Global Technology Services Review

Upon securing a placement at IBM, I felt extremely proud and excited about the prospect of working there for a year. This was short-lived. IBM don't offer job descriptions, and rightly so because if they did it would probably put the vast majority of high-caliber applicants off.

I had two task managers, both of whom worked from home five days per week. If you join IBM don't be surprised when you are assigned a manager who works in Manchester while you are based in London. For me, this was a major issue. I wanted a manager who I could interact with and learn from. I could go a whole working week without having any contact. IBM market their remote working capabilities as a positive - they're not. It results in a very fragmented working environment with little sense of team unity.

If IBM ever deliver a presentation on their placement scheme to you, please take everything they say with a pinch of salt. They like to put an emphasis on the fact that you'll have a Professional Development Manager to monitor your growth, as well as a Task Manager to oversee you on a daily basis. Both of these claims are false. You will be assigned a PDM, but you will meet this person on four occasions throughout the year without building any kind of relationship. They wont monitor your development, but just conduct some basic admin functions relating to your probation period. As I mentioned above, I was given little support or opportunity to learn from either of my Task Managers.

I give this a 4/10 because I'd estimate that I had enough work to fill up two days per week. The work is not challenging and is very admin based. IBM isn't a lean or agile organization, but one that gets bogged down by having too many processes.

Little to none.

I leave IBM feeling less developed than when I entered.

Intern atmosphere - 10/10. At Southbank there were roughly 80 interns, which fostered an incredibly good social life and fun working environment - excluding the occasions where we wanted to quit. The working environment is 0/10. IBM is full of pompous people, who have no substance. I met very few IBMers who actually impressed me, and regularly found myself thinking 'Who hired you?!'.

The placement scheme at IBM is set up and marketed very well - with quite a lot of spin placed on certain elements. You'll attend a two day induction where you don't really learn anything useful, but receive your tragic Thinkpad (takes 15minutes to switch on) and get to meet some other interns. You will have a 2, 4 and 6 month review with your PDM, with the final review marking the end of your probation period.

You are allowed to complete free training courses online.

An awful company to work for, with a very modest salary package. No thank you.

Social scene was top draw. Couldn't have asked for better people to share this dire experience with.

I lived at home during my placement year, so I was very comfortable financially. London is an expensive place to socialize, and those who rented properties during their placement year struggled.

It was fine. We had a big night out perhaps once a month.

There were opportunities, but only because certain interns were very proactive in arranging things which enhanced the experience for the rest of us.