Financial Operations Intern Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Travelport. I had the opportunity to develop myself as a person and also learn about the industry, whilst having a good relationship with my team leading to an extremely enjoyable work environment. I was not sure what to expect when I started, but the year exceeded all expectations I could have had before starting.

I always felt like a valued member of the team, and never like I was just the intern. I was given as much responsibility as the rest of my colleagues and my opinion was often asked regarding team initiatives and improvements etc.

My manager could not have done more during my placement to support me in everything I wanted to achieve. I was able to shadow different teams, attend development sessions and visit the Langley office alongside my daily role, and my manager made the point of telling me to work on myself and personal development during the year as much as learning how to do the job. Weekly 1-2-1s with my manager gave me the opportunitiy to talk about any issues, questions or opportunities and gave me valuable contact time with a more experienced Travelport employee.

As is to be expected in a finance role, there are both busy and quiet periods each month. Month end generally was very busy with continuous deadlines to meet, whilst quiet period gave the opportunity to catch up on any queries, uni work, and personal development. My team were happy to give me more work and responsibilities as I became comfortable with my role, which meant that my workload was continuously adjusted in line with my capabilities.

I was given the same responsibilities as the rest of my team, and these were increased as I grew in knowledge of my role. I did not imagined at the beginning of the year how much responsibility I would be given, so it was exciting to have my own markets to look after and deadlines to meet, that no one else was accountable for.

I have no doubt that the skills I have learnt during my time at Travelport will help me both when I go in to my final year at university and also when applying for grad jobs. The placement team hold sessions on CV writing and interview skills which will prove their worth when it comes to finding a grad role, and the skills I've developed from working in an office will be easily transferred throughout my career.

The office had a “Work hard, play hard” atmosphere. It was a refreshing environment: people put their all into the work, enjoying what they do and the company of their team. It allowed me to be comfortable whilst aspiring to work to the best of my ability. There are different atmospheres at the different offices and within different teams so it was interesting to visit the Langley office and shadow other areas. Travelport are very good at placing people within a team their personality matches and it shows in how well each team gels together.

There were plenty of opportunities for development at both a personal and corporate level. We had sessions based around interview skills, CV writing and our LinkedIn profiles alongside more Travelport specific sessions which helped to build a bigger picture regarding what Travelport do. There was also the opportunity to shadow other teams to get an insight in to the work that they do and how that linked to the role I was in.

I lived at home during my placement year as my parents live locally to the Swindon office, which meant I was able to save my earnings to afford a social life at university in my final year. The cost of living in Swindon is fairly reasonable and drinks after work on a Friday for example definitely didn't break the bank!

The Social Club was a great way to meet other people from Travelport and get involved in activities outside of work. The events held throughout the year by the Social Club included theatre trips, a quiz and curry night, sushi making, and many more. There was also a 5 a side football league held during an evening from the Swindon office and each team organises their own social events and teambuilding activities during the year.