Assistant Manager Review

Internship at LBG was very enjoyable. The banking culture has evolved dramatically since 2008 crisis. Employees are very knowledgeable and are eager to help and don't micromanage. And because of the size of LBG, it provides interns and graduates to move in between divisions and learn about other offices. Depending on the city you are based in, your experience will vary but the working experience is very similar all over the UK.

You only get into a team upon the request of the manager or one of the team members. So when you start, the make sure that you're welcomed into the team. They give you the same amount of respect as any other employee. But they also understand that you may not have all the skills possible to finish the task. Thus they make sure to update you on their role and the various projects they are working on.

On your first week, your line manager will first give you an introduction to the department, division and roles. Then you will go through some induction presentations and few courses that will provide you a better insight. In the following weeks you will assist managers in projects. And then finally you will be handed over proper projects and challenges (Depending on your comfort level).

LBG strives for a perfect life to work balance. They try to follow a plan known as agile working. This allows you to chose your hours, guaranteed that you finish off your daily hours. Some weeks can be more busy than others. But with a better time management, you will be able to adjust the work load. But, personally speaking, on a daily basis I have 2-3 hours of meetings and then rest the time just project work and preparing for the meetings.

Depending on department and your role in the banking group. The responsibility given will vary. My line manager gave me the responsibilities of drawing up reports and developing finance strategies. Those reports were then checked by my manager with feedback. But you are given a considerable amount of responsibility, but the line managers will guide you along the way (not stressful at all).

I study bachelors in Business administration. The theoretical knowledge acquired over there can be put into practice at my current role. These included, finance, supply chain management and project management. I was able to see them in practice and how to handle different projects. Moreover, LBG also focusses on personal development. Thus they provide you with access to different e-learning tools where in working hours, you can improve your skills.

General atmosphere will depend on the department. Finance is relatively fun and people socialise a lot. We have "Fruit Tuesdays" and everyone helps each other out. However, when going to commercial banking, the culture changes and people are more focused on their work rather than socialising with one another during working hours. Thus, it will completely depend on the department but finance was very fun, efficient and friendly.

The internship program itself was seamless. The projects are well explained and the work is well divided and defined. However, the recruitment process can be slightly more efficient. As the recruitment is done externally, they don't have the appropriate knowledge on how to deal with any hickups. It can be improved by improved communication between the employees at the recruitment office.

The firm is very committed on improving and developing the skills of their employees. They provide e-learning courses for their interns and scholars. And for graduates, they do provide accreditation degrees such as ACA, CIMA, CFA, etc. Moreover, the banking group also has several external activities such as football team, sports club, etc.

As an intern, there are a lot of possibilities one has at LBG. At the end of the internship, you will be offered a graduate placement depending on your assessment performance. It does get relatively competitive, but with the knowledge about the bank and hard work. It will increase your chances of getting on the scheme.

Simple said yes, we were all placed in one accommodation. Granted that it was far from the city and the office, it was very enjoyable as 30-35 interns and scholars were all living together. We used to socialise close to every night. And then also use our fellow interns as networking points in the bank. For example; I contacted and networked with several employees and different divisions.

As all the interns were provided accommodation by the banking group, it was rather inexpensive. As I stayed in Bristol, it wasn't very expensive when socialising. Clubbing was max £10 entrance and drinks were anywhere in between £2 to £10. There is a shopping centre close to the office and city centre isn't so far either. So easy to go out after working hours.

As Bristol is a student city, nightlife and socialising was amazing. There were 24 hour buses from the city centre to the accommodation and clubs were affordable and quite decent. And as its a small city, most of the clubs and pubs are concentrated in a small area. The nightlife area isn't that far from work either.

Yes, there are sport clubs, gyms, etc. in the city centre and surrounding areas.