Business and Consumer Insights Executive Intern Review

I loved my placement with Pernod Ricard! It was a great company to work for, not only because I was working in the Alcohol industry with amazing brands like Absolut and Malibu, but because I felt truly valued as an employee and was given plentiful opportunities to get involved and develop as both a person and a professional. My line manager, team and wider department were all absolutely lovely and incredibly welcoming too, which made the whole experience much more enjoyable.

I felt very valued. From the start my line manager made it clear that my first 6 months were to spent learning, absorbing, being trained and finding my feet, and then the second 6 months meant that I was able to put everything I had learnt into practise and be a confident, competent employee. This worked so well for me - it helped me feel very comfortable and showed me that my line manager was willing to properly invest in me and give me chance to shine when the time was right. This support was replicated in my team and in the whole company. I wasnt treated like a temporary employee or 'just an intern', I was appreciated as a real employee and colleague.

As already stated above, I was well invested in and I was given amazing support. I sat next to my line manager in an open plan office, and so I was able to have ad-hoc conversations and ask questions whenever I needed to. I also had a weekly catch-up with him every Friday just to check how I was getting on, to discuss any big projects, raise any worries etc… These worked really well, and I established a close relationship with my line manager.

Admittedly for the first few months I wasn’t that busy, as I was still learning how to do things and finding the confidence to use my initiative and just get on with things without being asked to do them. But gradually over time as I became more competent and self-assured, I was taking on more and more work, and by the second half of the year I was busy every day! I rarely had to stay behind after work though. I chose to stay late towards the end of my placement in the last few weeks, just so tasks were going to be finished before I left, but this was through my own choice and not asked of me.

I was given lots of responsibility. I was the main contact for a key agency, and I had a list of report which I had to turnover every month – these were used by the whole company as so were very important to get right! I gained more and more responsibilities as the months passed by, and I was a well valued member of the team.

I have learned lots of skills for life! Not only technical skills such as Excel and database skills, but also just how to carry myself as a professional. I learnt about communicating with external people, how to prioritise, how to act in a meeting, how to network, how to raise my profile etc… Each experience I endured throughout the year, whether positive or negative, has been a learning curve and so the placement has provided me with many skills to use in professional, academic and personal environments.

The atmosphere was very relaxed. Everyone was so friendly and chatty, and it helped that the office was open plan and not people locked away in their own room. I had daily contact with people from all departments and different levels in the organisation – I didn’t feel that I couldn’t talk to someone because they’re in a different team to me, or of a higher rank.

I was in the first round of interns for Pernod Ricard, and so it was a new experience for me, my team and HR. Also, there were only 4 interns in the whole company (me in Insights, one in Category, one in Finance and one in IT). For both reasons there wasn’t a specific structure to the placement. I don’t feel like this hindered me – I still had full support from my team and HR, and it was just more of a process of learning on-the-job for all parties involved in the new ‘Bright Futures’ scheme. The next round of interns who started in July 2014 will probably feel there is more structure to their role and their whole year.

As already mentioned, I felt I was completely invested in. I was set up with lots of training when I first started, not only learning about my role and what that would entail, but also learning about what other people do and so made connections straight away. Whenever I had a question or was struggling with something, my line manager would either help me there on the spot, or set up a meeting if it was a more complicated query. I was also pushed by my team to come out of my shell and be more ‘convivial’, and so I wasn’t just invested in as an employee, but as an individual who voiced their opinion and got involved in every aspect of Pernod Ricard and London life.

There isn’t a specific graduate scheme, so it would more be a case of if there was a job available when I graduate that I liked the look of then I would have to apply for that and be regarded above other applicants.

As I worked for an alcohol company, there were lots of opportunities to have a few drinks! We had meetings in really cool places as well like the Ministry of Sound and the nightclub under the Chelsea FC Stadium. With regards to going out with the other placement people, we didn’t actually go out that much as there were only 4 of us, we all lived in different areas and all had lots of out of work commitments.

The actual offices were in Hounslow, but they are relocating to Chiswick Park so I’m unsure of what the prices are like they. I assume will be in line with standard London pricing.

Hounslow was not a great area…. But Hammersmith is close by and that’s a nice area to go for after work drinks.

PRUK put on wellness classes, such as yoga, running club, swim club etc… which are free and so great to get involved with!