Placement Year Review at Corus Group

The Role

Role Description

Between 2008 – 2009 I completed a year long Industrial Placement with the Human Resources department of Corus Strip Products UK. My role was to work with an HR Advisor, as together we supported an area containing around 600 employees from all levels of the organisation.

Over the year I was involved a wide variety of tasks in line with the operational demands, my main responsibilities included monitoring and managing Absence across the area, where I would work closely with the management team to ensure the Policies and Procedures were being adhered to. I was also involved in recruitment, training, investigations line with the Disciplinary and Grievance Procedure as well as redundancy counselling. I would also work closely with the Payroll and Data Management teams to ensure the correct and up-to-date information was kept and employees received the correct rate of pay.

My role quickly became more than just administration based; I set myself challenging objectives in order to gain the most knowledge and understanding from the department, and became involved in a large variety of projects to ensure I was gaining experience everywhere I could.

The role gave me the opportunity to personally experience how an HR function in a large Organisation operates, along with an insight into the wide range of issues the department can deal with. I now want to build upon this experience with the aim to have a long and rewarding career in Human Resources.

1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?

★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Rated 6/10

4. How busy were you on a daily basis?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

The Organisation

7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?

★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Rated 6/10

8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?

★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 4/10

9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

10. What were the perks on your work placement?

★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 4/10

• Subsidised Canteen

11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?

★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 4/10

Other Information

12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?

★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Rated 6/10

In addition to these questions, is there any extra information you would like to leave about your experiences on your work placement that other students may be interested in?

What you make of it, plenty of opportunities to get involved if you push for them. At the same time, people aren't going to come to you with development opportunities - you need to go out and find them.

Review 22/34 for Corus Group

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