GBS Operations Effectiveness Team Member Review

I enjoyed the vast majority of my placement; I was fortunate enough to have a very supportive team (that also kept me busy!) and working alongside numerous other interns made for a good experience too. Some aspects were monotonous but there was always a new challenge if you were prepared to look for it!

No matter of the job there would always be a thank you attached at the end! Throughout my placement my colleagues continually asked for pieces of ad hoc work and re-modelling spreadsheets therefore I felt I was making a valuable contribution to themselves and their team.

The support of my overall team was great especially during a couple of phases of my direct line manager changing throughout my year. The Foundation system at IBM is an asset as it allows you to communicate any problems without directly having to talk to your every day managers if necessary.

As there is a quarterly cycle to the business there are inevitably periods where there is not much going on and hence there is a lack of a need for information to be provided. But there was always something that could be done like improvements to the systems. Other periods were very busy like quarter ends.

You have to earn your responsibility, which I think is fair considering the size of the organisation and the importance of certain roles and aspects. By the end of my placement I had a developed considerably more responsibility and trust from the team whereby I was asked to perform additional tasks including certain aspects of the managers role when there was a changeover

I did a lot a work on Excel so my knowledge has increased dramatically. I also learnt further time management skills. Plus placement has meant my body clock does not allow lie ins any more! I learnt alot about how businesses operate and some of the upcoming technologies that will be beneficial in the future

I worked in area of the office where there was predominantly only other interns and a couple of managers so there was always someone to talk to! Although you work remotely with your team the majority of the time which is something you get used to after a while

The scheme is very well established with the Foundation system and it runs well especially considering they are always open to ideas of improvement for the next year. You have regular reviews throughout the year too.

There were numerous online courses and Lunch and Learns that were readily available. I was also fortunate enough to be selected to work at Wimbledon for a week which offered training into the technology and the event itself.

There is a well established graduate scheme but this can be difficult to transfer onto especially when wishing to change departments from your placement. I am currently still awaiting to hear of the outcome of my reapplication.

IBM take on a large number of placement students so there is always someone around for any activity. The industrial trainees also tend to organise events such as a Christmas Party, football games against other locations etc

Living in outer London obviously is not the cheapest but we found a relatively cheap house and our bills were also relatively inexpensive. I managed to save a bit of money from my year so can't have been too bad!

In the area wasn't great but about half an hour away there is a University town or make the trip into Central London as the tube is relatively inexpensive although this does increase the cost of drinks, entrance fees etc.

There were activities if you looked for them. Personally I joined the local tennis club and the gym (of which there were plenty in the area). I would say you probably need to have access to a car though to take advantage of most of the activities.