Assistant Management Accountant Review

Very good experience to have. A lot of time is invested in the trainees at National Grid and I immediately felt part of the team. Given challenges to push myself in all aspects of the job, a freedom to work independently with the trust of my colleagues. Plenty of social aspects to the job too, offering a lot of networking events to help all new starters integrate into the job as soon as possible.

I felt like I was treated as a permanent member of staff, being given my own responsibilities from day 1. They spent a lot of time to train me to the required standard for my role, and then I was being given the same level of work as the rest of the team. Trusted to lead training sessions for large groups from an early stage in my placement.

Straight away my job role and objectives were outlined to me so that I knew what was expected from me. I had regular fortnightly meetings with my manager to discuss my progress and decide on my next step in the development. Never felt under pressure as I always had the support available if I needed it.

Always had plenty of work to do, and never really searching for work. Sometimes it came in peaks and troughs with certain times being much busier than others, particularly towards the end of the months. However, even during the troughs, I always had enough work to keep me going for the entire day.

I was put in charge of certain aspects of the teams role which gave me the opportunity to develop on my leadership skills; trying to ensure the team complete things in a desired time. Work wise, I was trusted to work independently following the processes that the team have in place. Also had the chance to improve the teams processes and create new KPIs.

I have improved my confidence and communication skills greatly. National Grid are always giving feedback which helped me identify areas I need to improve in, which has helped me a lot. My technical skills have come on greatly, as I have learned new things which I can apply to my future career. However, these skills may not be able to applied until after Uni, as the technical skills don't apply to my degree.

Often the atmosphere was really good. Everybody was easily approachable, with no issues. However, there was a few occasions where the atmosphere felt slightly awkward. The department had just gone through a huge reshuffle when I started, and a number of people were losing their jobs, so the atmosphere was a little tense. Stress levels were occasionally high, particularly at the Financial Year End, when the company was being audited. The hot desk issue also caused a few problems as the floor plate was very highly populated, which meant that there was no guarantee you would be sitting anywhere near your team.

The team were very prepared for my starting, having all my training arranged before my start date, which made everything very easy to begin with. My objectives were clearly defined and that showed me what I must aim towards. I was always offered the opportunity to do new things and take part in events around the business.

The company offered a lot of trips to different sites around the UK to allow us to experience all aspects of the National Grid business. They also offered plenty of opportunities to get yourselves known, with us being encouraged to take part in large team meetings within the department.

The graduate scheme at National Grid is very highly rated and one that has great appeal. From speaking to current Graduates, I can really see the benefits of working for the company. They offer great incentives on this scheme, and invest a lot more time in developing your personal skills. The best part of the placement scheme is this offers an opportunity to be offered a Graduate job before returning to Uni for final year, which would relieve all pressures and allow full concentration on the last year of your degree.

There was plenty of social events going on with people on the scheme, providing they were in the same office. I was lucky enough to be in the main Warwick office, and had great social relationships with the other IPs, Grads and other members of staff. The only downside to this is the fact the scheme is based all around the UK. This meant it was very hard to get to know everybody on the scheme in a social way.

Slightly more expensive for the standards than what I was used to, but not unmanageable. Housing was acceptable if you looked around early enough, and I was lucky to get great value of money. Socialising in the local area was a little bit expensive, with a lot of activities requiring more money than what I would spend at home. Taxi prices are ridiculous, charging way in excess of what they should, particularly at night time. Also, being situated about half an hour away from a major city, it made it difficult to go there for a night out as the cost to come home would be far too expensive.

There were a number of good bars in the area, which were great for a social drink. However, the clubs let it down. Each cost a lot to get in to, drinks were overpriced and there were not that many options meaning nights out often became repetitive, and they all closed a lot earlier than those based in cities.

There was a lot of activities to do in the area, and a few really fun days out could be planned if you wanted. Although a lot would cost quite a bit of money, there were some very cheap; or in certain cases, free; activities to do. Plenty of sporting activities to take part in also, a number of football pitches, free tennis courts and other things available to use within a 20 minute walk of each other.