Technology Consulting Analyst Review

I enjoyed the nature of the work. I felt I was trusted with a good level of responsibility. I was confident with the amount of help available when on a project. I was left with a good level of freedom to complete work how I saw fit. I also enjoyed the extra curricular activities on offer, such as sports and social events. I liked the colleagues I was working with on placement. I appreciated the work life balance and the 'work hard play hard' ethos. I liked the encouragement into health and well being e.g. gym subsidies, advice on correct posture. I felt like more help could have been provided by Accenture themselves to answer any questions I had. I did not necessarily appreciate the length of time sat at a desk each day. I know this is to be expected at an office job, however I would've preferred more regular activities e.g. meetings.

At the start, I was welcomed into the company and given plenty of information, therefore showing me plenty of respect and value. I was welcomed onto each new project I joined. I was invited to all social events on both of my projects whilst at Accenture (as was everyone else). My line managers and other colleagues at Accenture made it clear I could go to them for support whenever I had any queries. People put time aside to help my personal development and explain the context of the projects to me. On a wider level, I enquired to participate in Accenture activities (e.g. 5 a side football and Volleyball) and was welcomed onto both of these. I was offered the same perks as other more senior employees. There was very limited separation in the treatment of senior and junior employees e.g. seating location, inclusion in activities. However, my emails were sometimes ignored. I feel this may have been because I am lower down the company than others, therefore people do not view my requests with the same urgency as they would for more senior employees.

I was given plenty of information on my induction week into life at Accenture. I was given plenty of information on the context of the second project and the wider goal. My colleagues and line managers offered plenty of help on how to use unfamiliar tools. My line managers usually gave me extensive information when assigning me new tasks. My colleagues were helpful in finding me contacts when looking for a new role. When I asked, help was offered onto extra curricular information e.g. activities and expenses. However, I was not provided with information on the context of my first project and the common goal of my team (apart from a brief initial briefing). I was not given much help at all to find another project at the end of my first project. On my first project, I was sometimes given tasks with limited explanation as to the details of the task. Rather than offering help in advance, I was provided with feedback after completing the task, resulting in me attempting the same task (unnecessarily) multiple times.

On my first project I initially had very little to do. When I requested more work, my workload increased. By the end of this project I was fairly busy most of the day. I could work at my own pace, I was rarely given an unreasonable deadline. I had significantly less work than my colleagues. On my second project I was more busy throughout. I was busy from 9-6 more or less every day. Occasionally left at 4 (when working on an out of town project and needed to travel back to London). However, I very rarely needed to work late. I was never asked to work weekends.

On my first project, I was given less responsibility. I rarely owned my own tasks. Lots of my work would be edited by others before it was finalised, therefore I had a low level of responsibility. The nature of my work was often preparing work for other people. This was a series of short term projects and quick fixes, mainly assisting in other people's tasks. On my second project I was given more responsibility. I had to manage short term and longer term tasks. I was responsible of managing my own projects from end to end. My work was trusted, submitted and saved without editing. I was trusted to liaise directly with senior colleagues.

My excel skills have developed significantly. My time management skills have improved. I have improved in my ability to manage multiple tasks at once. I have a better understanding as to how businesses operate. I have a greater understanding of potential career paths and the options that are available to me in the future. I have a greater ability to concentrate for a longer period of time. My presentation skills have improved. I am now less reluctant to ask for help when necessary. I have a greater understanding as to how Management Consultancy companies operate. I have a new perception of the marginal benefits of hiring extra employees and how spending that may initially seem wasteful could be a worthwhile investment.

Positive on the whole. People are welcomed into the project. People are expected to work hard. However, people are also encouraged to have a reasonable work life balance. People are friendly and approachable. Very sociable atmosphere on the whole. In my out of London project, people socialise in the evenings. However fairly limited face to face interaction during the working day. However, I did not necessarily feel like I could approach senior employees all the time. On both projects there was limited interaction between contractors and employees of the clients.

It was a very quick and straightforward application process for the placement role. The onboarding process was very thorough and straightforward. Induction week was very well organised. We were given sufficient information as to where to find relevant information. I was given sufficient information and timings for my first placement. On my second placement I was given a very thorough initial briefing. I received my client laptop after one week. Although I could not work on this project for a week, it was useful to have a week understanding the project. However, it was difficult to find a new project, as there was no central search engine or document of all the available projects. It was difficult to plan accommodation, as I did not know where I would be based until the placement started.

Put a week aside at the start of my whole placement to brief myself and other interns. Provided with regular contacts throughout. Encouraged to learn throughout my first placement. Encouraged to take on my advanced tasks as my placement progressed. On my second project, I had a very thorough explanation at the start of my second placement. After familiarising myself with the project at the start, I was given more complex tasks to develop me and my understanding of the project. The differing nature of my two projects has offered me a broader understanding of the nature of my company's projects. Having to find a new project myself has taught me the importance of networking. Networking opportunities have also developed my networking skills. However, many of these tasks were short term orientated and offered little to my personal development.

They have an emphasis on hiring a high number of interns. Many of these then work at Accenture full time. They are well paid. There are perks of the job. Accenture is a well-known company that is a good company to have worked for in terms of future career progression. They are a stable company. They are a great company to learn from for future roles elsewhere. It is a broad career path and therefore limits pigeon-holing from a young age. Reasonable working hours. However, colleagues have told me it is difficult to get noticed for a promotion once you work there full time.

Many social events. Regular contact between myself and other Bath students. Multiple communication platforms to contact other Accenture employees. A WhatsApp group between all colleagues on my project. Regular social events. Accenture wide social events. Plenty of networking events were provided. However, these events were not overly regular. Lots of social events were focussed around drinking. Limited face to face contact with other placement students.

Accommodation in London was much more expensive than the rest of the country. Eating out was also very overpriced. Drinks in bars and clubs was very overpriced. Public transport was very expensive on the whole. Car parking is expensive and almost impossible in the centre of London. However in out of town projects car parking was available. On out of town projects evening meals were paid for. On out of town projects travel was paid for. Student discounts were available on public transport. Council tax exemptions were available in London.

Lots of bars available in London. Lots of Nightclubs available. A variety of bars and clubs. Plenty of other interns live locally meaning there was plenty of company for nights out. No difficulty getting to most areas of London for most bars or nightclubs. However some of these take a long time to get to. Also difficult to get home from as public transport is limited late at night. Many are open until late. Very few of these bars or nightclubs unreasonable refuse entry. Plenty of pubs are open until late.

Some of these were advertised. Project based activities were well communicated. Regularly emailed about opportunities available. I contacted someone on Accenture volleyball and got involved easily. I was involved regularly in company 5 a side football. A wide variety of extra activities were available for almost every interest people may have. There is a possibility to start your own groups for interests that are not already available. There is a common website to search for your interests. However these interests would not always be easy to find e.g. I searched for football and it did not always come up. These were not always easy to get involved in when I was on out of town projects midweek.