Marketing Department Review

I enjoyed my Placement year as I was given lots of responsibility and opportunities in the Marketing department. I learnt alot of new skills by completing a variety of tasks and projects, majority of which were very interesting,

I felt valued by the majority of my colleagues, especially in my own team, when completing work they required or meeting deadlines. It is hard to please everyone in the business, as it is such a large organisation with a busy environment.

My managers were both very supportive and friendly from my first day and I was able to approach them with anything that I needed which was most useful. I was given guidance at the beginning, but also given responsibility to get the work done myself, so I did have to meet deadlines and take on additional work at times, which all contributes to the experience.

I have been busy each day completing a variety of tasks and projects. Being on placement improves your organisation skills as you will learn to manage your time a lot more and it is up to you if you get tasks done or meet deadlines. I was involved in a lot of different projects and campaigns, alongside my daily and weekly tasks so I always found myself to be busy with lots to do, Some days I did feel overwhelmed with the amount of work I had to get complete in one day, but with supportive managers, it was never a problem as you just expressed your concerns and they were there to advise and take some of the workload from you,

A lot. You are working on real projects and campaigns which you have a high level of involvement in, so you feel like you are responsible for each bit of work that you do. Some work I have done is directly customer facing so it is important to complete each bit of work to the highest of your ability etc. You are also responsible for meeting deadlines and responding to external people and agencies within deadlines, so this does improve your efficiency,

The excel and presentation training received at the start of the year was helpful, but not critical to the job. A lot of the training is on the job, so you just pick things up as you go along. You can always ask for help and ask questions every day which help to improve your skillset and knowledge. A lot of skills that I have picked up, are skills I can take into my future career.

The atmosphere in the office was different to what I expected. I thought it would not be as open plan and everyone's desks would be quite seperate and spread out, however it was the opposite. You are sat together in your team so if any issues arise or you need to ask questions, then you can do and the atmosphere is fairly relaxed, and you can approach anyone's desk. Some of the directors are friendly and welcoming with an open door policy, and others aren't so much, with a closed door policy and not very talkative.

The organisation of the Placement was very good. We were informed when we were through to the next stages of the placement, however it did take about 2 months for me to hear back after the assessment centre - I would have appreciated a call or email just to say I would hear back within the next month, as I was told I would hear back within a few weeks so started to think I hadn't got the job. Overall though, it has been well organised with a HR undergraudate heading up the scheme, which I think makes it better as you feel like you can speak to them and ask any questions before you start and then during the year,

I wouldn't say that they invested in me personally, we received training at the start of the Placement and was offered more throughout, but these were just additional excel sessions really. I was given the opportunity to visit agencies in London etc and this was paid for by Vauxhall, which has been benefical to me, but more from a work perspective as they were work visits, not personal development.

Not very. I don't feel there is the same opportunities for future employment prospects than there is with undergraduate employment. The Undergraduate scheme is very successful and appealing, taking on many undergraduates across the business, however there are little job opportunities for graduates, due to there not being a graduate scheme. There is an intake of graduates each year, but very small percentage compared to undergraduates which is a shame and doesn't motivate you to want to return. Also, not having perks such as a company car, makes you compare the business to competitiors such as VW who do offer company cars. I think having a company car would actually be beneficial as it would make the undergraduates more passionate about the vehicles they are working each day to sell.

There is a social scene, but as there is such a large group of students, you tend to break off into smaller groups a lot of the time, The handover period was enjoyable as it gave an opportunity to get to know people and your department, however sometimes it seem there is a pressure on the social side of things.

I commuted from home during the placement year, so did not have to rent accomodation in the area I worked in. I often went out for dinner or lunch with colleagues and friends in the area from work, which was nice as there are local restaurants and chain restaurants and also a good shopping centre too.

The nightlife was OK, there is only one nightclub, but plenty of pubs/bars, but some were very local and not ones you would feel comfortable visiting. Myself and friends have been to London or Harpenden before though which are only a short train trip away, with a wider variety of nightlife.

Yes there were several opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work such as team quizzes, bowling etc, but some things I would not want to do so I chose not to. The opportunites are there if you want to take them.