GTS Communications & Events Specialist Review

I really enjoyed my work placement at IBM. There was so much opportunity to get involved in a range of different things in and outside my role, which gave me a greater insight into how different areas of the company worked. I have learned so many new skills since joining and have fully developed as an individual from when I started.

I always felt really valued by my team as although we were all based in different locations, we still kept in contact almost every single day. They have really helped me develop and given me confidence when pieces of work I have done have been impressive, whilst also encouraging me to push myself and do more things.

The support I received from both my manager and my EPM (Early Professionals Manager) have really helped me develop into a stronger individual. I had regular meetings with my EPM to monitor my performance whilst also having reviews every 3 months with both to discuss objectives and plans on how I can progress further in my job and develop my skills.

My job role was very varied, but there had been occasions where I was quite quiet. However, I used this as an opportunity to get involved in loads of giveback outside of my job which helped me learn a range of skills and understand more about IBM in different areas.

I was given quite a lot of responsibility during my placement year as I took complete ownership of certain projects the Comms Team owned and was trusted by my team members to work on it effectively and to a high standard. If I asked for more responsibility I would get it, as my team saw this as being pro-active and wanted me to get involved in as much as possible.

The skills I have learned from my placement with IBM are 100% skills for life. I have become self-motivated, driven, determined and confident which are 4 great skills I can take with me into my final year of University and no doubt succeed in my degree. The skills I have learned here are something you cannot learning through reading a book, but are skills which take to any job to help you succeed.

The atmosphere in the office was very corporate as it is a tall structured organisation. It was serious at times but the Marketing department in where I sat had a really friendly atmosphere. The majority of IBMers are very friendly towards eachother as everyone has strong values there.

The work placement was set up extremely well. As IBM take on a large number of placement students each year the placement scheme is really well organised from the beginning to the end, as students performances are constantly monitored to ensure everyone is getting the most out of it.

IBM invested a lot of time in us in terms of personal development, due to having reviews with our EPMs every 3 months, a placement journal to fill out to reflect on our peformance and developement throughout the year, and ensuring that we meet our objectives we set ourselves at the beginning of the year.

Getting onto the grad scheme at IBM would be highly thought of and we are also able to apply to it before any external candidates, which gives us a massive advantage since we are already well known in the company.

The social scene at IBM was really good. There was over 100 interns at IBM South Bank where I was based which encouraged us all to get together after work for drinks. I have made loads of friends through the placement scheme as there was so many other students there at the same time.

The cost of living in London was extremely expensive which was the only downfall. As IBM South Bank was based in Central London this meant it was even more expensive! However, we all still managed to work around it and were able to find the cheaper places to socialise!

The nightlife was good. There is so much choice in London depending on what kind of night you fancy. There are so many cool bars which I went to. You cannot explore the whole of London in one year!

IBM had several sports teams who got together and played other companies, however I am not sporty myself so did not choose to get involved in this!