Portfolio Manager Review

I really enjoyed the internship, it was fast-paced, rewarding and a very good experience. The internship was well structured allowing for a lot of enjoyment and the ability to gain a lot from it, as well as this there was some challenging moments and these once getting through them felt rewarding.

From the moment I stepped into the office on the first day, I have been supported and valued by everyone. On the first day being shown around and meeting my team was nerve-wrecking but everyone was very welcoming and always up for giving some time to me to let me find out more about what they do. Right through the placement everyone I have come into contact on my role have been really nice and made me feel like I have been here much longer than I have.

I have been given a lot of support and guidance to get all the on-boarding tasks completed and getting settled in and trained up in the role I am performing, as well as this, the opportunity to be left to have some responsibility was great, and if I needed anything at all during these times likewise at any point I have been given the support and guidance needed.

On some occasions I have found myself having less than excepted to do, however this was before I was given a mini-project to do alongside the main role I have, and since then I have found myself quite busy but not to the extent where I have far too much to do so all-in-all mostly a perfect balance.

During the internship I was trained up to perform a role that I could take over when the manager goes on holiday, which was a big responsibility and also being able to help run the show with covering for other team members holidays/sick leave. So at times I was running the show, and it was such a rewarding experience.

I feel the skills and training I have gained over the internship will help me focus on a career path I want to take, as the placement fitting right into what I am studying and this helped to bridge the link between the theory studied in my degree and seeing it in practice in the working world. The training and skills gained also will help me manage my last year of university and carrying out my dissertation which will use the managing skills I have gained.

The overall atmosphere in the office was very good. The office I was in has a very good community spirit in that there are always lots of fundraising going on and a sense of helping one another no matter what team they are in. The office has an initiative which brings together everything happening in the office into one place, and allows communication to every colleague in the office. Fridays are dress down days and this helps to create a nice relaxing atmosphere to end each week in the office.

The overall internship was set up very well; there is a clear structure to the overall internship with a strong focus on centring it on the personal development of the intern. The internship is set up with a big induction day in London, to welcome everyone into the company and to help interns begin to network and build a network with all the other interns across the UK. The internship has a series of webinars that interns are required to attend, these focus on making the best possible impact and adding value on the 10 week placement. The internship also is set up with a responsible business challenge in which each intern is placed within a team of others based on their city location to fundraise for charity, so overall the internship programme is set up in a well organised matter with a clear focus on making every intern develop professionally and personally.

Lloyds Banking Group heavily invest in training and development for all interns, the webinars help to get interns to think about how they can make the most of the placement, and help to make interns reflect and think about what they want to get out of the placement as well as how to add value to the team they are in during the placement. The responsible business challenge works alongside this to get interns to develop further and to help network with other interns. All the personal development also helps to form the basis of whether or not the intern at the end of the placement gets a referral onto their graduate scheme; the scheme itself is evidence of huge investment in new talent. From the point of the actual role, I got the training to perform a managerial role whilst the manager was on holiday, and this was a very rewarding opportunity. The 10 weeks may not be a long time but it does pack in a lot of personal training and development opportunities.

The future employment prospects look very appealing, the graduate scheme they run is one that really allows you to develop and find a career that suits you. The scheme allows you to do three eight month placements within the stream the internship was on, and gives you that time to really develop and find a role that you want to do. The scheme also allows everyone to sit extra qualifications to become a chartered banker, and again all these opportunities to develop personally are very appealing.

Yes there was, interns who are relocated for the placement are grouped together into accommodation and this provides a good social scene between all of the colleagues. I am already in the city my placement was given for university, despite this, all the interns still get everyone else involved in nights out, meet ups, outings to cinema/shows ect. There is a great social scene for interns not matter where they are located.

The cost of living and socialising in Edinburgh is well known to be expensive, however that should not put people off. There are many clubs and pubs in Edinburgh, that have student nights and or student deals which make the cost of a night out that bit cheaper, many places in the student areas of Edinburgh tend to have great deals depending where you go.

The nightlife in Edinburgh is great, there is something for everyone. Whether it is a classy expensive night out at the clubs on George Street, or a cheap student night out at The Hive, or a night out on the gay scene it caters for everyone. There are hundreds of pubs in Edinburgh and many nightclubs. Nightlife in Edinburgh is enhanced during August, when the Edinburgh International Festival takes place each year, with many bars open to 3am and clubs opening to 5am during the month of August, and thousands of shows to see, Edinburgh’s nightlife cannot get any better during the time the internship takes place. The rest of the year still provides many of shows and gigs to be watched a variety of venues across the city but August is a major highlight of Edinburgh’s nightlife.

Yes there was, between the other interns and the people on my team, there were plenty of opportunities to get involved in things out of work. The team I worked in, went out to see shows and had a meal out, and with the other interns there was plenty of opportunities to go and socialise with them out of work.