Franchise Mangement Marketing Intern Review

I had a really great placement at The Walt Disney Company as a marketing intern in Franchise Management. I had the opportunity to work on many incredible properties such as Star Wars, Disney Princess and Marvel. Each day I did something different, from assisting in EMEA wide marketing campaigns to helping on set at TV shoots.

I worked amongst some really great and inspirational colleagues. I felt incredibly valued as I was given a lot of responsibility day to day, and I knew that the work I was doing was having a direct impact on the department. In my team it didn't feel like there were any boundaries between colleagues of different levels and I felt comfortable talking to anyone from a manager to a Vice President in the team.

I was given a lot of guidance and support during my time at Disney. I had twice weekly catchups with my manager (an hour each) where we would discuss my workload, go through anything I needed assistance on and even just have a general chat. I sat next to my manager so it was easy for us to work together and for her to guide me day-to-day.

I was lucky enough to be very busy on day-to-day basis. I worked in a large team so would report into as many as 12 people in any day. The work that I did for each person varied- this could be ad-hock assistance, updating spreadsheets, approving advertising material etc. Each day I would be on emails to wide range of people across the company, assisting and informing them

I always felt like a truly valued member of the team in this sense- I was given a lot of responsibility day to day. The team was incredibly busy as a whole so it was vital that I was assisting anyone across the business that needed information of any of our properties etc. or needed an guidance or assistance. In many instances if I didn't do my work there would be detrimental consequences for the department-e.g. we could miss a slot in the external mailer or not give a licensee approval of a TV campaign- meaning relationships could be compromised.

I believe that I gained a lot of personal skills on placement that will help in my studies- e.g. leadership, time management, organisational skills etc. I am sure that this year has taught me how to conduct myself better in my studies in order to succeed- e.g. with work prioritisation and how to succeed in team work. Beyond university Disney has given me a really great insight, I believe that I will be able to conduct myself well in the workplace.

The atmosphere at Disney is really great- lots of fun! Although my team was always busy day-to-day, everyone made an effort to talk to each other and have some fun at the same time. The open plan office facilitates open communication and a friendly atmosphere- it was easy to reach out to other teams and everyone was always welcoming and helpful.

Disney takes on many placement students each year so organisation as a whole was fairly good. we have a welcome to disney day with HR and introductions from the brand management team about disney as a whole and the company culture. we were set up with all the systems properly and given handbooks about the company too. I had a two week handover at the start of my internship two which made the transition smooth. The only downside would be a lack of organised intern events- Disney didn't set up anything for the interns on a social level- e.g socials/sports, if you wanted to bond with colleagues this would be organised by yourselves.

My manager invested a lot of time and effort in my training and development- this started with weekly meetings where we would discuss what I wanted to get out of the coming month etc and she would work to ensure that I had the opportunity to meet my own goals for self development. I had the opportunity to go into different deparments for the day e.g. channel and ESPN to get an insight which was really useful. Disney as a company organised a number of learning expos which we could sign up for- e.g. women weeks panels with CEOs from top organisations. We also had access to an online learning platform which was great for self development.

Disney doesn't actually have a graduate scheme- this is a shame as they have hired so many great interns and it would be good if there was a way that they could come back as a grad- the only way to do this is to apply for an entry level job- e.g. a co-ordinator and go for interviews etc. In my position I had worked with may different people across the business so have made some greta connections which Im sure will be beneficial in future.

Social scene is always what you make of it. Disney don't tend to organise anything for the interns so it depends on your team/the friends you make. My team went for monthly dinners after work in the area and sometime went for drinks etc on Fridays. Many interns socialise and meet up after work/on the weekends as many have moved to london for the year.

London= Expensive... the salary that I was earning on placement mainly went towards rent/food travel. Cost of living is high- e.g. drinks/food/events.

Hammersmith is a working area so there aren't any clubs as such but there is the Apollo theatre and many great pubs to socialise in after work.

Disney had a volunteering sheme that I was part of, but aside from that there weren't many sporting clubs etc that I was aware of.