Commercial Management Support Review

Taking all things factors into consideration I would say that I enjoyed my year with IBM. I didn't get off to the best start at IBM but I thoroughly enjoyed the last 6 months as I was exposed to a lot more of the project I worked on. However, there was a good social side to work at IBM which made up for the rocky few months at the start.

Particularly in the final six months of my placement I felt extremely valued by my colleagues. I never felt undervalued or looked down upon because I was an intern.

My first six months were very different to my final six months. In the first six months I felt as if I had to be very selective when I asked for help off my manager as quite was not very supportive and on occasion did not seem to be interested or willing to provide proper help but this was also due to the project being at a very stressful stage. The last six months things changed dramatically and I also received a lot of support of fellow colleagues whilst on client site.

In the first six months my level of business had no real structure some days I would be busy and other days I would have nothing to do - so I used this time to explore other areas of the business and get involved in other projects. In the last six months I was relatively busy at all times but I did not feel that I had too much work to handle.

I definitely felt as if I had a reasonable level of responsibility, if I wasn't there then the workload would have been too much for others to cope with. A lot of people all over the Account relied on the work that I produced.

Although I have learned many vital skills that I will continue to use in the work place, I don't feel like I have learned many transferable skills to assist with my degree in accounting. However, I did expect this before starting my placement and I don't believe the purpose of a placement year is too assist you with your specific degree but with your career as a whole.

The atmosphere in the office in the first six months was very quiet as I worked remotely away from my team or manager. In contrast there was a friendly atmosphere when I moved to client site.

I think the IBM is a well organised placement scheme but I do think it depends on the pastoral care manager you are assigned. Fortunately my manager always told us of events and things coming up that we should look out for and sign up for - but I did hear of other people not having as good an experience as myself.

IBM offered a lot of training opportunities for us throughout the year. They actively encouraged me to take part in sessions which would develop my understanding of how the business worked, whether it was related to my specific role or the wider business.

With the continuous hiring freezes it is a bit uncertain how many graduates that IBM will hire as there have been fewer interns hired this year than when I was offered the placement scheme. However, the IBM graduate scheme also sponsors CIMA which has a huge bearing on my decision to apply back.

With over 100 placement students at the Southbank office there was always social events taking place and also living with two fellow IBMers, the social scene was probably the most enjoyable for me.

Expensive but that is London for you! It was not a surprise. The IBM London salary is no where near enough to cover rent, travel and socialising etc living in London.

It central London so great and lots of variety but of course it is expensive.

There were a number of sports teams that you could join. I joined the netball team and played every Wednesday with some lovely girls.