IBM Placement Student Review

My placement year at IBM has helped me do develop both personally and professionally. I enjoyed the experience of working for a global multi-national company, and learning about how it operates. Also, having the opportunity to work on a client site was fun and provided another dynamic to the placement year. However, there were phases through out the placement where I did not have a lot to do, this could get boring. But I asked other interns and colleagues if I could help them in any way, I then found myself busy again.

I felt very valued at IBM, almost everyone I did work for thanked me, either in person or by email. It was clear to me that I was useful to my team - whenever they had a piece of work that I could help with, they gave it to me rather than them sending a lot of time on it. Therefore I felt utilised and that I was adding value to the company. Even if some of it was freeing up time for more senior employees, and me doing the slightly more tedious tasks.

IBM have a placement year scheme, this is run by Foundation; Foundation run schemes for Interns, apprentices, grads and gap year students. Foundation run workshops, meetings, education sessions etc, to help develop your skill set, and help you to think about your future. You are designated a task manager - for your day-to-day tasks/job. But also an EPM (Early professionals manager), they will have meetings/reviews with you every few months to check how you are getting on etc. In terms of guidance form your task manager, that depends on the person, some are more helpful and accommodation than others.

Being busy depended on the month, as the business is run in quarters, it depends which quarter you are in, how busy you are. Q4, end of the year, tends to be busy, lots to do, also Christmas time so people are off, parties are being planned etc. On a daily basis I tend to have several small tasks to do, some I have ownership of so weekly there are tasks I must complete. However, as I do these more and more they become easier and take less time. therefore I can end up with lots more time where I do not have a lot to do.

As I settled into my role and got to grips with my tasks, these were taken a step further. Once I was comfortable in the company I was given more responsibilities, including taking ownership of various tasks. This could be from planning events/parties, to sending weekly documents to senior leadership on a European level. My role was very varied and involved many Ad-Hoc tasks, all were important to the runnings of the business.

As part of my degree I have to write my dissertation about my placement year - a placement project. My role directly applied to the project which helped to give me an insight further into the company. I have developed many transferable skills such as communication and team work etc, as well as qualities e.g. I have become more confident.

At the Southbank office, it can be quite but it can also be very busy! It also depends where in the office you are working, which floor you are on. Overall it is fairly relaxed in terms of colleagues, but busy in terms of tasks and work. The client site I have worked at is much more relaxed, even regarding dress code! There is a sense of community and atmosphere in both due to the open plan offices.

As I mentioned earlier, the foundation scheme provide extra sessions for interns and grad etc including careers academies which help develop your skills. They organise various events, however lots of information gets given last minute which can cause panic and confusion. The application process however is long and disconnected, you have to go though many different people before your placement is confirmed.

There are individual online training courses and activities which all employees can use to educate themselves and improve their knowledge and skills surrounding the business. Foundation's Employability skills are specifically designed to train and develop Interns, these were very useful - both from a personal and professional perspective.

Personally I do not see my future at the company, I don't think the industry is the right place for me. However, there are several different roles and spaces available for interns in the grad scheme. There is a specific application process for interns who wish to return as graduates after finishing their university degree. This makes it easier and more simple to reapply and secure a graduate role. There are a variety of roles available, technical, financial, marketing and business roles.

Yes. From the Christmas party, to the leaving/summer party. We organised our own events/parties as IBM do not fund or contribute to funding these events. At Christmas we had a boat party along the Thames which was great. There are also many bars along the Southbank which interns and grads etc all go to after work - especially when it is warm in the Summer.

London is expensive. I commute and a train ticket for the year was roughly £3000. However, this works out cheaper than living in London for the year, with travel on top of that. In terms of socialising, again bars etc in London are more expensive than most places, but there are always offers, student discounts, happy hours and even IBM Staff discounts at many places along the Southbank.

Great! It's London! Can be on the pricey side, but there are offers and student discounts in most places. There are loads of restaurants, pubs, bars, clubs, theaters and other things to do in London, you won't get board. - Even go up the Shard for a cocktail with a view, or go to the Walkie-Talkie's Sky garden if its warm and sunny out.

I believe there are football and netball teams, as well as others. There is also an inter-company sports day, in which IBM competes with other businesses in various sports. Other activities that are technically work, but not what you do everyday are Giveback opportunities. these vary from helping at Assessment Centers to technical activities with school children - e.g. flying drones! Giveback is an opportunity to give something back to the IBM community, while having a fun day/half day at the same time.