HR Project Support Assistant Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my placement at the Volvo Group UK. Through the support of my team and the wider organisation, I was given many opportunities to learn and develop. The organisation believes that placement students are a vital component to its growth and development. Throughout my placement year, I was made to feel like an equal member and was encouraged to express my opinions and ideas to help develop and improve current processes.

I worked within the HR department and I can honestly say I've never met a more welcoming and supportive group of people. The general atmosphere and culture at the Volvo Group UK is one of support, warmth and friendliness. It is a wonderful place to work.

My manager supported me above and beyond what I had initially expected. My manager had a good understanding of what I wanted to achieve by the end of my placement and therefore helped to tailor my projects, roles and duties so that I could transfer my skills, experiences and knowledge to my final year of studies. I was given authority over all of my projects but was also given ongoing support. My manager and I met regularly to check my progress, assess my skills and competencies and to give dual-feedback.

As with any role, there are peaks and troughs! I find that I work most effectively when in busier or more pressurised situations so the busy times were motivating. However, there were times where the days felt repetitive and mundane. To get over these feelings and to ensure that I got the most out of my experience, I looked for other opportunities within my department. As I suggested before, the Volvo Group UK supports the development of all its employees so I was met with open arms when asking for further work.

I was given complete responsibility for my role and projects during my placement year. I think the amount of responsibility that Volvo Group UK gives to its placement students is dependent on the individual and the circumstances. As part of my role, I was given the responsibility to improve upon the current recruitment strategy for placement students and execute these in the recruitment of the 22 placement opportunities ; design and execute a new student induction programme (building upon previous the years); design and implement new performance monitoring procedures for placement students and more! The role was extremely diverse and through having such high level responsibility, I have pushed myself to become a more confident, articulate and organised person.

I had access to a variety of training courses throughout my placement year. From Competency Interview Skills to Excel to Simply Trucks Training. With such a diverse range of training courses, my manager encouraged me to transfer my learning throughout practical experiences. For example, I participated in the interview training as it was my responsibility to interview student candidates with the hiring managers for the 2018/2019 placement opportunities. Learning by experience is definitely the most effective way to ensure that the learning that occurs on placement will stay with you for the foreseeable future.

As suggested, the atmosphere and culture is warm, supportive and friendly. The best for any placement student to do when meeting new people is to smile, be polite and make a conscientious effort to get to know whomever you are talking to. A placement year is a great opportunity to make connections and build upon your networking skills so don't be afraid to talk to people. You never know when you are going to cross paths with people again. The atmosphere within the HR department is good. Everyone is professional yet approachable and the whole team is willing to support one another, particularly in the busier times. Throughout the year, there has been an abundance of cakes and treats in the HR department at Volvo Group UK (not ideal for the waist line) but it demonstrates the caring nature of the people in the department. They are one of a kind.

The previous HR intern had done a superb job in organising a new Induction Programme for the 2017/2018 batch of interns. Managers were clearly informed of their roles and responsibilities and were supported in their early stages of having a placement student. My manager and I met regularly to establish new projects and give each other an update on the progress of former & current projects. This ongoing support helped to provide focus and structure for the year. This was a great way to build my relationship with my manager and to set expectations.

In my experience, Volvo Group UK has gone above and beyond what I would have expected from a placement provider to support my training and development. The HR team, and the wider organisation, really took the time out of their day to teach me their systems, ways of working and processed. Both the team and the wider organisation enabled my to have a voice; they taught me how to express my opinions in professional environments and allowed me the opportunity to suggest improvements. The HR Business Partner's that I worked closely with always offered to support me in any way they could and often approached me with new experiences and projects that would push my development and build upon my skills. As someone who was new to working in the corporate world, it was reassuring to know that I had a support system to push me to be the best version of myself.

I would love to return to the Volvo Group UK but any near future employment prospects look slightly limited (for the type of role I would like). At present, the Volvo Group UK does not offer any graduate schemes within the UK. For my development, I am looking for a graduate scheme to build upon my experiences and push my skills.

As most of the 2017/2018 placement students joined at the same time, it meant we had the opportunity to get to know each other. As a result there were often people arranging some social events after work such as drinks at the local pub. However, as work loads got busier and with their being 25 placement students, it became harder to make arrangements and get time with one another. I think that many of the 2017/2018 will keep in touch with each other as strong friendships were formed.

General living costs within the Warwick, Leamington Spa and Kenilworth areas are average. It's not cheap as chips but it's also not London prices. I would say that the average rent (per month, per person - in a 4 bed house) would be £400-£500 with bills included. No matter where you are, if you spend a little time on it, you can find good deals to be able to live comfortably and also have fun. Make sure to live within your means!

In Warwick, there are plenty of small bars and pubs to socialise in. Some nice Gin bars and places to find a good cocktail or pint. For a night out, my advice would be to visit Leamington Spa, Coventry or Birmingham. Leamington Spa is easily accessible by taxi from Warwick and Coventry and Birmingham by train.

Amongst the individual departments, people would often have plans to do something after work or during the weekend. The company often arranged some sort of events for charity or events for the employees in general. During my 12 months, the internal committee for events arranged things like the wolf run and bike rides for charity. Some of the 2017/2018 interns participated in the Wolf-Run and they thoroughly enjoyed it. My advice would be to get involved in as much as possible!