Finance Intern Review

I work across YSL and Armani providing support to both the Commercial and Marketing Finance controllers (these managers feed into the Head of Finance for the brands). Working across two brands, and two different sides of finance means you are heavily involved with a large variety of the team which is great for both networking and socials. The managers in the role provide great support in your day to day tasks, but also have enough confidence/trust to give you the independence to eventually completely own your own tasks and projects. The main tools I use on a day to day basis are: Excel, SAP, Compass and Candex.

At University I study Economics where Excel is taught in a few of the modules. However, at L'Oreal you really begin to learn how to use these skills in real life situations. Skills such as Vlookups, Sumifs and Pivot tables are really improved over the year, and these will be so useful in future careers! Other software such as SAP came completely new, but the training when I joined was great and you get up to speed very quickly! As for personal skills, my confidence has really improved over this year. Communicating with peers whether it be in professional or social environment over this past year has really set me up for working life once I return after my final year in university. I think it will make it incredibly less daunting as I have the experience in meetings and presenting to high level members of the team (for example in my year I had the opportunity to present to the CEO).

Yes everyday! I was in charge of daily and monthly tasks which were very important and you could really see the impact your tasks had on the team and your whole division. My managers were always looking to get me involved in new and bigger projects to help my progression and make me stand out for my Grad scheme application. They also gradually pass on new tasks and responsibilities as you progress, so you don't feel too overwhelmed when you first join. Now I feel I am proficient in all the tasks I have taken over and have been exposed to a wide variety of roles in the business.

My team consisted of a Commercial finance controller, a Marketing finance controller and a Head of Finance. There were 5 teams with this structure and one other finance intern in the Luxe division (making a finance team of around 20 people for the division). My direct team were amazing the entire placement, if I ever had a question, I could always reach out to any of them and they would almost instantly help or jump on a call with you. If the relevant member of my direct team was on holiday for example, then I could always reach out to somebody from the other teams, who would always be more than happy to help and lovely about it! Interns can also make use of extra trainings in Excel and many other opportunities during their year here.

The company as a whole is very youthful, with between 100-150 other interns in the company to meet. During my time I had many socials with my brands YSL and Giorgio Armani, and also the Luxe Finance team. This included dinners, activities and nights out/drinks. Everybody gets really involved in the socials and will be some of my best memories over the placement! During my year, a bunch of us interns also created a football 5-aside night where we would play against each other weekly which was a great way to socialise outside the office. As for charity/volunteering possibilities, the company runs a yearly Charity day out (Citizens day) which is a great experience, and there are plenty of charity sales throughout the year you can get involved in!

I absolutely loved it, my team exceeded my expectations, the job exceeded my expectations and finally all the socials exceeded my expectations. I joined as we were just coming out of COVID so it was refreshing to meet people in the office and really experience the company culture first hand. I would recommend any intern joining to live with other interns in Hammersmith. I have lived 10 minutes walk away from the office which has allowed me to easily get to the office or any socials, and living with interns added to the fun! I will be applying for the Grad Scheme and would love to come back!

Yes

Socially - get involved with everything you can! It'll be like an experience you have never had before and gives you a better chance to network and meet people also outside of who you may work with. Within the role - before joining maybe practice some basic excel skills but do not stress too much, everything will be taught to you when you arrive. Finally when applying - be yourself during the interviews! Come across as a kind a personable person as that is who the company will be looking for. Also do some research on the company to really impress them!