Marketing Analyst Review

I absolutely loved my time at American Express. The work is project based, and I was placed in a meaningful project where I had a lot of autonomy, but also a lot of support. The atmosphere at the company is fantastic, and despite being an intern I was encouraged to engage with the some of the most senior leaders. Furthermore, throughout the internship there are a series of events both for socialisation (such as VIP trips on the London Eye or to the West End), and development (such as a speaker series including the CEO Ken Chenault).

From the first day in my team, I really felt that my opinion mattered. The company places a huge emphasis on teamwork, meaning that a met with a variety of people from across the organisation, both within the UK and from other international offices, and I never felt that I was valued any less than a full time employee.

On your first day at American Express you are provided with a manager and a 'buddy'. The buddy system is designed to ensure you always have someone to turn to for advice, even in simple matters like operating the intranet, or knowing who to contact about a potential idea. You also have scheduled weekly meetings with your manager, where you can update them with your project and get informal feedback. Your manager certainly does not tell you what to do, as you are given ownership of your project, but they are there to steer you in the right direction. Even when my manager was away for a couple of weeks, my director stepped in and organised weekly meetings to ensure that I had the support I needed.

Every day was different, meaning that some days were certainly busier than others depending on where you were at with your project. However, American Express places a big emphasis on work-life balance so you are not normally expected to be in the office before 9am, and you will normally leave shortly after 5pm. You definitely get out what you put in though, the autonomy you are given means that the further you want to stretch your project, the busier you will be.

This was perhaps my favourite aspect of the internship. Whilst you are given a lot of support and guidance and are placed within a team that you can always turn to with queries, you are given a lot of autonomy to shape your own project, and you are treated as the expert on that project. Therefore I was able to conduct several meetings with external partners, including going out for lunch with prospective suppliers, as well as liaising with American Express colleagues in India and Australia. I never felt that responsibility was taken away from me because I was 'only an intern'.

There are several areas in which I feel my skills have really developed. For example, in preparation for the final presentation we had a training session during the first week, I was then helped in several instances by previous interns who are now working full time for the company, and during the last couple of weeks I was given two hours of time with one of the Vice Presidents who I had contacted about my project in order to help me hone my presentation skills.

The atmosphere was fantastic - from Wii tennis set up in the Country Manager's office to celebrate Wimbledon, to people bringing in cake for seemingly any occasion, it always felt happy and relaxed. Everyone was very smily and friendly, which is something that American Express really pride themselves on! Furthermore, you were often invited out by other colleagues, either for lunch, drinks after work, or even to join various sports clubs or networks within the company.

The placement began with two induction days in which there were introductions from several senior leaders, panel sessions with previous interns, and training opportunities. From this point, you worked within a team on a specific project that you continued throughout the ten weeks. Dispersed within this was a speaker series with the company's management, as well as sessions in the Brighton office to learn about other aspects of the organisation, and several social events including a volunteering day. At the end of the internship you present your project to a variety of managers, directors, and vice presidents, and on the last day you are told whether or not you have been successful in securing a graduate placement. It is always made very clear however that the decision regarding graduate jobs is based on your performance across the ten weeks, rather than simply on the one presentation.

Whilst there were no formal training qualifications offered for the marketing internship, there were several training events including the speaker series, which was a global series for American Express interns worldwide. You were also really encouraged to reach out to senior leaders to discuss career paths and ambitions, and I never encountered someone who wasn't willing to meet with me.

I am absolutely thrilled that I was offered a job with American Express for after I graduate and I did not hesitate to sign the contract! I really enjoyed the internship and felt almost instantly that it was a place I could see myself working in the future.

There were social events organised by the company almost weekly, including a VIP trip on the London Eye, tickets to see the Lion King in the West End, and a trip to the Alexander McQueen exhibition. Furthermore, because it was made very clear at the beginning of the internship that we were not competing with each other for jobs as they would employ as many as they wanted to keep, there was no underlying element of tension with the other interns, and we were all happy to socialise and help each other out with our respective projects.

I was based in the Victoria office in London which is an expensive area. Personally, I chose to live at home during the summer and commute into London, however I know that some of the other interns found that there was reasonably priced accommodation nearby in University Halls. You also get paid a very good wage, so you are not left to fund accommodation yourself.

The nightlife in London is fantastic! We also visited the Brighton offices to meet up with the Brighton interns on several occasions which offers a completely different vibe.

There are several opportunities, such as sports clubs, various networks, and a volunteering scheme.