Solutions Analyst Review

I loved my time working in a such huge company that somehow felt personal and worthwhile.

I was relied on and supported equally, just the same as a regular employee would be which was reassuring in establishing a true workplace experience.

Managers were very close to my desk, so relying on emails for communication wasn't needed. It was good knowing I can easily access a line of support when I need it.

Always busy, sometimes felt a bit too busy but for all the right reasons; the work was challenging but not beyond the skill-set my colleagues were aware of.

I settled into a certain area within my role and focused on that, this area then became a larger part of Identity Access Management and I was able to dictate how I wanted the processes of this are to run.

I utilised a good variety of my skills gained from university, I didn't develop these all to such a large degree as others, but everything I knew was pushed and can be used in my last year of university. On top of this, I was able to take part in paid training courses in ITIL and Project Management which have transferable knowledge.

Large open plan office with emphasis on cross-desk communication as well as online meetings - this gave an informal feeling.

The initial setup of the application, tests, interview and acceptance was easy and intuitive, however SRG (my actual employer who hire me out to GSK) were repeatedly uninformed and unhelpful. The good thing is that most of the time SRG only deal with payroll, all your work stays within GSK.

2 high quality paid courses in Project Management and ITIL. I can use the skills I gained from these both at university and in other career paths. The courses weren't simply "If you attend you can say you're qualified" situations, they were very intense and informative, relying on testing and understanding.

There is plenty of opportunity to return to the company with a few of GSK's schemes, but I elected not to do these. That being said, I feel totally comfortable applying for a position again once I'm finished with university outside of these schemes. You build a lot of relationships here which would always help in returning.

IPUnite is fantastic in organising events and sports, getting everyone all together; we probably had one event every month with others dotted around. Due to living far away I could only attend the big events, but this didn't make me feel unwelcome in the other smaller events whatsoever.

Unfortunately, it's London, but away from the centre which does help with costs. The local high street has plenty of pubs and restaurants which are above the rural town prices I'm used to, but they aren't too different from large town/small city prices. Obviously the further into London you go, the more costly it can be! I know that rent in the centre of Brentford can be expensive, but there are neighbouring boroughs that are cheaper even with a small commute factored in.

In Brentford, not superb, but it's easy enough to get into London. The tube takes about thirty minutes (at rush hours). We found that IPUnite often organised these trips for work nights out, but if you or colleagues live even in the Brentford area this helps in terms of making it easier to get back from a night out.

Orange Days is an initiative which you can take a paid working day helping the local community in charity work or fundraising. GSK always encourages this sort of activity and often matches donations, sometimes offering to help with planning.