Visual merchandising Review

For the most part I have thoroughly enjoyed my time on placement at L'Oreal. The general L'Oreal culture is very friendly and welcoming and even as an intern you are still treated like a valued member of the team and an asset to the company. However, as you are given a lot of responsibility it has also meant that there is a great work load and a lot of pressure for this to be completed to a high standard. Sometimes my manager was not always aware of my work load and it took courage to take a step back and be honest that my work load was too much. You are very much expected to hit the ground running and as long as you are prepared to do so then you will get a lot out of your time on placement.

My brand in particular operates with a family like mind frame which has really made me feel welcome within the greater team. There is only 4 of us within my direct team which has definitely helped me feel like a genuine valued member and I can really see the impact that my work has on the wider business. The only reason why I am reluctant to score this area full marks is sometimes I feel like people presume that the interns will do the laborious and monotonous tasks that nobody else wants to do with no consideration of our workload but then again I suppose that is part of being the bottom of the food chain.

I have been trusted to get on with my own work and projects without management continuously watching over me. However, we do have weekly team meetings and my manager tries to schedule in regular catch ups to check the progress of what I am currently working on. Also, my managers are extremely approachable so I feel comfortable to approach them at anytime if I have any questions or need assistance on something.

My role is very demanding when it comes to the work load and there is always more tasks to be done. However, as my time on placement has gone on I have had to understand to deceiver what tasks are urgent and push back on those that are not. Even though management expect a lot of you I have found them to be quite reasonable and understanding when you make them aware that your work load has got too much.

Lots! Like I said previously they really expect you to hit the ground running and if you prove to your manager and team early on that you are capable then they will give you more responsibility accordingly. I have found that my team are confident in me to make decisions in their absence and they will support me with this upon their return. It can e quite daunting at first but it is really rewarding to see the impact that my personal work has had on the brand and been rolled out nationally.

The skills that I have learnt on this year I believe will be invaluable to me when continuing on with the rest of my degree and future job prospects. I feel that I have gained many skills that I have been exposed to within my job role but also L'Oreal encourages you to network and explore other areas so by branching out to other business functions I have developed further skills that I wouldn't have just within my role.

The office has a very relaxed and friendly atmosphere which has been very nice to work in. There has been a nice balance between being able to joke around and cracking on to get your work done. The office also works under flexi working time so it is up to you how you manage your time to get your work done. But it is definitely not a 9-5 job.

The overall placement has been very well organized and we have had continuous contact and support from a dedicated HR team who just look after interns and grads. The only point that I could be slightly critical of is that I think there potentially could have been more integration activities within the office when we first started for us to establish a good network of interns across the building. I think that this could have helped me with some of the projects I have worked on as I could have asked for advice from other interns who had completed similar earlier on in the year.

We have had regular intern training sessions which hope to develop our skills beyond our job role. I have found these extremely interesting as we get to learn about other areas of the business that we wouldn't of other wise been exposed to. Additionally, we have had placement review forms which we completed at the start, mid and end of internship so I have been able to track my progress and between me and my manager decide on targets for me to achieve over my year.

There is a management trainee scheme which is offered as a fast track application to the current interns. My team have been extremely supportive in making sure that I have developed to the right standard to be considered for a place. However, even though this is a fast track application it is still very competitive as they take on a lot more interns rather than management trainees each year. The management trainee program is a very attractive offer as the idea is that it prepares you for a career within loreal.

There was an intern committee who arranged monthly socials however I found that not that many people went to them. They have tried to put things in place to integrate the interns socially but I do not think they have been as successful as hoped. Having said this everyone has been super friendly and everyone seems to have made groups of friends theres just not that wider social scene.

The office is based in Hammersmith in London and I think London prices are just a shock in general to anyone. It has been hard on the salary that we are on to afford the living costs and balance a social life however we have all made it out the other side and it certainty hasn't put me off living in London in the future.

The nightlife in Hammersmith itself isn't great but with the tube you are really well connected to get into central London that it doesn't really matter. There is also a pub round the corner from the office that when the weather is nice everyone goes after work and sits in the garden. We did this a lot during summer when we had summer hours and finished work at 3 on a Friday.

There has been a few volunteering opportunities to get involved in but I think it depends on your team/brand for the ones that you are encouraged to get involved in. Through contacts that I have made through work there has been a few opportunities to go to some PR events for different brands which has been fun.