Finance Trainee Review

I really enjoyed my placement year at Johnson & Johnson. I learnt both technical and personable skills that I will be able to apply to the rest of my career, whilst also being able to interact with a really engaging and supportive team. I am so glad that I completed a placement year at Johnson & Johnson.

As I was working in a relatively small team of 10, I felt extremely valued in the team. I worked closely with my manager and other senior management to provide data and reports for my colleagues and the wider business. I also took part in a variety of meetings where my opinion and thoughts were valued.

I had weekly 1:1 meetings with my manager, which included discussions about my current work and my development goals. My manager gave me consistent support throughout my placement year, whilst also challenging me to ensure I was learning. I also had a review half way through my placement which included feedback from other colleagues, which was great to understand what I was doing well and what I could improve on.

Working in Finance meant that a lot of my tasks were done on a monthly basis, either at month end or the start of the month. This meant that throughout the month I had a few busy weeks of regular tasks, and then a few quieter weeks of project & more adhoc work. How busy I was depended on what week of the month it was. If it was a closing week and I had project deadlines I found myself to be very busy.

As I was responsible for updating a number of reports and communicating these to the wider business, including multiple senior managers and directors, I feel as though I was given quite a lot of responsibility. Also because the team I was working in was relatively small, it meant I had to provide analytics and it was my responsibility to ensure the numbers I was sharing were correct.

As I did a Finance Trainee placement, and I am studying a Business Economics degree, I do not believe my placement experience will massively assist me in my degree. However, the skills of time management, work prioritisation and confidence in presenting will definitely help me with my degree and in future jobs. Also, the content I learnt during my placement will help me pursue a career in Finance.

It was a friendly and supportive atmosphere which I think is due to the Credo at Johnson & Johnson. I was part of Team Fun which is a group that organises activities in the office to help boost morale and motivation. As our Finance team sits near other functions like Sales & Marketing, there is often conversations happening between the functions, meaning it is never too quiet in the office.

It was very well organised as we got both an Induction Day a few months before we started, and also a three week handover with the placement student we were replacing. This really helped to settle into the team and role. We were also introduced to the other placements in the office on a Facebook group, so we could set up living together if needed.

The company offers online training for Finance, which was useful as I do not do a finance degree so was able to learn from that. Also members of my team held a few training sessions so we could build on our knowledge of finance. There was a few training sessions throughout the year in systems/other areas of the business. My team also prepared me for Graduate Assessment Centres with 'fake' case study sessions and interviews. This was really helpful!

There is a really good finance graduate scheme that I will be able to apply for. My team helped me prepare for the assessment centre by giving me a 'fake' interview and case study aswell as feedback on how I performed and what I could improve on. I will need to apply for the graduate scheme and can get fast tracked to the assessment centre, however no role is confirmed during the placement.

At my office there was around 25 placements in total. A few of the placements lived together, however as I lived at home during my year I didn't spend that much time out of work with other placements. That being said, I did spend my lunches with other placements and made some great friends.

Not 100% sure as I lived at home during the year. From people I spoke to, the cost of living is a bit higher than average as Maidenhead/Reading is relatively close to London. It is more expensive than in the North. Reading is nearby which is good for shopping/restaurants/bars etc.

Maidenhead itself doesn't have a great nightlife scene. There are a few pubs near the office but it's not really nightlife. Reading and Windsor are fairly close by which are better as there are more bars and nightclubs. Also London isn't too far to get to on the train so that is an option for good nightlife.

Yes, the company run cricket and tag rugby teams throughout the year to get involved in. We also did volunteering as team, which was good to get to know my colleagues better and also do something good for the local community. Christmas parties/leaving do's were also lots of fun throughout the year.