Placement Student Review

I have thoroughly enjoyed my placement with Lidl. Throughout the placement I have experienced a 360 view of the company and had the opportunity to work within numerous different roles whether it be in stores, logistics or the offices. Like with any job, at times it was a struggle, especially when working in departments that I had no passion for. Further to this, I did also find that at some points there was a lack of organisation from the departments I was working in. However overall, due to the nature of the programme you really get to understand what you enjoy doing the most and you always have someone there to ask if you need help or guidance.

Throughout my placement, I definitely felt valued by my team and colleagues, especially whilst I was working in stores. In stores you realise the importance of working as part of a team, and everyone was extremely welcoming in every store I worked in. Further to this, I felt appreciated in every role that I was in and there was always praise given for hard work. Due to the nature of Lidl, everyone is always very busy and because of this, sometimes hard work may not always be noticed but most of the time it is.

In every department and role that I worked in I found that there is always management or training mentors there to help and provide guidance. The manager that I had in store was the best manager I could have asked for and easily the best manager I have ever had. At every point my store manager was able to listen to me and support me to perform the best that I could as he wanted to ensure that I was making the most out of my placement year. I was not 100% satisfied with the guidance given to me by the management in logistics as this area lacks training overall and you could definitely feel that when working there. In addition to every department, I also had consistent contact with my Regional Training Consultant.

The degree to which you are busy does depend on the role that you are working in and the department, however due to the nature of Lidl as a company there is always work to be done and something to do. In all departments, management are happy to delegate a large amount of responsibility to students and so 99% of the time you are very busy. In addition to this, I found that no matter how busy the department I was in, there was always sufficient time for training and guidance.

The level of responsibility given depends on the department that you are working in, however as mentioned previously all departments are willing to offer that to placement students. It is important to voice if you feel like you are not gaining enough responsibility and grasp all opportunities that arise. On a whole I found that each day I had plenty of work which was challenging, enjoyable and also significant enough to the business to help make an impact.

Previous to this point I had never worked in a full time role for a long period of time and so throughout this year I have gained skills and experiences that will hugely assist me in my degree studies and beyond. I have gained extensive knowledge of the organisation and have a greater understanding of the scale of operations. I have also developed lifelong skills such as communication, self-motivation, presentation, team work and adaptability. Furthermore, at numerous points I have managed a team and so again these are skills I will be able to transfer to future roles.

The atmosphere in the workplace depends on the area. Within stores I found that it was a fun environment and even though it was fast paced and stressful, you have your colleagues to support you. Within the offices I found that it was much quieter, however I joined the offices at a busy time and so it rapidly got busier not long after I arrived. The warehouse consists of roughly 200 staff in my region and so, understandably, is very busy at all times. A general feel is that Lidl consists of departments that are more serious than others however everyone knows when to put their head down and work and get the job done but equally, people know to stop and have a chat and a laugh.

Overall the placement is organised is extremely well. From the offset you are provided with a schedule of the departments that you will be working in and relevant start dates. In addition to the basic 3 modules that create the placement programme, there are other experiences planned into it such as a 2 week secondment at Head Office and a regional project week. There were occasions where some departments were not fully aware of what the role is and sometimes didn’t know that I was going to be working in their department, however this can vary depending on the region.

In terms of personal training and development, I found that Lidl has invested hugely in me. Especially whilst working in stores, I was still invited to take part in skill development workshops that would not just enhance my skills directly related to Lidl but also transferable skills. In addition to this, throughout my time in Admin I was given in depth training so that eventually I was able to run the department independently. There was also 3 national meetings organised in London that included training and development sessions.

I have enjoyed my placement with Lidl thoroughly and would welcome the opportunity of future employment. The graduate roles and scheme are of high interest to me, however I would like to go into a more specialised role such as admin or sales as these are the module I enjoyed the most. In addition to this my RTC has been proactive in trying to find me a role within stores whilst I return to university throughout my final year.

During my placement year there was a relatively good social scene amongst colleagues and numerous times where myself and other placement students would organise social events. We were invited to the Christmas party with senior managers and Directors. Also, when I worked in store, we arranged various team nights out in the local town.

The cost of living and socialising in my area was relatively average and definitely much cheaper than student living!

As I lived 5 minutes away from my RDC in Lutterworth I found that there was next to no nightlife. There are some bars and pubs, however nothing in comparison to the student life.

There are some opportunities that become available throughout the year, however these are not usually organised by the company and can depend on the region you are based in.