Operations Internship Review

Overall it was a fantastic experience that has been useful for my personal development. I had real responsibilities and I have owned entirely my project. Moreover, I have interacted with different departments and I have been supported by my line managers. You have to be prepared to manage yourself and your time. The only downside was that I was not contextualised in a team.

I was welcomed by my colleagues. They have been very helpful and available to solve my doubts.

In the beginning, I received the project brief. This document stated clearly aim, objectives and tools to be used. This has allowed me to understand the expectations and set up a plan accordingly to them. Every week, I had a one to one meeting with my manager. The meetings lasted one hour. This has allowed me to have constant feedbacks from my manager.

I have not had an assigned schedule. I have had to manage my time and my activities. I have appreciated this approach but it is clearly more requiring than having an assigned timetable. You are responsible to attain different goals in three months. Consequently, if you are not able to attain them in the standard working hours you have to work more than 8.5 hours a day. On average, I have worked five days a week from 8:30 to 17:00 and the workload was balanced.

During my Internship, I had real responsibilities on people and production process. I had the possibilities to experiment my ideas and , if well justified, implement changes. Each proposal I have suggested was taken seriously and fairly evaluated by the managers. The final report was presented to the management board of the centre I have worked in.

I have not received any training related to my degree. Neverthless, I have enhanced my time management and planning skills since I had to self-administrate my time. Working for Amazon has allowed me to implement the concepts studied during my degree and understand how a real, big company works. Moreover, thanks to this experience, I have identified the areas that I need to develop in the future (hard and soft skills).

My colleagues accepted me very well and they were keen on explaining me their work. Everyone was friendly with each other and there have been opportunities to make jokes and have fun together. Everyone works hard but there are moments to socialise and discover the different backgrounds and nationalities. Indeed, my colleagues come from all over Europe.

I have chosen to continue to work for Amazon. I have taken this decision for several factors. First of all, working for this company allows to have real responsibilities and gain a hands on experience not easily achievable elsewhere. Moreover, it was pivotal for my decision the international exposure that this company offers. The trainings take place all over Europe and many times it is required to collaborate with personnel located all over the world. Finally, many different positions are available in Amazon. This allows you to experiment and discover your areas of interest.

I was the only placement student in my work place but I have developed friendship relationships amongst my colleagues. We have had several dinners together and we have organised a party for one of our colleagues. Moreover, we have organised small trips together and we attend the same gym in the town.

In the area I have worked in, the average cost of a single room spans between 300 and 400 £ pcm. The gym costs 15 £ a month and there are good restaurants that offer a meal for 15 £ per person. The cost of the food is aligned with rest of the United Kingdom. The public transporation services are expensive.

Throughout my placement, many activities were organised. Lunches in the main canteen were served for free and cookies were offered to celebrate the achievement of different goals. Theme days were organised and everybody was invited to wear costumes. Moreover, singers and bands were invited to perform in the centre I have worked in.