Retail and Online Sales Analyst Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Bosch Power Tools. Throughout the 13 months that I worked for Bosch, sat within the National Accounts team, I learnt a tremendous amount, which I would not have had the opportunity to if I decided against a placement year. Whilst working at Bosch I have been able to gain valuable insight into the company, apply the knowledge that I have learnt from University and build relationships with the other placement students as well as the permanent employees.

During my placement I felt valued by not only the team that I worked with, but also the department as a whole. When I first began working at Bosch I was treated how any other employee would be treated; just because I was a placement student did not mean that I was valued less than any other employee.

Whenever I needed support for a task that I was carrying out, I always felt comfortable asking my managers for help. They were always willing to take time out of their day to help me. When the placement year first began they would be sure to spend time with me going through the tasks and explain anything to me that I was unsure of.

When I first began my placement I was not dropped into the deep end, the department allowed me to get comfortable within the team and gain confidence. As the year progressed my responsibilities grew, I was given the opportunities to take on and manage tasks. If my managers ever felt that I was struggling with my workload they would ask and allow me to delegate some tasks to the other placement students in the team.

As my managers' trust in me developed they would allow me to take on tasks that required a higher level of responsibility. I was given various opportunities that allowed me to attend customer meetings and manage tasks that would provide a real benefit to the company. The level of responsibility that you receive is dependant on how you take on tasks and whether your manager believes that you have the skills to complete it - you are not automatically given responsibility, you have to earn it.

I believe that the skills and training that I received during my placement year will definitely assist me throughout my final year at university and once I have graduated. My confidence has grown and feel that I have developed in a professional and personal manner. My knowledge of Excel and other programs has definitely increased as I used them on a daily basis, I would feel comfortable completing tasks on Excel, which I previously would not have been able to do.

The atmosphere in the office offers a good balance between work and social, at no point during the placement did I felt uncomfortable to be in the office. All of the employees, along with your fellow placement students, within the Power Tools division are really friendly and easy to get along with.

The organisation of the placement year worked well. When first starting the placement all of the students had been assigned their role within the division and it was made clear as to which role you would be taking on. Before getting the role there was an assessment centre with all of the candidates, this was well organised and was not made to be daunting/scary.

When first joining the company all of the placement students had multiple training days where we would gain on-hand experience with the tools that Bosch were selling. These days were insightful as it allowed us all to gain knowledge of the tools that we were selling. Along with this, we also had on-line training regarding compliance and the company's regulations and a training day with the HR team.

At Bosch there are some exciting job opportunities available - especially for people who spent their placement year working there. There are grad schemes that allow you to experience the different sectors of the Power Tools division. Many of the current employees had been placement students, so it is clear that Bosch value the long-term prospects of hiring placement students.

When I began at Bosch, there were also 15 other placement students working within the Power Tools department. This was a definite bonus as it allowed for us all to meet up outside of work regularly and socialise in a non-work environment. The social scene was also very good amongst the permanent employees with organised events such as dinners, quizzes, Christmas parties and conferences.

Whilst working at Bosch I decided to live at home to save money; however, I did still go out in Denham/Uxbridge with the other placement students. As it is on the outskirts of London the prices can be a little more expensive than what the 'typical' student is used to, but it wasn't too over-priced.

Bosch Power Tools is situated in Denham, the nightlife here is not so good. However, as the majority of the placement students live in Uxbridge we occasionally went out there during the evening. The Uxbridge nightlife is good - especially during term times as students from Brunel University are also there. We often went out in Central London as well, the nightlife here is amazing (although can be quite costly).

Bosch offers all of its employees to join the 'Bosch Social Club', this arranges outings to the theatre and sports events. During my time at Bosch I participated in the Bosch vs. IHG cricket match, this was a good experience as it allowed you to not only socialise with the Bosch employees but also with employees of another company. Bosch also holds an annual Power Tools vs. Automotive sports day that comprises various sports and is a lot of fun to get involved in!