Operational Placement Review

The placement was very fast paced and I was given a significant amount or responsibility in my role. The team that I worked in was very supportive throughout my placement, but they made sure to give me enough freedom to develop my skills in my role.

I felt very valued by my colleagues, by the end of my placement I was a fully operational member of the team, they had enough confidence in me to allow me to run the operation on my own at times. Fellow managers would act upon my suggestions which made me feel very valued.

The team was very supportive at the start as I had no experience in the role or in the environment, that being said I was pushed to challenge myself and make the placement my own. After a few months in the role I was given the job of running a side operation with the support of a senior manager, this was the best experience for me as I was making the decisions whilst still receiving support when I needed it.

How busy I was varied upon the amount of product that day, some days you are much busier in the warehouse and others you are catching up on office work, there is always plenty to do. Christmas though was a very busy time for the business and I don't think I ever stopped moving, time flew by!

I was given a lot of responsibility, clearly in the first few months I was learning the role but I was quickly up and running with my own team that I had to managed. I was also given a separate operation based at a different site to run over the Christmas period which was an enormous responsibility (more than I ever expected)!

The placement really enabled me to develop my personal skills, I learned management skills that you are never taught at university but are actually phenomenal important in the business world. The placement also enabled me to put some of my degree skills into practice and provided evidence to support areas of my studies.

The atmosphere in my office was great, I wasn't really sure what to expect but everyone was very welcoming and friendly, they were prepared to help me learn and didn't seem burdened by this. The team that I worked with was a mix of personalities but got on really well together we were able to have a laugh and enjoy work whilst still keeping an eye on the targets we needed to hit.

The placement was very well planned out, I felt like there was a lot of guidance set out to make sure I learned the necessary skills but I was still given the chance to push myself, I was never held back. It was also really good that additional training was offered as well as the opportunity to go and explore other areas of the business at different sites.

The business invested a lot in me, I was invited to attended a number of training courses ranging from coaching skills to becoming a qualified first aider. This made me feel valued by the business which encouraged me to really push myself, I wasn't treated like someone who was just at the site for 1 year.

Employment prospects are very good, with a number of placement students being invited back to join the graduate program. This is normally a 2 year scheme but is shortened to 18 moths if you are returning following a placement. I have actually been offered a place on the scheme after I finish my degree!

I was based up in Scotland, with my site being in Cumbernauld ( just outside Glasgow) there were not many graduates etc. at the site when I first joined but after a few moths we got some more which meant we could form a little "community". There was an okay social scene but the shift that you or others worked could play havoc with this, especially if you were working at the weekend!

I was fortunate in that I was able to live with family during my placement which really cut down the cost of living, that being said everything was good value, it seemed a fair bit cheaper than the south of England where I normally live!

The night life was okay, because of the sites location we were all dotted around which made going anywhere quite difficult. We did make it into Glasgow and Edinburgh a few times though which was great. It all depended on where you chose to live and who was at your site.

There were not really many activities outside of work, anything that we got up to we would just arrange as a small group. I imagine it was mainly because there were very few placement students/graduates at each site so there wasn't really much going on.