Consultant Intern Review

The work placement at IBM was interesting and enjoyable, as I worked with many individuals in my team to achieve business goals. I worked in a fun environment with plenty of social events to attend. I enjoyed learning about how occupational psychology was used in the workplace and it was great to get a real-life insight into the world of IBM

At IBM, colleagues really help each other out wherever needed. I always felt like the work I did was valued and was given plenty of responsibility to show case this. I even got to attend stakeholder and client meetings, so being an intern did not make me feel as though I was inferior to my colleagues. This made IBM a great place to work.

A buddy system was in place for Interns at IBM, so each intern was assigned to a senior colleague. This helped with shadowing on the job, as well as being assigned to the client projects that they were. A buddy was a fantastic source of support, and I always felt like I had someone to turn to if I needed. My Task Manager had regular 1:1 meetings with me to give me the opportunity to address any concerns I had, as well as to assign me any work tasks which helped with my learning and development.

My job role varied from day to day, so there were times where I had multiple work tasks, and times where I did not have a lot to do. During these fluctuations I kept myself busy by helping fellow colleagues, or taking part in giveback activities to volunteer to the wider IBM community. This was in the form of assisting at assessment centres, careers fairs, and giving career guidance at universities.

Being an intern did not diminish me from having high responsibility. I was aligned to client projects that had tight deadlines and was responsible for generating high standard output to these time constraints. This taught me the importance of organisation and attention to detail in these situations which I would carry forward into my future career.

I have developed many indispensable skills which will help me in my final year of university and once I graduate. I have developed my time management- which will be vital at university, my communication skills, initiative and problem solving, as well as having the adaptability to deal with different situations and individuals. These competencies have all helped me to grow and develop.

I worked in an enjoyable environment, where everyone played as hard as they worked. It was a friendly atmosphere where all departments knew each other. This made it easy to approach any member of the team and removed any communication barriers, We regularly had bake sales and team events to add to everyday office life.

The placement has been well organised from start to finish. There has been regular updates every step of the way, starting from a structured 2 day induction, to the set up in the office. We had clearly defined goals to work towards and had an IBM journal to update our plan in. This made it easier when it came to the 3 and 6 month reviews.

There was major investment put into the interns at IBM. In my department, I got the opportunity to attend numerous workshops on assessment centre training and skills precision workshops. This has aided in improving factors such as my presentation skills, and CV refining. Having the opportunity to attend a careers academy to find out about various areas of IBM was helpful in figuring out where I wanted to apply to as a graduate.

Attending a careers academy and having the chance to speak to colleagues in particular roles gave a detailed insight into what their daily job involves. This has made it more appealing to want to work for IBM once I graduate, as there are many opportunities to move around the organisation, and get enhanced training to be an expert in a field.

Colleagues at IBM are always up for having a good time so we had plenty of social events..There was a Christmas boat party on the Thames, and an end of year party in a central London bar, There were also weekly get togethers to catch up with those I hadn't seen for a while. Having these social events made it easier to build up my social network as well as make life long friends.

The cost of living in London is incredibly high, but I am from London so I used to commute into work everyday. Socialising in the area I worked in could become very costly as restaurants and bars in the area came with a high price tag. However, just a few stops away, Shoreditch offers a reasonable night out with many bars and pubs to choose from.

The nightlife in my area wasn't particularly amazing, but I used to travel down to Shoreditch which wasn't very far from my workplace. This area has lots of bars, pubs and restaurants with a very reasonable price. They are always busy any day of the week, and made it a lively atmosphere to be in.

Colleagues at IBM are always up for having a good time so we had plenty of social events..There was a Christmas boat party on the Thames, and an end of year party in a central London bar, There were also weekly get togethers to catch up with those I hadn't seen for a while. Having these social events made it easier to build up my social network as well as make life long friends.