People Operations Review

I really enjoyed my placement year, I learnt a lot of new things and had exposure to things I never thought I would do. I had a higher level of responsibility then I thought I would which made the year worthwhile. I worked with some great people who supported me fully and wanted to me to achieve .

I felt very valued by my colleagues. I was given real, business critical tasks to complete from day one and was entrusted to do so. My opinion on matters was listened to and often acted upon and I knew I was a valuable member of the team. I was always treated with respect and fairness.

My manager always made it clear that they wanted me to achieve from day one and that I was here to further myself. I had a career and task manager, which meant I had two lines of support to rely on. They were both supportive, knowledgeable and provided me with multiple opportunities to better myself

Like any job, there were busy periods and quiet periods. Our work was quite steady and if there was nothing to do, we had generic admin to do, such as tidying up our emails or files. I was also encouraged to complete training and go out and find shadowing experience when I didn't have much to do.

I was given much more responsibility during my placement then I thought I would. My role was highly visible and I was entrusted by the business to complete tasks that had a direct impact on utilization and revenue maximization. I was not supervised doing these tasks and was relied upon to not make mistakes. This was something I really valued and helped me learn.

I wouldn't say that my role was that relatable to my degree subject but the skills I learnt were still relatable. I improved my presentation and team work skills vastly and my excel skills as well. Working at a tech company, I also became a lot more tech savy on my placement.

The atmosphere in the office was generally good. Everyone is really friendly and up for a laugh as long as the work is done. I was never treated or spoken to rudely by another member of staff and generally felt welcome there even though I was often surrounded by senior people.

The placement was organized very well with a clear structure from the beginning to aid our learning. I always felt that I was being monitored appropriately and not just left to fend for myself. There were regular reviews throughout the year to makes sure you were getting on okay and there was no problems.

I attended a variety of training sessions whilst on my placement year including sessions on how to consult the IBM way and how to run an assessment center and how to interview. I also carried out a wide variety of online training throughout the year on topics such as Blockchain, IBM Watson and excel.

Prospects to come back as a graduate are good and I have already handed in my application. The company believes in hiring young people and training them up which is good to hear and there seems to be a lot of training available. However not all parts of IBM are hiring so role choice is limited.

The social scene was good with most interns meeting up outside of work for drinks on a Thursday and there was also a monthly networking event with a free bar which was nice. I have made a lot of friends that I'm sure I will keep in touch with next year.

I commuted in and lived at home so couldn't comment.

I commuted in and lived at home so couldn't comment.

Yes, IBM allows you to do things called giveback which is where you volunteer to help out in the variety of projects that IBM hold and run, this is a great opportunity to do some good and something people enjoy doing.