Marketing & Strategy Business Intern Review

The introductory program that I experienced allowed me to meet a range of employees who would all end up supporting me over the course of the placement. The flexibility and ownership that I received during my placement made it extremely enjoyable. Overall, I feel like I have learned greatly on my placement whilst really putting theory to practice in a working environment that has given me the opportunity to take on really ownership and responsibilities.

On my very first day I was given a project that I was solely responsible for overlooking. Since then, I have continued to be given roles of responsibility from a range of areas within my sector as members of staff required my assistance. I have continuously had numerous opportunities as a result of my colleagues and the extent to which they valued me.

The introductory program at Siemens is undoubtedly the best I have experienced or been told of. I was inducted with care, consideration and excitement as I travelled the country to gain a better understanding of the business and see its functions in operation. The management team have always promoted opportunities to deepen my knowledge whether it be with new projects or the opportunity to visit different sites across the UK. I have always felt a great level of support and guidance throughout my entire experience with Siemens.

I was constantly busy when in the office with numerous tasks delegated to me at the start of the week. I found that the lead management that I was in charge of allowed me to balance tasks to make sure that I constantly had something to do, particularly during quieter periods. When there was not an awful lot of tasks to be done, I was offered opportunities to visit other sites or meet with other colleagues to further deepen my understanding of Siemens.

I was given a great amount of responsibility within my role. On my very first day I was given a large project with regards to competitor analysis and I felt like this was a fantastic way to settle into the company. Being solely responsible for this project I gained an awful lot of experience and knowledge in a n area I was previously quite uncomfortable with. From this point onwards I was given a number of roles which allowed me to take complete ownership of my work and portray my skills with great responsibility.

The skills that I have developed and particularly the knowledge that I have gained whilst on my placement is going to be incredibly important to my degree study. Upon my first competitor analysis project based upon the market of digitalization (that I was previously very unaware of) I instantly gained an interest within the market and I am consequently planning on completing my dissertation within that field of study. My knowledge of the market and the products within it will help me to complete research quite easily which I think is very important; I am extremely interested in continuing into the market of digitalization upon graduating from university.

At times the office was very quiet but that was expected within a marketing role as colleagues travelled around to complete projects and meet with clients. On the other hand, when the office was busy the atmosphere was very vibrant and enjoyable with a mix of employees which allowed me to settle in quite quickly. I believe that the balance of these busy and quiet periods in the office allowed me to complete work efficiently whilst maintaining a good working relationship with my colleagues.

I couldn't believe how well organized the placement was set up. The efficiency of the recruitment procedure was far more than what I could have asked for hearing back from the HR team quickly with an abundance of information. I was brought into the company quite quickly and upon my arrival everything was in order being provided with a mobile phone and laptop as well as having all of my administrative details logged accordingly. The introductory program was ready upon my day of arrival and I felt very welcomed.

Siemens really promotes opportunities to develop and move up the ladder and this is one of the main reasons I intend to proceed onto the graduate scheme. In my first month I attended a training day with regards to productivity and efficiency which I found incredibly important as it almost guided me through the workplace and completely eradicated any stress that could be experienced through work overload. I was exposed to a lot of responsibility (often in markets that I was not familiar with) and offered support throughout which allowed me to develop an awful lot.

As previously mentioned, I wholly intend on continuing my career with Siemens onto the graduate scheme. I managed to make friends with a couple of colleagues who were on the scheme and they persuaded me greatly. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time on placement with Siemens and can only imagine how much more I would enjoy it on a permanent basis with even more responsibility. Siemens' vision within the digitalization market is something that I am greatly interested in and I would really like to help them in the future as the market continues to develop.

Siemens has a group (NEXT Panel) whom organize events throughout the year to help build a social relationship between employees; I was lucky enough to be involved in the group and help to organize events. On top of this, there was a monthly get-together after payday for colleagues to get to know each other better and socialize outside of work.

I was fortunate enough to work in my home city (Manchester) so expenses were not really an issue. The city is constantly busy with lots going on but does not have anywhere near the same cost of living as somewhere such as London; I rarely felt as though I would rather live elsewhere as the location of Siemens was entirely what I wanted.

I strongly recommend the Manchester nightlife to anyone. There is a range of places to visit that will appease absolutely everybody. You can literally find somewhere for you in any area of the city and still ensure that you have a fantastic night.

Siemens' actively promoted CSR activities so I instantly found myself getting involved in activities outside of work from conducting presentations and career events to helping out at the Museum of Science and Industry. I also had the opportunity to play football with colleagues just around the corner from work.