Customer Insight and Divisional Analyst Review

Thoroughly enjoyed my time.

As the months went by I felt more and more a part of the dealership family. With staff turnover in the company being so common, by the end of my year I felt like one of the 'oldies'.

Any support &/or guidance that I needed/ wanted I just had to ask for and I received what I needed. I attended various different training courses which were relevant to my job role, making myself more able to do my job and expand my work into other areas of the business.

It was up to myself to keep busy. As this was a completely new job role in the company and a first for undergraduates to be working in the network, there was no 'shoes to fill' or direct activities to carry out. It therefore took time to develop a job role using initiative that's work suited my ability and was of interest to the business. I now have set tasks to carry out on different timely basis, with time in between being filled by various other work throughout the dealership.

I would say about the right amount of responsibility, definitely enough to be heard and valued, but not too much to the point where people didn't take me seriously or think "what do you know?". The reports and data I produce are important and can be of big influence in decision making across the business, however I don't deliver the message directly, that's where management take over.

My placement has undoubtedly made myself more confident, more able to tackle tasks and definitely more ready to take on my final year & give it my best shot. The training I received was tailored to the business & the brand, however lots of the skills I have developed are adaptable and of value in any area of business in any industry.

The general atmosphere was friendly and professional. Although of course the atmosphere may vary between departments and depending on the time of month. For example, the end of month can naturally be more stressful, not to say that people are less friendly during this period.

For my experience, it seemed very thought out and organised. The recruitment process from start to finish was clearly structured and communicated in a timely manner. I was expected on my start date, and started a 2 week shadowing introduction around the business. This gave me a valuable insight into the various aspects of the dealership, as well as being a good opportunity to get to know colleagues. I then went to head office for a week on a undergrad-tailored course where I gained a good understanding of the brand & my role.

In my opinion, quite heavily. I went to head office in Milton Keynes 4 times for training courses, each of which were all expenses paid. As well as this, due to good performance from myself, I was gifted the opportunity to go to Germany for central launch training for new models within the brand. This was honestly one of the most enjoyable times due to being so interested in the automotive industry.

Within the dealership itself, there is very limited options. However within the wider organisation and within the brand, there are various opportunities.

Here and there, generally if someone was leaving or for someones birthday we would go out for a meal & drinks which was always enjoyable to get to know colleagues outside of the work atmosphere.

I worked in Watford, however commuted from Hatfield. I lived, and still do live in a shared student house which is as expensive as you'd expect. Socialising wise, you could make that as cheap or expensive as you'd like.

Debatable.

Yes, there were various opportunities from activities like tough-mudder or football matches weekly within the dealership..