Trainee Design Manager Review

I found that I enjoyed my placement more the longer I had been there, at the beginning there were some quiet periods where I didn't have much to do, but that is to be expected when you are learning about a role. The project I worked on was interesting and challenging which made the placement all together more enjoyable.

I felt that my colleagues saw me as a valued member of the team, they treated me like one of the team and gave me responsibility on my project. They have always been willing to support me and help me out with any queries I may have, and will take the time to explain things to me.

My manager gave me a decent amount of support, and would always happily take time to explain something to me. We sat down at the beginning of my placement and discussed what I wanted to achieve, and I feel my manager helped me achieve the goals I set myself. In terms of guidance, I was left alone on a project and felt kind of like I had to guess what the role of a design manager was. My manager was there if I had questions, but I would have preferred to have had some more hands on guidance.

It really varied. Some days I wouldn't have a lot to do at all, others I could comfortably fill a day with work. Overall, I had more quiet days than busy days, which is probably the main downside of the year. However, colleagues were helpful in finding me things to do when these slow days occurred.

I was given a fair amount of responsibility, as I was put onto a project without shadowing anybody. So I had to quickly pick up on things and learn how to do my job. I also had a lot of contact with the client, and was responsible for reporting to them on a fortnightly basis on the progress of the project.

I feel that the knowledge I take back to university will be very valuable in my coursework in final year, I now have a first hand example to apply what I am taught to. Especially in situations such as group work, I feel doing a placement year has developed my group work skills, and has allowed me to be more organized.

Our office has a very laidback vibe, everybody is very friendly and I felt totally comfortable there. It was a fun place to be as everyone was always having a laugh on the team, and there was always someone to have lunch with if you wanted to get away from your desk.

I thought that the placement was well organized, from getting the offer through to our induction was very straight forward and the HR team were always quick to respond to any queries I had. Also the placement sessions held throughout the year were a great opportunity to find out how all the other placement students were getting on and to socialize.

We were encouraged to sign up to as many training modules as possible, some were mandatory, others were done if you felt you wanted to develop in that area. Mace have countless training sessions you can attend, all of which are very informative and highly applicable to the work that you do.

I wish to go onto to do the Mace graduate scheme as it is an award winning scheme, and I have seen how much Mace want to invest in young people. I've learned also that Mace are a company that will promote you if you put the hard work in, which I think is important for career progression.

We were given a couple of opportunities to socialize over the year with the other placement students and they were always a good time. My business unit in particular had winter and summer communications sessions which were a good time for socializing. Also Mace offer two volunteer sessions a year and these were a great opportunity to meet others across the business.

I was living in London, so unfortunately the costs were fairly high, however, I was paid enough to be able to rent with others and enjoy a fun social life. Plus the pros of living in London far outweigh the cons of how expensive it is, as you will literally never be bored.

There wasn't a lot of nightlife at all where I worked as it was a bit out of the way of pubs and bars etc. Also I worked with a lot of people who had families so weren't always up for going out after work. However, I feel the lack of nightlife is purely down to the location I worked in.

Mace offer many opportunities to get involved with things outside of work, firstly we have the two volunteering days, as well as many other charity events that we can take part in advertised on our employee social website. My office in particular encouraged colleagues to take part in sports etc together outside of work.