Ecommerce New Revenue Stream Exec Review

I enjoyed my placement at Unilever immensely. It is a young company with like minded people who are really easy to get on with from the get go. I have worked on exciting projects and my well being / happiness has always been considered by my line manager. It's been a fun year!

I feel extremely valued by those around me. My team are like a family and I know I can rely on them and they can rely on me. This is something I can definitely feel more strongly in my small team (5 people) but weaker within the wider team (25) and weaker still within the whole department (200+) but I feel this is normal within a large company.

My manager has focused on my development since I started. I have had a considerable amount of both soft and hard skill training as well as development sessions on my individual purpose and where I want to take my career. This is a large focus across the company and definitely one of the main positives for me

At the beginning of your placement they give you time to get your feet under the table so on certain days it can feel like you don't have a massive amount to do. However within a couple of months you have just as much work as a full time employee and just as much responsibility too. A bit dawning but great experience.

Unilever give you a tremendous amount of responsibility to placement students. By the end of my placement I was the account manager on one key account and the marketing lead for another key customer. I was presenting to European and Global leads and I was relied upon to do so.

My degree is politics and international relations, therefore the transferable skills are not as obvious to someone taking a business course. However there are countless soft skills on leadership, influencing, negotiation, teamwork etc. that I will take forward. As well as some really useful hard skills like advanced excel training and presentation master classes.

A good atmosphere. Generally happy and motivated. There was always someone to pick you up if you were having a bad day and it never felt tense or pressured like I have heard in other companies. Even if we were behind on our number it was a rallying feeling rather than a weighing pressure.

It is organised well. The application process was brilliant and quick. the induction and handover process is good but could definitely be smoother as there are a lot of new starters who have never worked in a company before. Throughout the year communication is good, and I always knew the path I was on during the placement

I have definitely been invested in. I have attended several training sessions. sometimes full days or overnight stays that have developed my skills but have come at a cost to the company. My manager and those around me have also invested their time into developing me and the vast majority of people in the company are willing to do so.

The Unilever Future Leaders Program is a graduate scheme that is incredibly appealing. You spend time in the company learning your trade on rotational years and then you are fast tracked into the leadership team. Several people who do a placement year are fast tracked onto this process without an interview which is a great opportunity.

As the head office is in leatherhead the social scene can be damaged by this. However, if you spend a day working in the central London office people are usually keen to get together. I've met up with my team several time out of work for drinks or dinner. They also connect you with all the other placement students so you have a network of like minded friends in the company.

In London the cost of living is very expensive as is any activity that you want to do. most people at the company live in south London. If you live further out towards the head office in Leatherhead it is cheaper but the social scene gets progressively worse the further out of London you go.

It's London the night life is awesome.

I played 5 a side football every Tuesday with a group of guys from around the company. There are also great opportunities for charity work such as our yearly bike ride from London to Wales. There are also other clubs such as the choir. Also as its so close to London there is no end to activities you can do in the city.