Sales Support Review

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Hewlett-Packard Enterprise. The people I have worked alongside, particularly my managers, have been instrumental in both my enjoyment and development throughout the 13 months. There is a truly great atmosphere in the offices I have worked in. The intern community is fantastic, and I would highly recommend this internship to anyone who is considering taking a placement year.

I can honestly say that I feel my colleagues, whether that being in my team, or across the wider organisation, have valued me, as well as the other interns this year. The responsibilities you are given are genuine, and therefore your colleagues really do appreciate the hard work you put in. The placement students are treated just the same as normal employees, and you will develop some great working relationships throughout the year.

For the team I have worked in in particular, the guidance and support I have received from my two managers is the main factor that has stood out to me the most. They have really invested lots of time into my development, and I can see that my personal and professional development has been one of their main priorities this year. Without this investment, I don't think I would have learnt half as much as I have done, as well as been presented with nearly as many opportunities.

My workload throughout the year has been a little varied. However, I was told at the start of the year that the interns that stand out the most are those who get involved with as many different campaigns and areas of business as possible. Therefore, if my workload was occasionally low, I would notify my manager, who would then get me stuck in with something else, supporting a different team or segment. This gave me a greater network across the company, and as a result, I have been busy throughout the year.

Throughout the year I have been given some great responsibilities. I have had a great balance of responsibilities as well. On a day to day basis, I would analyse data and complete reports in order to support to sales team - quite general intern responsibilities. However, I was also given the responsibility of personally managing a number of industry led sales campaigns and initiatives in order to drive business in my team. These sort of projects are a massive responsibility and require a high level of communication, organisation and management. I have managed and organised a number of different events throughout the year, which again, called upon and developed a number of different skills and qualities. The opportunities I have had as a result of the responsibilities and trust my managers have shown in me and they have been instrumental in my personal and professional development this year. They have really given me a strong sense of achievement.

There are a number of skills and qualities that I have developed that I feel will benefit me in my final year at University, as well my future. First of all, my IT skills, particularly Excel, have improved significantly. This is going to be extremely helpful at University, as much of my dissertation will be based around excel work. Not only this, but my presentation skills and ability to speak to a broad range of people have also improved. This is going to aid me in my group presentations at University, which contribute towards my final grade. Strong presentation skills will also be incredibly important with whatever career path I decide to go down. Aside from the quantifiable skills I have developed, I feel I have become more professional in the way I engage with people. This is going to be instrumental for the future. I feel I have personally developed - my attitude towards work, as well as my drive and ability to use my initiative has improved. I believe that all of the above, as well as a number of different qualities I have developed throughout my time at HPE, are going to be incredibly influential for my future.

There are two main offices that I work in on a regular basis - the Bracknell UK Head Office, and the London Office. Most interns are based in the Bracknell Office, and may do around 1 day a week in the London office. In both, the atmosphere is good. There is a really good energy and feel about the offices. The London office is where most of the sales managers are based so it is always very exciting to work there. The Bracknell office is always very busy at the start of the week, and as the week goes on, gets less busy, with mostly interns populating the office sales floor.

I believe the placement was organised well. There is generally a good structure to the internship and there is a good variety of work and responsibilities. The only thing that I would suggest that would have been extremely beneficial would be formal training program across the business i.e. if you are in a sales role, some basic sales training or workshops would be very helpful.

As I mentioned above, there is no formal training across the company, which I feel would have been beneficial for all interns. However, in terms of personal development, my managers were extremely helpful in terms of investing their time in order to train and develop me. Throughout the year, if there was anything I flagged up that I wanted to develop, my managers would sit down with me and plan activities and ways in which I could improve/develop.

Very appealing. I really like the work atmosphere around office, and the people who work here are great - which will influence my decision to reapply here afterwards. There are sales graduate positions up in Erskine (Glasgow), which, after speaking to a number of previous grads, is very highly recommended.

One of the best parts of the internship has been the social aspect. There are around 70 interns based in the Bracknell office, so there is plenty of opportunities for social events. Throughout the year, there are a large volume of socials organised (by the intern committee), including an intern Ball at the start at end of the placement. Most Bracknell interns move into student halls for the first month of the placement, which is a good way for people to get to know one another.

Cost of living and socialising is fair for the South. A lot cheaper than London.

Decent nightlife. A fair amount of clubs and bars in Reading - always something to do.

At Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, there is an intern committee which organises lots of different activities and events outside of work. There is a charity committee which is responsible for organising various charity events, including the Palace to Palace cycle, Reading half marathon, and the 3 Peaks challenge. These sort of events are a good way to get to know the other interns outside of work, as well getting to know other permanent HPE employees. There are various sports teams organised by the interns, such as the HPE Intern football team, and there are a number of different sports clubs around the Bracknell and Reading area which many of the interns have joined throughout the year.