Business & Technology Integration Associate Review

Business and Technology Integration focuses heavily on aspects of client and project delivery to achieve business/digital transformation. The role is determined by the client account and project you are assigned with but can generally involve working across the different areas of the software development lifecycle such as designing, building and testing strategic solutions for implementation. It may also cover business analysis, project/programme management, or more technical roles around these categories. Personally, I completed 3 internal projects at a major UK telco focusing on Delivery Assurance, Project Management and Data/Planning.

Accenture priorities talent development and training from the moment of onboarding and there are many opportunities to upskill and continuously learn through the Industrial Placement. Although there's nothing in comparison to learning on the job with direct exposure to project work and a client account which you will get to experience. In addition to soft skills, there's the chance to develop digital skills, leadership, critical thinking and project management. There's always the facility to develop industry specialist skills across many transformative technologies. You define your career progression and areas to prioritise to learn new skills at the company, and you are supported along the way by many types of support groups. Personally, I trained for AWS cloud certifications, and developed an understanding for PRINCE2(R) and Professional Scrum Master (Agile) through the dedicated learning platform at Accenture.

Absolutely! You can be given as much responsibility as you can manage. You are never treated any different to the company's graduates, both within the company and by the client account. For example, I was performing a first time Project Manager role within 5 months at Accenture - I was able to receive facilitation when required by my client team and line managers to ensure I was performing the role to a good standard! In addition, there were many opportunities within Accenture internally where I could demonstrate leadership skills via Side-of-Desk work (most similar to extra-curricular activities).

The support and guidance received was honestly amazing. There are different stakeholder groups at Accenture which I understood should be engaged in terms of my career progression and they were always extremely helpful and often very generous in their advice. I would recommend to foster a mentoring and two-way relationship with these stakeholders. There's always a way you can help them in exchange for their support and guidance which will also strengthen your own network. To emphasise, networking is very important at Accenture!

Despite very uncertain times with the C-19 pandemic during the placement year in 2020/21, Accenture continued to prioritise diversity, equality and inclusion with many opportunities across the company. This was replicated across several scales such as within immediate client account project teams to as wide as the Technology Analyst Group and everything in between! There are many social events and activities existing within different areas at Accenture - this means there's a always a way to enjoy yourself outside work. For example, I can personally recall monthly socials for interns by the social committee, Christmas parties at the client account and Accenture, immediate client account team events like virtual escape rooms and cocktail/mocktail making masterclasses (the list is pretty much infinite). Accenture also offer the opportunity to undertake 3 charity days every year.

Although the placement year was mostly working from home, I preferred it over a virtual year of university. The work I completed and the teams I worked with were both very interesting and stimulating at the same time. This client delivery role exceeded my expectations and I experienced exactly what I envisaged my placement year to be like. Undertaking a placement year at Accenture has been so rewarding in so many different ways. For example, it's helped in other ways too in addition to career development and progression, i.e. in providing much more discipline upon return to my final year of university.

Yes

A few things come to mind: 1. Research into both technology and consulting to understand where your interests lie and the nature of the company. 2. Be your authentic self and remain honest throughout the assessment process. 3. Look into which graduate scheme is best suited to your passion and skillset as there's opportunities to undertake more technical roles if you wish!