DHL placement Review

I enjoyed the opportunity to work on a large scale projects with some very proactive colleagues.

At first not very much, but a manager took a chance with me and gave me some tasks that showed off my abilities, in turn my colleagues now valued me.

I worked closely with two managers and could ask them directly for any help I needed, they also took lead and gave me support/guidance when needed

Some days were not very busy, some were very hectic, it really depended in on the status of the project I was working on.

At first, not a lot, but this grew as I showed my capabilities. Near the end I was driving decisions that had large effects on the project, all supervised and ticked off by my managers of course, but ultimately it was driven from my analysis and reasoning.

I learnt many soft skills and the general idea that plans really don't go well if you fail to account 'people' as part of the equation. Getting things done and done well involves much more that just one good idea. Knowing the people involved and actively engaging them made plans a lot more successful.

I worked in the main office and an external office. The main office was a little dull, as the day-to-day work was repetitive for all. However, the external office was the primary for the project I worked was a lot more energetic (so was the project). Everyone was friendly and I did get a chance to meet some of the graduates too. Even if the office is dull, I had the freedom to explore the site and meet other people.

For my role, at first I was just kind of left in the main office, fortunately another manager took a risk and signed me up to a large project, from this onwards the organisation was good. We had a side project with the other placement students, this was vey well organised.

We had a course on reading people and understanding their character from a management perspective. The side project with other placement students was a good exercise of a rounded project - initial review, team discussion, client management, implementation, final review etc. Also, my manager gave me plenty of support when it came to my personal skills and IT skills.

Although I enjoyed my time there, I have graduated and got a job in a company more suited to my degree. I would highly recommend DHL if you at interested in Logistics and project management, I actually went on to do another 3 month placement the following year before graduating from my masters as I did enjoy the work and wanted to gain more experience.

At my site there were few graduate/placement colleagues. However, the two graduates I met we great people and became good friends of mine. Still 3 years later we catch up every now and then. The side project got me working with other placement students around the country, this was great as we got to hang out a few times and talk about our shared experiences.

I was living near the outer are of Liverpool. It was incredibly cheap and you could get quite a nice room (bills included) for about £300 per month. I had a car, so commuting to work was a 10 minute drive. Liverpool centre was lively (mainly near the student area) and I joined a local football team with no problem. I suggest joining a sports club or something like that as people from work don't really want to then hang out with work colleagues all the time.

Liverpool offers a great nightlife, tonnes of nice restaurants, bars and clubs to go to. With the students in the city centre, every night it can be busy (if you know which clubs the students are at). Even further out of town there are a few bars etc you can go too if you don't want to trek to the centre,

Yes, Liverpool had plenty of things to do. I joined a football team but there were many social/sports clubs to get involved in. A quick google would show them all. Liverpool is a big place so you'll likely find what you want. Manchester is a 40 minute drive away from the east side of Liverpool, so at worst you have another place to go and find activities.