Business Resilience Placement Student

Mia

Business

Placement (10 Months+)

Experian

What made you consider this career path following your studies?

I wanted to take a year out of University to gain some practical experience in a corporate role. My degree so far has given me valuable knowledge, skills, and methods around many different ways of working, and I wanted to have the opportunity to apply this knowledge to meaningful work and projects. As well as this, after talking to some of my University alumni, I understood the market for graduate roles is competitive and limited. I therefore thought it was essential to me to gain valuable experience to give me a better chance at securing a graduate role in the future.

What does your day-to-day role involve?

Day to day, I work with people all over the business to help improve our business resiliency. Working in a governance function, no two days are the same. If there is an incident or a crisis, or something threatening on the news, my team work to mitigate these risks and respond effectively to minimize impacts to the organisation. I get involved in a wide range of projects including exercising Business Continuity Plans, providing our top clients with information about our resiliency capabilities, working to improve our Business Resilience programme and planning responses to any emerging risks the business faces.

What stood out about Experian and why did you apply?

I knew Experian was a huge multinational data company, I felt the experience I would get here would be unmatched to anywhere else. Working with so many different types of people to help individuals and businesses access meaningful data that can help with big decisions, made me feel like I would be contributing to a good cause. After doing further research, I saw that Experian has been continually recognised as a great place to work, making it an even more desirable opportunity in my eyes. I was also intrigued by the role I was applying for, I felt that working with people all over a multinational business was going to be an opportunity I wouldn’t get elsewhere.

How do you feel the Early Careers Development Programme has helped with your learning journey so far?

The placement programme has been a key part of my personal and professional development. I have had the opportunity to meet with my fellow placement students, discuss career development and improve soft skills. It has also been nice to have a team at Experian that you know you can go to regarding anything work related. The team are always there to support you, push you, and help mould you into a well-rounded individual.

What has been a key achievement/stand out moment so far?

One of the bigger projects I was involved in was exercising 60 business continuity plans under some serious time constraints. During this time, I had to prepare an exercise, organise sessions with the different business areas to test their business continuity capabilities and facilitate/present the exercises to some quite senior members of staff. This project was very demanding as it was quite early on in my year, however finishing the project was extremely rewarding. I felt as though my confidence and communication skills improved very quickly and was then able to take these soft skills with me throughout the rest of my placement.

What's one thing you now like about Experian that you didn't expect before you started?

The culture at Experian is completely unique. Employees there are so happy to help, there is always a sense of collaboration, and you are always rewarded for your hard work. As well as this, there are so many opportunities to join different resource groups, such as Black Professionals at Experian, Pride and Women in Experian. As well as this, you are granted 3 fully paid volunteering days a year which is a great opportunity to give back to the community and have some fun with your team. The offices greatly reflect this culture, with big open spaces perfect for collaboration, really modern and colourful décor, even pool and ping pong tables! This makes coming into work overall a lot more exciting.