Commercial Intern Review

My commercial role at L'Oreal involved working closely with your accounts each day on various market activities and engagements. This stemmed from account management, sales forecasting, presenting to external stakeholders and implementing commercial strategy to help aid the long-term success of our key accounts. I always had an exciting project on the go and was given the authority and autonomy to truly own my work, leading to a constant cycle of learning and personal growth.

I have learnt and improved upon a plethora of differing skills during my time within the role. Firstly is that of Excel, when used on a daily basis this ultimately becomes a second language which you utilise with all sales forecasting tools and analysis. Another key skill which has been massively developed is my inter-personal and presentation skills. This is due to the constant flow of client strategy meetings so you are constantly developing and enhancing these skills over the course of the year. Although briefly mentioned earlier, I have loved seeing my strategic and analytical skill-set improve, which allows you to be versatile and engaged across multiple projects.

As an intern you always dream of truly having an impact within your given firm. From the offset I was given true autonomy and ownership of my projects, leading to a plethora of successfully completed projects over the course of year. Furthermore, each project grew in levels of complexity and scale, which helped keep me growing and striving for more. Also, due to this snow-ball effect my confidence also developed leaps and bounds from project to project. I was able to lead projects and often had several people reporting to me within a given task, which made me feel impactful and truly part of something bigger than myself. L'Oreal truly care about their interns and the responsibility given to you plays a big role in this.

I have been fortunate enough to experience several managers during my time with the firm, therefore had exposure to different types of management styles and techniques. From first joining L'Oreal, right through to the end of my placement - the level of support and guidance has been fantastic. The culture at the firm is very much team-orientated and therefore there is a constant flow of feedback, support and advice. I often had weekly, if not daily, catch-ups with my manager and team to ensure that I felt supported and valued during my placement. This helped me massively and led to a large boost in confidence, which was displayed on my project work moving forward. You can rest assured that during your time at L'Oreal, you will be supported, guided and cared for - throughout the entire course of your year.

The company culture was fantastic from the offset, due to the "Intern Culture" at the firm - you are never alone. Also, you are not looked down-upon or patronised for your work. Everyone has a role to play and this was evident from my first day at the firm. I was speaking to General Managers of firms and grabbing coffee's with Senior National Account Managers. Everyone is highly supportive, engaged and very enthusiastic about their role and the firm. Stemming from this, there is always high energy, laughter and dedication to all projects - which further fuels your growth. L'Oreal has a fantastic, team-orientated culture and the atmosphere truly reflected this.

I truly loved my time at L'Oreal. My team were caring, light-hearted and true working professionals - taking my under their wing from day one. This led to an immense growth, learning and personal development journey during my time with the firm. The work-load is engaging, fast-paced and rewarding; as you know that you are making an impact each and every day. My placement definitely exceeded my expectations, I went into the firm with open eyes and tried to not make too many assumptions. Although having had this experience it's clear to see that the company culture is fun, enthusiastic and supportive. I have developed massively during this placement with the firm and for this reason I would love to go back as a Commercial Management Trainee. This is mainly so that I can continue to grow and have the experience of working with differing brands within different divisions, outside of PPD - to broaden my overall L'Oreal knowledge and skill-set. Although we will have to see what the future holds!

Yes

To anyone looking to apply at L'Oreal I would ensure that you truly understand the group as a whole, but also have knowledge of each set division and a few of the key brands within them. Not only will this help you during Assessment Centres and Interviews, but it will also help to understand the overall group portfolio as a whole. I also would not be disheartened by the size of the firm or potential level of competitiveness when applying. You each have your own skill-set, expertise and experiences - so don't try to pit yourself against others from the offset. Prove why YOU deserve to be there and how you can help to support this statement. Stemming from this - know why you are wanting to join, you need to constantly remind yourself on why you are doing this, as no job comes easy. For me, it was my passion to work at a firm with a global reach, due to having spent time abroad in China and wanting the possibility to work-abroad in the future. If I was to put myself in your shoes and reapply in the future, I would have this mission statement in your mind and do everything in your power to better yourself ahead of this application. For example, I applied during COVID-19 and work experience was near-impossible to get, this led to me utilising LinkedIn Learning and completing over 100+ hours of courses. Therefore - what are you doing to help up-skill and prepare yourself for this application? Although, ultimately - be yourself and believe!