This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.
Rating
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The Role
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The Company
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The Culture
- 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
- 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
- 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
- 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
- 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
- 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
- 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
- 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
- 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
- 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
- 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
- 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
- 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
- 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
- 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
The Role
The main aspects that I enjoyed were the team spirit of my colleagues and the interesting conversations I had with customers. However the job itself was low-skilled and very monotonous.
There was a strong sense of teamwork and I felt my managers did value me being there.
At the beginning of my placement I was given lots of feedback about how I was doing and how to do well in the Enterprise assessments (known as ESQi). But after the first few months I didn't get feedback as much. In terms of support, I was not given any for completing my uni work and was refused just one day off so I could use it for my uni work. Given that you work 53 hours a week minimum, I find this extremely unfair.
We were often extremely busy and finished late (after closing at 6pm). I sometimes felt rushed by my managers and don't think this is safe especially when so much of your day involves driving. You only get 30 minutes break for lunch despite them saying in the recruitment process you get 1 hour. Given the length of the day and that you need to be aware whilst driving, I think this is not enough.
You are given a lot of responsibility, even going on meetings at businesses to discuss corporate accounts on your own. And if you wish, management are more than happy to teach you and let you run the day.
I mainly learned life skills such as hard work, perseverance and commitment. Some business-related skills I learned such as chasing debt, customer service and sales. Be warned, you do not have to be clever for this job and it is therefore not an intellectual job at all. I think it is mind-numbing and I felt I did not use any academic skills which I have learned at uni, but I did use personal and social skills a lot.
The Company
Because the job is quite easy and you don't have to think about what you're doing, you are able to have fun. I did have some great laughs with my team or with customers.
Very organised and the recruitment process involved various meeting with fellow interns and current employees.
The company puts a strong emphasis on training and if you are willing to put in the work, they want to develop you.
Flexi Time
Company Parties/Events
Staff Sales/Staff Shop
This is a company which is suited to some people. But I feel many of the employees there including managers are trapped in and due to the long working hours, find it difficult to leave the company even if they are unhappy there. As an employee at Enterprise you are underpaid and overworked. There is no work-life balance and as a female, I don't see how you could be successful in this company and be a mum. You would have to sacrifice your career goals.
The Culture
I had no contact with fellow intern students as I was the only one in my branch. There were branch meals every couple of months which was nice and an area night out.
I worked in the Birmingham area and it is relatively cheap to live and work there.
Birmingham city has a good night life. West Brom does not but that doesn't matter. We didn't ever go on nights out with each other at the company.
There were some charity events and I did one volunteering day.
Details
Placement (10 Months+)
West Midlands
April 2018