Account Manager Support Intern Review

Handelsbanken is a very good company to work for with lots of possibilities for progression due to the decentralised structure. Everybody was very welcoming to me in the branch and company as a whole and I felt very comfortable asking each member of staff if I had any questions. They likewise did their best to ensure that I understood what was going on within the bank, detailing their role to me and ensuring I was learning / staying involved, making it a very good role to understand banking and ask questions as an intern. The only downside of the internship was that without a proper structure I often found myself with not much to do and having to ask several times a day if there was anything I could do to help out.

Everybody made me feel very welcome in the branch and as mentioned, I had no problem going up and asking each member of staff if I had any problems / questions and they were likewise very happy to show me the processes. Obviously as an intern without the proper training and guidance it is hard to become fully involved in the day to day activities of the bank, meaning that a lot of the time I was sat with not much to do. It likewise took a while to get properly set-up on the systems when I first started which meant a lot of time ding very menial jobs to pass time. I furthermore went out once or twice after work with the younger members of staff as well which likewise helps with bonding which feeds over into the workplace.

Handelsbanken's processes are based predominantly off 'instructions Britain' which is a dated and complicated system meaning it's hard to actually locate the instructions that you're searching for. Staff members were very happy to help out when I had any questions, however often times I made a few errors by leaving out 'vital' information (which they automatically input, however forgot I wasn't shown this). Overall they were very helpful with any guidance I required.

The one downside of the internship was the fact that it lacked any structure. As the role is AMS intern, the AMS members are often reliant on account managers to give them tasks to complete, however in an interning position which lacked training of these processes, I was often left with the most basic of jobs such as scanning and filing. An underlying project would've been useful as I enjoyed having work when it was given but something to work on in the background would've been beneficial. This meant I was asking for tasksa lot of the time and I could see staff were trying to find jobs for me, however they were usually short, basic ones.

In the roles that I did undertake I feel as if I was given a good bit of responsibility, which really helped develop both my skills and interest in the bank. Having made a few errors over the course of the internship, staff were understanding and I learnt by experience.

I learnt a great deal about not just the banking world, but also the corporate world in what sort of non-academic skills are required to succeed in an office-based environment. Likewise the hands-on processes and business conducted by banks will certainly aid my overall understanding of banks in my economic studies and further interest me in the field. Being trained up on all of Handelsbanken's systems and getting a good feel / understanding of them over the course of this internship has put me in a prime position to continue work within this bank or any other bank which will have largely the same processes and systems.

The office was fairly quiet with the odd bit of chat. This was predominantly because staff members had lots of work to actually get their head down with and do. There would be a few telephone conversations you could hear across the room as the office was for the most part quiet, however I still felt as if I could go up and ask a question comfortably to each individual.

The internship lacked structure which was its biggest downfall, although a lot was learnt through various experiences at the individual branches. The IT systems of Handelsbanken were partly to blame, as I was to gain experience in another office for a few days and when I went along there I wasn't set up on any systems and didn't have much to do there. I was likewise told I would be going back along there after only spending two days there, however this was never arranged. The internship started with an induction day in Manchester where the Handelsbanken way was 'instilled' in us, and come the end of the internship a final presentation day and exit interview were given mainly about our time in the branches.

As soon as we joined a range of 'MyDevelopment' training courses were rolled out to the interns, as they are to all new starts. These were 'regulatory tick-boxes' in some sense and also informative about the micro and macro role of the bank in the overall financial sector. As mentioned, staff were a big part of my training / learning experience and I can see that if an individual was to have a long-term career at Handelsbanken a great deal of time and money would be invested in them which is a brilliant company characteristic.

Currently, Handelsbanken are big on employing younger people as the majority of the company is around 50+, coming from various other banks meaning there is a great deal of knowledge and experience within the company. The decentralised structure provides a fantastic platform for anyone wishing to move up in their career and in a fast manner. The 10 - 20 year prospects for the younger generation of this firm therefore indicates a bright future.

As I was situated in Scotland and everyone else was in Manchester and the surrounding area, this made it very difficult / expensive to meet with them during the internship. They met twice to discuss the presentation in which I phoned into one of the meetings, however I'm unaware if they ever met outwith this (I don't think so). I did go out for drinks twice with a couple of the younger staff at Handelsbanken which was a very good experience and likewise played football twice with a couple of the members (in an inter-company 5 a-side league).

The cost of living in Edinburgh is relatively pricey, beers are expensive as is rent, however this didn't phase me too much as I was staying at home. Plenty to do and see and a fantastic buzz in August when the festival is on so plenty socialising activities and opportunities which are definitely worth the money.

The nightlife was very good, lots of busy pubs and clubs and places to eat for a nice meal. Also many shows during August and plenty more pop-ups.

Apart from the two football games I played which were very enjoyable, nothing else was planned.