Industrial Placement student Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my work placement with Aldi, it is defiantly challenging but it is also very rewarding. The varied nature of the placement and the fast paced job role means the year has flown by but I've enjoyed all aspects of the year from store time to head office.

During store time I felt very valued as after only a month you begin your management training and become the assistant store manager in your store. In this role I felt very valued as I was crucial to the successful running of the day. During my time in head office I also felt valued as we knew the projects we were working on were going to have a lasting impact on the business.

Each placement student is assigned an Area Manager who is your mentor throughout the year. As you are working in their area for the first half of the placement you have regular contact with them. During my grading period where my mentor was assessing my capability, she was offering me support and guidance as she had also been a placement student and wanted me to do the best I possibly could.

During store time I was extremely busy as I was the assistant store manager (ASM) so there is endless jobs to be doing. The pace at Aldi is extremely fast as we have targets to meet. As the work was often physical, working pallets, the job was very tiring but there was never a dull moment and certainly no clock watching as time went so fast!

Throughout my placement I was given a huge amount of responsibility. As the ASM I was responsible for the safe, placing the orders, organising the staff and many other duties. All of the above examples were given to me within my first week of management training. In head office the responsibility is also large, for example one of my projects was in relation to the staffing levels in the warehouse so my forecasts would affect peoples jobs.

I believe the skills I have developed will massively shape my next few years as I have been given a huge amount of responsibility at such a young age. In relation to University in particular, I believe I will be better at prioritising my time and working from 5am-3pm will defiantly make a 9am lecture seem like a lie in!

During the second half of my placement I spent time rotating around the different departments in head office. The office is predominately female and the atmosphere is very calm and welcoming. Everyone is friends and they socialise outside of work together. Everyone is always willing to help at any point which has been very beneficial.

At my contract signing I was given a 52 week plan which outlined what I would be doing each week, where and with whom. This plan also outlined when my 4 weeks of holiday would be taken as it is factored into our training plans. It was very clear and organised.

The company invested a lot of time into training as there is the potential for us to return as Area Managers. As I was assessed in January and February on a number of areas I ensured that my training was sufficient and I was confident in all aspects of the role.

All placement students have a final update with the management director at the end of the placement to determine whether they want you to come back after University as an Area Manager.

For the first half of the placement I was working in my area and had little social interaction with the other placement students. In addition to this, as I was a manager in store I was not permitted to socialise with my colleagues as it would have been inappropriate if I was to return as an area manager. In the second half I will have gone out in Liverpool with my fellow placement students twice.

I moved back home for the year which meant my cost of living was very cheap.

In the local area there is Liverpool in Chester which has very good nightlife. I did not frequent these areas regularly due to working at least 50 hours a week and working most weekends whilst in store.

There were no social activities to get involved in.