Compliance Analyst and Resource Management Specialist Review

There was constant support available within the company, even if I did not require it. The team I was within, especially my line manager guided me through my early days in the company but then left me to it and offered occasional support once I got to grips with my work.

I was generally very busy with a set number of tasks to complete each month, then some adhoc tasks on top of that. I also had time to find projects outside of my BAU tasks to keep me busy during free time. It would be very rare to find a time when I had a lull in work.

I was given a lot of responsibility during placement, being given some control over resource management for many projects as well as the opportunity to host daily calls with the management team. I was also given the task of producing reports to be used in senior leadership meetings which reviewed the performance of key business services.

I study ITMB, a degree that IBM co-founded. Because of this, I feel that what I learned in my placement year, has a great reflection on my course and I can't wait to put into practice some of the skills I have learned this year, in my final year of study.

The general atmosphere was good, the full team were all in certain days of the week and that would be productive for having meetings and drawing up plans for work. My team also liked to work at home a lot also though, so when they worked at home I could work at home also.

The work placement was well structured, with a 2-day action packed induction, designed to help us meet other interns and learn the ropes of the company. We were given two managers throughout our year, one for daily who would manage our day to day work. The other would oversee our welfare, who we worked with to make sure our skills progressed throughout the year, and could go to with any personal troubles we had.

There are very appealing prospects at IBM!! I have had the opportunity to speak to several graduates over my placement and learn about the array of schemes that are offered. There was also a careers day for all UK interns in IBM to get together and learn about the areas in the business they could go into with a graduate role. All in all, I am very satisfied with what is on offer and hopefully will be able to return to the graduate scheme.

The social scene was not what I expected. At the Warwick location, many interns had chosen to commute in from parent’s homes, as opposed to living in the local area. For the small number of us who lived in the local area, this meant it was more difficult to organize events, etc. and less people available if we wanted to do something. I have been told by friends who are interns down in London, at locations such as Southbank, that this is not an issue, with the social life being far more exciting, due to the vast number of interns at the office who have moved into the local area.

Leamington had a mix of establishments with a variation of prices for food and drink, etc. This is down to the area being quite a diverse demographic, of anyone from young students at Warwick University, to high earners and large families. There is something for everyone, however, I have found the majority of places I frequent to be on the high side for pricing.

The nightlife in Leamington Spa was very limited in my opinion. I am university in Newcastle, so perhaps my expectations are a little high. But for me, there are a limited number of clubs in the local area, with high drinks prices, and a lot of local people, some of whom I have witnessed be aggressive.