Summer Intern Review

My Tesco internship ended up being virtual due to Covid-19. This meant the company had to adapt the programme as we were not able to carry out the work in the functions we had signed up for. Instead, they laid on projects that were about helping Tesco become more sustainable or helping the community. Despite it not being what I originally signed up for, I did enjoy my experience at Tesco. All the colleagues I came into contact with were lovely and everyone was very accommodating. It was bit of a struggle working at home, especially as it was quite independent, but I always felt supported and I think they did the best they could given the situation with Covid-19.

All the colleagues were so friendly and so many were wanting to help with our projects. The internship coordinators really wanted to find out our thoughts and feelings about the internship and it was evident they cared and wanted to make it the best experience possible, thus making us feel valued. The colleagues I met regarding my project were really enthusiastic and keen to see what we were producing. It was nice to see that they valued our work.

I felt very supported by the managers. They always reminded us that they were more than happy to help with any queries - no matter how big or small they were and that no question was silly. When it came to the projects, I had one project lead who I went to with my questions but regarding the internship in general, there were two managers to deal with questions. I don't think they could have supported us anymore given the format of the virtual internship.

At the beginning of the internship, I did not feel as though I was that busy or had much that urgently needed doing. However, by the half-way point, I thought I had a lot more work to get on with. Although most of it was very independent, so depending on your work-style, this may or may not suit you. Despite, it being fairly independent, colleagues were always willing to chat or help if you reached out to them. Overall, I think the workload was a reasonable amount given the scope of the projects.

I wouldn't say I was given responsibility for day-to-day tasks. This may have been different if the internship had been in person rather than virtual. We were given a brief to produce our projects and it was our responsibility to work towards the deadline. It would have been nice to have some more responsibility so that we felt we were having an impact on the company on a daily basis. However, I think the opportunity for this was limited due to the virtual format.

One of the main things I have taken away from this experience is the insight it has given me to the corporate and retail world. It is great that Tesco adapted the internship so it could take place online because this experience is so valuable in a time of such uncertainty. I have broadened my businesses knowledge and skills as well as built on my collaboration skills. I also feel a lot more confident as I am now happy to speak on MS Teams to new people, which actually was a bit daunting at first.

Initially, it was quite strange meeting colleagues over MS Teams. I think it would have been a lot easier to meet everyone in real life. That said, the internship coordinators made a real effort to create a fun, friendly atmosphere. They put on 'coffee roulette' where we would have an hour call with different interns to get to know them on a personal basis and not talk about work which gave a taste of what the programme may have been like in real life.

There were the odd technical issues during the internship regarding not having access to certain platforms at the beginning. However, all of these problems were dealt with as quickly as possible. Other than that, we had a schedule for the whole 6 weeks given to us at the beginning and a general plan of the internship was emailed to us weeks before the programme began. I felt as though the team had put a lot of effort into organising everything way in advance.

The company laid on different training sessions that really focussed on building upon different skills that Tesco values itself on (resilience, cooperation etc.). I was not actually expecting to have sessions like these during the internship so it was nice to see them investing time in building our skillsets. The coordinators for this were really engaging and it was nice to have a break from the project work and meet some of the other interns.

Tesco has left a very positive impression on me as a future employer. They made me feel valued and everyone was so approachable so it seems like a really nice work environment. After visiting the campus for the Discovery Day, the normal work environment looks amazing and the facilities are great. I think it had a lot more to offer than other London-based offices. I really like Tesco's values too which makes the prospect of future employment there even more appealing.

The opportunity to meet the other interns and get to know them on a personal level was quite limited by the fact it was a virtual internship. That said, virtual social meetings were organised amongst interns and everyone was keen to get to know one another. As previously mentioned, the internship coordinators made a real effort to make the sessions as interactive as possible, allowing us to get to know each other a bit better.

As the internship was virtual, we all ended up working from home anyway. That said, Hertfordshire/London house prices are expensive so that would definitely be something to consider when applying to Tesco. Socialising in these areas is not cheap either. Also if you were to live in London and get the train to Welwyn, you would need to consider the cost of the commute. There are lots of towns local to Welwyn however that would be cheaper, I'd expect.