Finance Analyst Review

Overall I would say that I enjoyed the majority of my 12 months at IBM. The first couple of months were a struggle as I was new to the job and I would get myself worked up if I didn't know something or know what to do. After a while, I gained some useful contacts and made relationships which all proved useful for the remaining months if I ever needed help or advise.

This is one of the main positives at IBM, in the fact that you always felt like you had a place within the company and that if you weren't around, then certain processes would fail. I would be regularly referred to others in order to help them out, and I genuinely felt like I was a part of a team.

The management were extremely friendly, professional and made you feel at ease. However, one criticism was that I felt a lot of the time management would be too busy to speak to. Maybe this wasn't the case, but there were many times in which I would try and figure out a solution by myself and struggle, rather than speak to management as they came across too busy/stressed out with work. However, there were many others I could speak to in our intra-company online messaging service which was a real help.

I have rated this exactly in the middle as the work rate fluctuated very highly from day to day, or week to week. On Monday I could walk into work with a tonne of tasks to be completed within a short deadline, and then next day I could be looking around for stuff to do. I suppose this is quite common within the workplace and if anything it made the job more exciting as you never knew what you were going to get. Within quiet times, I was able to take part in education and other similar tasks.

Another positive within IBM. You were completing real life tasks that came with real life responsibilities. I was given the responsibility of setting quarterly targets for divisions within IBM, and creating presentations for senior management to review. I would also have to keep track of data, highlighting any risks and opportunities for the company. Missing these risks/opportunities could result in revenue being lost.

Undertaking a finance placement during an Accounting degree hasn't majorly helped me in terms of skills required for my studies. There have been some aspects of the role which will no doubt help me in the future and give me a head start in a graduate role, but I don't think it will help me in my final year exams which a lot of lecturers say it does. One major skill I have developed massively is my IT skills, with Microsoft excel and PowerPoint being two of them. Before the placement, I could merely complete simple formulas in Excel and create simple presentations. Now I feel I can easily create Pivot Tables, use Vlookup and other important formulas and create executive and professional presentations.

The general atmosphere is very quiet, and slightly dull. The offices are quite outdated and the office comes across as strictly professional with little fun. However, everyone is friendly and there are always a lot of quiet conversations going on between employees in which you can get involved in and have a laugh, especially between interns.

The organisation and set-up of the placement was near enough faultless. From the start we had a 2-day induction to get us familiar with the area, the guidelines, and the general happenings at IBM. This was followed by a long handover period between me and the employee of whom I was taking over from. From there we had 3, 6 and 12 month review in order to check up on our well-being, whether we were performing well and to set targets for the rest of our time at the company. The criticism I would give in terms of the set-up would be to receive more help in terms of sorting accommodation – I found this rather stressful.

I feel that the company doesn't go out of their way to make sure they are investing in you, but instead they make sure the opportunities are always available for you to take. What I mean by this is there are so many courses, education sessions etc. that you can take part in and they are easy to find, you just need to be proactive and have the willingness to learn to give yourself the motivation to get out there and do it. There's a scheme called Think40 which requires each employee to complete 40 hours of out of hour’s education per year. Although this is mentioned at the start of your induction, there have been no reminders nor have they checked.

In all honesty, it doesn't seem great. I am at the point of applying back for a graduate role, and there doesn't seem to be much on offer. Many roles have been and are to be outsourced, and there are no graduate roles in Finance, which I find a real shame. However, if I were to secure a role, the scope for promotion seems high.

Yes, the social scene made the year a lot more enjoyable. This was helped by the 2-day induction and after work meal, which was put on by IBM at the start of our contracts. This allowed us to bond and network with other interns, which proved to be very helpful in terms of sculpting the social presence for the rest of the year.

Personally, I found the area (Portsmouth - North Harbour) quite expensive to live in, and this was down to the rent. The intern salary is competitive until you take the rent and bills into account, so if you're looking to live down here then don't expect to save much. Socialising cost is OK, spending all my life up north, the price of things is obviously a bit more than I'm used to.

I rather enjoyed the nightlife in Portsmouth. There are 2 main areas, Port Solent and Gunwharf Quays which are on the doorstep of the office and around 15 minutes away in Southsea respectively. These are 2 very nice harbors, especially in the summer which is full of restaurants, bars, pubs and even a shopping centre at Gunwharf. There are around 4/5 clubs in the area which are quite busy due to the student population.

There are a lot of opportunities to get involved in Giveback which is where you put in your time and effort outside of working hours to help out IBM and the wider community. This involves going into schools, presentations, career fairs etc. You will also be reimbursed for any travel expenses incurred at a fairly good rate.