Finance Intern Review

My internship with Eaton was very eye opening and educational, this, in turn, made it enjoyable as I got to really develop my understanding of how a large, professional and varied business organisation such as Eaton works. Additionally being given the chance to work closely with other interns was really fun.

During my internship at Eaton I had a lot of responsibility and provided support to varying other departments in the business as well as Finance. This helped me to integrate better with my colleagues on site as they appreciated the high level of work I produced for them, I was definitely appreciated.

Working with both off site and on site managers was really eye opening. It allowed me to develop on my own without feeling constantly watched, yet still knowing that a valued support network was available to me if required. The guidance was plentiful with a lot of support offered not just in my field, but as a more well-rounded professional.

My daily tasks for Eaton were limited outside of the month end procedures, however I had plenty of meaningful and interesting projects and other ad-hoc work across the business which kept me busy with interesting and valuable work. A mixture of analysis and report making made up most of my role.

During my placement at Eaton I was given a lot of responsibility, from presenting in Management Meetings to producing reports used for calculating bonuses and rebates, the level of responsibility far exceeded what I expected and has really allowed me to flourish in to a valuable member of the team.

The skills I have developed during my internship at Eaton have far exceeded my expectations, from improving my soft skills such as Presenting and Communication through presenting the Financials and speaking regularly to senior staff, as well as regular training with other interns. To improving my Management Accounting skills and my software skills, such as SAP, Excel, BW and Encore through training and use.

The atmosphere in my office was typically very professional but would change depending on who was in the office or who I was working with, as the year went on and I became better friends with my colleagues, it became a very friendly and open environment. I really did work alongside a lovely group of people.

My internship at Eaton was very well organised. Having one person specifically dedicated to looking after all the interns means you really do get the attention you need. As well as the day to day aspect of the job which your manager determines with your input , training events are held by the programme manager and an external provider. With plenty of training with the other interns it allowed us to both learn and get to know the other interns.

During my internship at Eaton, I was invested in massively. The company spent a lot of money on both external and internal training events which were invaluable to my progress throughout this year. Having training in different sizes from one to one and in a large group has provided a range of different learning techniques and given me a wide range of skills.

I would definitely seek future employment at Eaton. I’m not sure right now what graduate opportunities may present themselves in terms of my chosen function of HR, but I would be open to exploring them all. From my experience I know that grads at Eaton all have the opportunity to travel and see some of our other sites globally and this really appeals to me.

I was in a lucky position in terms of my location during my placement year – I could easily commute between two of my sites for nights out or social events. One of my sites had a way better social scene and made an effort to socialise much more than my other, because they lived together I think. So I would definitely recommend living with other interns if you get the chance. However, all the interns were extremely friendly and we always has a laugh when we were together.

I lived at home during my placement year as I was within a commutable distance. Biggest pro of this was managing to save up some money! However, I knew interns who were renting a place for the year and they seemed to be paying a reasonable amount , much like what you would be paying to live in a student house.

Not great unfortunately. My site is quite remote and their isn’t much to do in the area but I knew this before I accepted the placement so it was what I was expecting. The interns from my site and myself did go out occasionally though which was fun. I typically went out with the interns from another site for big nights out as they lived closer to a main city (and it only took me 40 minutes in the car to get to them), I had loads of fun with them made some great friendships.

The opportunities to get involved outside of work are definitely there if you want to get involved, but you won’t be pushed to do so if it isn’t your thing. During my time at Eaton, staff BBQ’s have been held along with numerous staff gathering for things like leaving do’s and birthdays. The Christmas party was particularly fun… and as a bonus you get a few drink tokens .