Purchasing Assistant Review

Thoroughly enjoyable, Level of responsibility was high and the support received was good. Fantastic experience.

The team was highly dependent on one another. Even the placement student had a pivotal role in the project requirements being achieved to an expected standard,

Introduced into company by previous placement student and supervisor who offered good support initially. Over time, as I became more competent in the role, less support was required but manager/supervisor were always at hand to help.

Not overly busy in the beginning, incredibly busy in the last few months as the responsibilities expanded.

In the beginning, there were few administrative responsibilities that I held as I got used to the company, the surroundings and the IT behind procurement. By the end, I was also responsible for carrying out parallel tenders/negotiations, building contractual agreements and communicating with suppliers constantly to establish the best deals available.

Skills that I have developed during my time with Prysmian include time management, prioritisation, communication and persuasion skills along with critical IT skills. These improvements are critical for my personal development and I will be able to use these to better construct essays/reports at university, communicate with professionals and conduct myself in an office environment.

Focused but relaxed. Colleagues were interested in their work but were willing to stop and have a chat about work or otherwise. Ongoing projects meant that there were periods of busy and manic behaviour to meet deadlines.

Well organised. Had explicit responsibilities and the ability to expand my skill set with new tasks. There were occasional times when left on your own but this was a tester of character and proactive behaviour, not a sign of poor organisation.

My supervisor was often found spending time with me, discussing IT hints and tips along with involving me in key meetings throughout the year. There was a paid trip to Middlesbrough to help expand my insights into the operational side of the organisation, along with partaking in important frame agreement discussions.

Very appealing. There is a graduate scheme that takes the individual across the world to learn more about the ins and outs of the whole Group. This includes the main cable manufacturing side of the organisation, along with the growing energy projects side which I have had some insight into this past year. There are locations in Milan (HQ), Finland and Norway for instance. Would very much like to apply for this scheme.

Think this depends on the fellow placement students you are paired with. While on placement, I was alongside 2 other students who worked in project support and engineering. They were lovely people and easy to talk to but socialising outside the workplace was not a frequent occurrence.

Chelmsford is quite an expensive area for accommodation as it is relatively close to London. However, silver lining is this means that socialising is achievable as you are on a direct line to many places in and through London. The supermarkets and restaurants in the area are reasonably priced for day to day use.

Nightlife in Chelmsford is of a good quality. There are many pubs and clubs in the centre and surrounding areas of the city. If you can gather a good crowd, it is a good night out.

Not really no. There were offers of the occasional late night dinner, however many colleagues were Italian and stayed very late before heading out as this is in their culture. Depends how late you'd like to stay in the office for them.