
- Reference and use, where appropriate, existing data and automation tools available within the Wilmar Group.
3. AI SOP Development
- Develop step-by-step instructions for using AI tools safely within WDPL's business workflows.
- Build validation and error-checking logic to mitigate hallucinations or incorrect AI outputs.
- Include escalation paths and human-in-the-loop requirements to ensure appropriate governance.
4. Business Improvement Handbook Contribution
- Consolidate shadowing observations and process documentation into a structured Business Improvement Handbook.
- Present findings and recommendations to IT and business stakeholders upon completion of the programme.
5. Cross-Team Collaboration
- Work closely with both the IT AI & Automation team and WDPL business leads throughout the internship.
- Support ad-hoc projects requiring data analysis or process documentation.
- Keep updated with advancements in generative AI tools and operational automation, applying relevant developments to WDPL's workflows.
6. Additional Tasks
- Workload distribution will remain flexible and adjust based on needs
Skills & Qualifications
Required
- Undergraduate / Diploma in OPIM (Operations & Information Management), Business, Information Systems, Engineering, Analytics, or related fields.
- Strong analytical skills and ability to break down ambiguous, open-ended problems.
- Good working familiarity with GenAI tools (Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude).
- Effective communication skills, including process documentation and workflow explanation.
- Comfortable working directly with business teams in an operational environment.
- Fast learner with curiosity, initiative, and a hands-on attitude.
Preferred
- Understanding of data concepts such as ETL, SQL, or Excel modelling.
- Exposure to automation tools (Power Automate, scripting, RPA).
- Interest in supply chain, distribution, or FMCG operations.
Learning Outcomes
- First-hand exposure to end-to-end distribution operations in an FMCG and food ingredients environment.
- Practical experience identifying and deploying AI and automation solutions for real operational workflows.
- A portfolio of process maps and AI-SOPs with demonstrated operational impact.
- Strong business process documentation skills applicable across industries.
- Direct contribution to Wilmar's AI transformation and digitalisation roadmap.
