Business Operations Specialist Review

Despite my role not being directly related to my degree area, I have really enjoyed working as a Business Operations Specialist within IBM. I have had the opportunity to work with members of the Senior Leadership Team and attend reviews alongside the UKI and European Leader for my area, which I believe is a relatively rare experience, therefore has allowed me to witness how an organisation functions at a higher level which has been really interesting.

Throughout my time at IBM, I have felt valued by all of my colleagues. Due the fast-paced business environment I work in, at times I have dedicated extra hours outside my contracted ones to finish pieces of work that need completing urgently however this has always been recognised and is always appreciated.

Within my placement, I have been assigned two managers: a Task Manager who monitors my day-to-day tasks and an Early Professionals Manager who tracks my progress throughout my placement. Both have been extremely supportive and have always provided me guidance where necessary. My Task Manager has spent large amounts of time with me throughout my year to enable me to get involved in a variety of tasks and broaden my skill set, and allowed me to attend various calls to allow me to gain a wider insight into how IBM operates.

Due to the role I have undertaken and the colleagues I work alongside, the majority of the time I always have tasks to complete or meetings to attend. If I am not busy and have nothing outstanding, I always communicate this to my Task Manager and see if there is anything I can do to help. On the very rare occasion there are no tasks I need to complete, as a result I engage with Think 40 tool provided by IBM which allows me to pick topics I would like to gain insight into and complete education around these.

I am aware the majority of people believe that large corporations will not give you any responsibility during your placement year, which I too believed initially, however this is inaccurate. Throughout my placement I was given large amounts of responsibility as my knowledge base grew, I became more familiar of processes in place within my business area and also built a rapor with my colleagues e.g. several months into my placement I was asked to lead the automation of a manual system that was currently in place within my area.

The skills I have developed during my placement year will certainly aid me when applying for graduate rolls, throughout my career and also during my final year at university to an extent. I have been able to develop my adaptability, communication, team-working, presenting and leadership skills plus many more through being involved in a range of tasks and believe I will now be able to apply these in a range of scenarios. My experiences at IBM have also enabled me to view tasks from different perspectives, therefore this is something I will hopefully be able to do moving forwards.

I feel that despite my colleagues being very approachable and supportive, the majority of them are dispersed across the UK therefore rarely saw them face-to-face. Additionally, most people at IBM frequently work from home therefore the office is very quiet most of the time and can be quite isolating.

My placement was very organised. I was not expecting to have a separate manager dedicated to supporting me as a placement student and did also not expect to have the level of structure I did surrounding my placement. I found the 3 Month, 6 Month and 12 Month Review milestones particularly helpful as it enabled me to reflect on my time so far as well as plan for the remaining time at IBM. It also allowed me to discuss my personal objectives with my Early Professionals Manager and establish how I would be able to complete these.

I feel that my colleagues have quite heavily invested in me by dedicating large amounts of time to support me and enhance my understanding in certain business situations/ tasks. As a placement student, I have also had the opportunity to give back to the community through various tasks e.g. attending a 'Mock Interview Day' at a local school and have also been involved with project Wimbledon were running. Both experiences have allowed me to build on my current skills and develop new ones. The firm have also held a Careers Academy, which I attended, aimed to enhance our knowledge on areas of business we selected. I found this particularly useful as it allowed me to learn about other opportunities outside my business area.

IBM offers a range of different programmes and job roles to undergraduates and graduates. I am also aware that some programmes offer the opportunity for rotation therefore allowing individuals to experience a variety of business areas and aiding them in deciding on a career path. Although this is an amazing opportunity for students who may not have decided on a future career, I would like to go into a financial based role however these are currently scarce within IBM therefore roles offered do not appeal to me as much as they will do others.