EMEA Project Manager Review

I really enjoyed my placement at JnJ. I worked within the Janssen entity (Pharma) and was given such a range of opportunities which have really development my employment skills. I was treated as an employee, rather than an 'intern', and was given a large amount of responsibilities. JnJ employees are very supportive of your development. The Placement Scheme 'coordinators' work very hard to ensure you feel settled and are getting the support you need. There is a wide variety of career prospects at JnJ, with so many different functions and areas to work in, so there is always something new to learn.

I felt very valued by my colleagues. I was given alot of responsibility and the ability to lead on projects rather than just do the 'admin' work. I was trusted to travel around Europe as part of my job role. I opinion was always listened to and incorporated, and I felt just as valued as employees who had been working at the company for years. As a placement student I felt very appreciated, and I was always encouraged to get involved in a range of different opportunities.

My manager was very supportive, we had regular catch-ups regarding my development and strengths/weaknesses. We also regularly discussed my career, and was very helpful in ensuring I was given the right opportunities and projects to support this career path. My manager ensured I was introduced to a wide range of people within the business to help me network to further support my future career. Unfortunately my manager joined another team 3/4 of the way through the year which meant I had to build a relationship with a new manager, which was slightly difficult due to the timings of this.

I was given a lot of projects whilst working at JnJ. I had a lot of responsibilities which meant I had to learn to balance and prioritize my time well. I like to be busy so this wasn't an issue for me, as it meant I was never bored. The work I did was also very different so it didn't get tedious. JnJ have a very good culture which is very respectful of your personal and family time, meaning I was never expected to work long hours or on the weekend- however sometimes I did have to work longer than the 9-5 to ensure I delivered results.

I was given a lot of responsibility as I developed throughout my placement. At the beginning I was supporting on a lot of projects and worked on more of the admin side of things. However as I developed my skills, business acumen and leadership abilities I was given more responsibility and led at least 4 projects by the end of my placement. The responsibility I was given grew as I developed, and so I didn't feel overwhelmed.

I've given a 7 for this question as although the placement has really helped me develop my employability skills, and skills for my future career, I am unsure how much this will help me in my University studies. My role at JnJ was very different to my degree, so although my role has developed my soft skills, it will not help with the technical side of my degree. Having said that, it will definitely help with work ethic, communication and motivation.

The atmosphere in the office was very pleasant. In the marketing area of the office it was very friendly and quite informal, so not too intimidating. Everyone is very lovely and the atmosphere didn't feel stressful at all. In other areas of the office it was somewhat quieter with less general chit chat- for example in areas with less employees. There was also a major change to hot desks in the middle of the year which did cause a slight unsettling feeling as you didn't have an assigned desk.

The placement was very well organised. Your placement cohort are assigned an HR manager, Learning and Development manager and graduate student to support you. These employees connect with you and the cohort regularly with 121 catch-ups, group meetings and Lunch&Learns. These are spread out throughout the year to really help support your development. They also are super helpful with supporting your future career by giving careers advice, looking for other internal opportunities and giving you help with practice interviews etc.

I felt the company really invested in me by providing a range of paid-for training's. For example, presentation training, leadership training, insights training (e.g. Red, Yellow, Blue, Green) etc. They regularly put in meetings to discuss my development and to look at my strengths/weaknesses and how I could further develop. I also attended a training in Paris which really shows how much they invest in you. They're extremely supportive and even assign you a mentor to help guide you throughout the year.

Future employment is very appealing within the organisation. They have a Commercial Graduate Scheme (e.g. Marketing) which they really push you to apply for. They let you know this is available at the beginning of your placement and help you work towards this if it is something that appeals to you. It's a pipeline graduate scheme so it leads you to a guaranteed job within the company at the end. However, if you don't want to do Marketing in the future there seems to be slim opportunities to get back into the company.

There was a really good social scene. Our cohort were very close and had social activities usually once a week. A group of the students relocated to nearer the HO so we could easily go out and stay over after work. Everyone is very friendly and welcoming and I've made some great friends. We also traveled to Amsterdam together for a 'group holiday'. For students' birthdays we would all get together for meals and go out together to celebrate.

I didn't relocated to High Wycombe, however I did go out a lot to the restaurants, pubs, bars and clubs. The cost seems about average- there's a wide range of restaurants so there's something for every budget. The HO is very near Windsor and Marlow which are really nice places to explore, however these are also more pricey. I would say it's definitely affordable, although from the other placement students I think rent is fairly expensive.

The Nightlife isn't amazing- there are a few clubs but they're not great. There's a Spoons and bars in the area which are okay. Fortunately is very easy to get to Reading and London by train so you can easily get to a better place for Nightlife. The train is fairly expensive so it's not the best idea to travel into London every week, but definitely if you want a good night out. Marlow has some good pubs for a pub crawl.

There are alot of opportunities including a Football team, Netball Team and there's alot of groups (sort of like societies) that you can get involved with. For example a Women's Leadership group, sustainability group, mental health group etc. They also give you 5 days a year to dedicate to doing Charity work which is really rewarding to take part in. They also encourage you to do 'stretch projects' outside of your job role in another function to really challenge yourself.