Customer Account Manager Review

In my experience it was a real mix between good and bad. There were a number of serious issues which Unilever failed to deal with proactively and there is a real disparity in the amount of opportunities you get, based on the team you are put into. I had over 5 line managers in 12 months, which put a real negative spin on my placement. It also creates an issue when it comes to your end of year review, as feedback is vague and inconsistent.

I was moved between teams and had various line managers without being given any real notice, nor a chance to have a say on where I ended up. On the most part I did not feel valued at all.

It was a real mix- I had one line manager who was brilliant and really supported me throughout my time with her. The others were less than supportive and did not offer guidance when I really needed it.

Not very- I had asked for additional work repeatedly but was not given anything to do. I was used more as an admin assistant than anything else, which was undermining given the role I was supposed to be doing.

You are given pretty much total control of an account if you're in sales. How much control you get depends on your line manager and team. It varied for me throughout the year.

The training is very good and extremely helpful. It's not all job specific so you can gain a lot of transferable knowledge.

You sit within your team, so it varies massively. The general office atmosphere is good, there is always something going on and people are very friendly. There are a number of staff parties as well which enables you to meet other people outside of your area. A lot of sporty events that go on as well!

Well structured from the start. There is a clear onboarding process that is set out and everyone goes through the same training sessions to build up your core understanding. Everyone then has a mid placement review in November/December time and then a final review in May. Your actual job role and all it entails varies massively depending which team you get put in.

Everyone gets the same fundamental training in sales. There are opportunities to do further training should you wish. Your line manager is your main mentor, so a large part of it is down to them. As such, the level of your development varies dependent on the amount of guidance and time your line manager and team invests in you.

Not at all. There is very little career progression within the company and the pay does not reflect the amount of work that people put into their roles. There are an awful lot of people who are very good at their job, that haven't got the opportunity to move up the ladder due to the lack of senior vacancies. Unilever also hire a very small % of people who do their placement programmes. I would advise you look elsewhere if you're looking to secure a grad role off the back of a placement.

Very good social scene. In part this is down to the sheer number of placement students there are. There was so much going on, nights out, sport, people going on holiday together etc.

If you work in sales you're more than likely to be living in and around London. As such, expect living costs to be in line with that. Most people paid circa £600pcm in rent and you'll need at least £50 for a night out once you've factored in travel, drinks etc.

The office in Leatherhead is in the middle of nowhere and there is nothing going on. People don't go for drinks after work at all. Teams do work from the London office on an ad hoc basis where the social scene is a lot better, but on the most part it's poor.

So much to do. Loads of sports, there's a staff gym, volunteering, walking club etc.