Commercial Operations Specialist Review

by IBM

Best Student Employer

This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.

Rating

3.7/5

The Role

3.8
The Company

3.9
The Culture

3.4

The Role

1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?

I enjoyed both the working and social culture of IBM.

5/5

2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?

I was able to obtain more responsibility when the team learned I was competent. I was also asked to cover for senior management on several occasions.

5/5

3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?

I had a detailed handover with the previous intern for my role. After that help was sought after as and when it was needed. Management took time at the beginning to explain things in more detail and go slower in meetings whilst I picked things up.

4/5

4. How busy were you on a daily basis?

The role was not fulfilling at the start however I quickly picked up tasks, requesting more work as I grew in confidence.

4/5

5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?

I was able to cover for management when they were unable to complete their work. I also dealt face to face with important clients both current and potential business.

4/5

6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?

With regards to my degree the skills will not help much as I did a Commercial role and my degree is Accounting and Finance. With regards to my future career they will help immensely.

3/5

The Company

7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?

I sat with account team on a day to day basis. The team were close and we often nattered about weekends, football etc. The office also had about 80 other interns so lunch was always a good laugh.

5/5

8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?

I think I was lucky with my role being able to sit with management on a daily basis. I know some interns can have managers based elsewhere which makes it difficult to get started.

4/5

9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?

The majority of the investment is on the job training provided by your task manager. The skills and development you receive come from working with your team and those around you. There are some internal events for interns however I have found these basic/generic sessions which you could easily pick up on the internet.

3/5

10. What were the perks on your work placement?

Sports and Social Club

National Travel

Company Parties/Events

Working from home

3/5

11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?

The particular graduate program I have applied to with IBM offers 4x 6 month placements. The rotation in the 2 years should give me a broad range of skills as well as a better understanding of where I want to progress.

5/5

The Culture

12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?

Excellent. With close to 300 interns you are going to find people who like the same things as you. Nights out, events, sports, after work drinks, house mates etc. There is also an internal chat similar to MSN which is very popular amongst interns.

5/5

13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?

Very expensive however you can find plenty of cheap things to do in London if you give it a Google!

2/5

14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?

Good but expensive.

4/5

15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?

IBM run a scheme known as Giveback. It allows you to get involved outside of the workplace. I have been able to attend events on University Campus Teams and also run workshops in secondary schools.

3/5

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