Summer Analyst Review

The role I was doing was different to what I had signed up for. The Analyst role was advertised, and assessed upon, numerical ability and an interest in the Energy industry. My initial role did not have either of these components and it was a very qualititative-focussed role looking into internal communications. I was able to move to a data presentation-based role, but only after 6 weeks in the 10-week programme. Advice I feel compelled to give to any applicant in this kind of situation is to do the work the placement has set you, but seize responsibility of your own learning and set up meetings yourself with people around the business to ultimately learn the things you want to

In my personal experience, while I did not believe my work was too important, my colleagues were supportive of any questions I had (when they had time) and were willing to spend time with me whenever I had questions or had to request information from them. However, I feel that there is a clear understanding that my role is just a student there to learn, so they were supportive to provide teaching, advice and give their life experiences. Overall, the culture of Centrica and British Gas is quite friendly and open.

With regards to my supervisor (line manager), he was very supportive and would be willing to answer questions I've had and even offer to give me an introduction into some tasks (e.g. I had to set up internal stakeholder meetings and he offered to take me through the process of doing so). In terms of support from management, the graduate team provide guidance in terms of soft-skills, such as presentation skills and team-building exercises. In terms of support and guidance in terms of actually doing work, some Analysts on the graduate scheme ran one Excel training session which was quite helpful, though it was a week after the internship began.

Due to the nature of my first role with regards to internal communications, the bulk of my role involved setting up meetings to understand what people thought about communications, and so it involved gathering qualitative information, with a lot of down-time in the meantime before setting up another meeting. This work was not the most interesting, but necessary in order to develop a strategy. My second role which involved management information involved me trying to learn how to present data, but since the only other thing I did was be available for ad-hoc support, I didn't feel too busy.

I was given some responsibility. I was responsible for the consideration and creation of an internal communications strategy, and had been given objectives that would give me insights into how to go about gathering information to analyse and form a strategy. While it seemed like I was being guided along, it is ultimately your own responsibility to take actions, and there is opportunity for you to go beyond the objectives set and take responsibility for things that you want to implement yourself.

Key skills I learnt was to become more proactive and responsible with regards to my own learning, adapting to unfamiliar environments and communcation skills to engage with people I've not met before. Almost everything I learnt about the Energy industry came from my own initiatives to set up meetings with people around the business to learn about the energy industry and how my degree studies could be applied around the business.

Having been in two different offices, the atmospheres I've been exposed to around the business are quite friendly and open, so you could ask a question if you wanted to. The organisation structure within teams is quite flat, where the director of the team would sit among the others and get along together.

Communication between the graduate team and the analyst summer placements has room for improvement. One of the criticisms I have with the overall placement that the way roles are assigned to interns is not transparent. There were a few analyst interns who had clear analysis skills required for interpretation and presentation of data to drive action with work clearly related to the Energy industry. However, there were many analysts who were put in non-technical roles that were quite detatched from the Energy industry.

In terms of investment into development and training, the firm invested in providing a few team-building days among the interns, presentation skills days and opportunities to take Learning Visits to a power station if you wanted to.

The organisation has currently released its Strategic Review, which marks a shift in how the business will operate in future, meaning that the organisation will become more efficient and fluid in the long-run. The Graduate scheme will provide you with 3 rotations around the business, in which you are not able to choose the first one, but the second and third rotation allow you to indicate your preferences and speak with representatives of those locations.

All of the placement students are provided with free accommodation at the Royal Holloway University Student Accommodation, and this year they upgraded the accommodation which means that the ensuite rooms and kitchens are cleaned once a week. Since the placements all live so close together, it is easy to socialise among the others, such as by visitng other kitchens or going out.

The cost of living at the university halls was paid for by Centrica. The costs of the area are London prices, and things like shops and restauraunts are about a 20minute walk from the campus and so it would be good if you could drive or had friends who could.

There was little nightlife, where most the interns talked about going to one or two clubs in the area, but they could also go to London as well for a pricier night out. Personally, I didn't take part in going out, so it didn't bother me.

As part of the internship, all the interns are assigned to a charity group and there are opportunities to take part in volunteering and fundraising in and outside of work for a good cause (Shelter). There is a gym and sports centre literally one minute away from accommodation that is subsidised for interns.