Customer Account Executive Review

I really enjoyed this placement, it was the best place for me to be thrown in the deep end and learn everything there is to know about the FMCG industry whilst still getting a lot of help along the way.

At Unilever, I was pretty much given a normal job - I was expected to contribute just as a permanent employee and the fact that I was a student never became an issue. As far as everyone would be concerned, I was always considered as an Account Executive rather than a placement student.

Not only did I receive regular support from both of my managers, I received a lot of help from everyone else in my team. There was never a point in time where I felt like I could not ask for guidance or a bit of help to do with work. Most managers at Unilever are willing to help you and give extra advice even if you do not work in their team.

On a daily basis, I was mostly busy - some days more than others depending on the accounts' needs, The whole Christmas period was especially busy and intense (as it was for all members of staff) and every other day of the year, I was still pretty busy which is a good thing compared to having nothing to do. It also shows just how much you are valued and required in the team!

During my placement I was given a lot of responsibility - all students are given a real role that is necessary to the business, so you are expected to rise up to these expectations and do the same things that are required of a real permanent employee.

Doing a placement year has massively influenced my performance in final year, making me very grateful I had the opportunity to do a placement year. I have become significantly more disciplined in my time management and also in my productivity - I am also a lot more productive than I was prior to my placement year.

Unilever's culture is very relaxed - everyone is friendly with each other, no matter what work level they are. This relaxed culture brought out a lot more productivity within the office because everyone was always in a good mood. With more than 1000 people in my office, there was always a buzz going around, made even better with the modern, open plan layout. I also noticed that there was very little sense of hierarchy - everyone is treated the same and people higher up are always happy to help those who are lower down.

The placement was organised very well - we were all given a good introduction evening with the other placement students as well as with new grads, and also an induction day where we were given tours of the office etc. Before starting I received lots of help from a placement 'buddy' and during the placement I had a mentor to help me. There were also lots of opportunities for placement students to get involved outside of out day jobs by doing a project regarding the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan which was presented to a board of directors.

Throughout the whole placement we work towards creating a portfolio to be presented at a final calibration amongst all the managers who discuss whether the student should be fast tracked to the Unilever Future Leaders Programme, which is a very highly regarded grad scheme. During several points of the year we are given help in how we can improve out chances of being offered a place on the grad scheme.

As there are so many placement students in all the offices, there is always a group of people you can be friends with and do things outside of work with. The placement students often live close or around each other so you'll most likely make friends with them just by seeing them on the way to work everyday!

I was working in the Leatherhead office and most of the students that also worked there lived in the Wimbledon area. If you look around in a smart way you can find cheaper rent, if it's not in the city centre, but this place would always have good transport links making it easier to both get to work, and also socialising around London so it was the cheapest compromise between convenience and socialising.

In Leatherhead there is very little to do - it is a very small area with not a lot of shopping either. But hardly anyone who did a placement in Leatherhead lived there - most lived in South West London where the nightlife was a lot better in places like Clapham and Wimbledon. Kingston is also easily accessible which is a cheap night out.

There were some opportunities, not a lot, but a good amount to get involved outside of work. For example they had many fundraising activities such as Miles4Mel (employees cycle from England to Wales) and also good Christmas parties. The customer development team also have a CD Party every summer which was great fun