Business Support Officer Review

I enjoyed it very well. Amazing colleagues and great opportunities available, also the fact that we were placed in the new head office in Birmingham was definitely a bonus as it has so many great facilities and is very accessible. The opportunity to develop yourself and grow is great regardless of the department you are placed in as there is many networking and collaboration opportunities with other teams. The salary is also very competitive which is another great pro.

There is a great feedback and development system in place as such your team manager and placement manager from hr will be able to provide you regular feedback about the progress you are making and also the quality of work you producing. Because of the good feedback culture in HSBC I believe I felt very valued at work at all times and also very appreciated for the work that I have produced during my placement year.

Depending on your managers working style and also your own working style, managers will be generally flexible to work in your preferred method, as some would prefer to be given more guidance and support for the work they do, some may not, as such depending on your preference, you could discuss this with your manager. Generally, managers and mentors give great support and guidance as such it is not something to worry about no matter how busy they may be.

In terms of day to day tasks from the team, it can vary, no one day was the same as the other as such some days can be really very busy, while others can be quite quiet, however, because of the various opportunities and learning platforms available in HSBC, there is also ways you can spend your free meaningfully to develop yourself further such as by increasing your technical knowledge by taking courses online in the HSBC learning platform

As my manager trusted and valued my work alot and was also keen to let me develop further, I was given responsibilities of a proper manager level, as such although it was daunting at the start as I was helping make business decisions even though I am just a placement student, it made me feel not only valuable but also made me feel the work I was doing was also very valuable to the team and the business.

The skills I developed during placement year helped me have a better understanding of what its like to apply them in a real life situation, such as excel skills and how it impacts projects. This skills are very valuable when it comes to applying for graduate schemes as some employers will be keen to know if you have working experience of using some of the skills you have listed such as communication skills, stakeholder management skills etc.

Very good, surrounded by great colleagues who enjoy the work they do and also the office which is new and convenient makes it a very lively atmosphere. Due to the size of the building and also amount of people there is always something exciting happening in the office from festive events like Chinese New Year Celebrations to Charity drives. Although certain periods, it can be tense with deadlines, there are isolation corners you can go to to take a breather.

As the program is still rather new, there were changes being made while I was in the program, and will not be surprised if there are further changes made for the batches to come. However the HR team was always there to communicate about any changes and if there were any challenges and were able to guide us appropriately during the whole placement journey. The milestones which were meant to be achieved that were stated at the start of placements were all met too.

Personal training an development is something HSBC takes very seriously. 1-1 meetings with your manager and HR is highly recommended, where they will advise you how you could develop further. Development days are also organized by the HR team where all the placement students get to attend. Mid year and end of year feedback is also conducted where you can find for yourself how you are performing and how you could perform better. The resources available in HSBC such its online learning platform, free linkedin premium account and also special programes such as "Join me days" where you can join another team for a set amount of times shows that HSBC takes training and development very seriously.

From completing the placement program you are provided an opportunity to automatically be offered the graduate scheme should you perform up to expectation during your placement year, although this may be impacted by headcount etc. The graduate scheme is extremely appealing in terms of the rotations offered, the resources you will be able to use, the opportunities you will be given and also the pay is very competitive which makes the program one of the best to join should anyone want to pursue a career in financial services.

Yes, although there are not alot of placement students (less than 20), there are many opportunities to be able to still mingle with your other placement students and their teams. Socializing and networking is also highly encouraged as such HSBC is a great place in terms of socializing during and after work. Teams also regularly organize team outings and even team charity days to bond further and get to know each other beyond work as such there is a really good social scene.

Cost of living is not too bad for a city like Birmingham. As living costs are affordable, it would be possible to pay off rent without taking any loan and using your placement salary instead. Because it is a city and there are many options available which is near to the office, you can choose from a variety of houses depending on your budget. Birmingham also has many great socializing places from bars to cinemas to parks as such there is an abundance of choices.

Birmingham nightlife is perhaps one of the best in the country, not only is it affordable, it is very conveniently located, thus making the trip to get back home not too bad. There are many clubs and bars you can choose to go too ranging from canal house which is next to the office to Birminghams biggest club, Pryzm. There are also plenty of other things to do apart from drinking and clubbing in the night such as going to Digbeth Dining Club for dinner which is a great place to find good food too.

As Birmingham is a pretty large city, it is easy to join social clubs outside of the office such as joining a rugby or football club. As there are quite a number of locals in the office, it is possible to just ask them for any advice too in getting involved in an activity of your choice. As most of the activities are not too far from the city centre where the office is located, it is very convenient to make your way to the activity location such as airsoft after a day at work.