Technical Support Review

The Role involves running/attending daily compliance meetings within the packaging or manufacturing area. This allows for department communication between operations, quality, technical and Supply & Logistics. Any issues that require technical attention would be brought up to allow our team to help. The rest of day varies between working on customer complaints, helping with issues occurring within the tablet manufacturing/packaging area or working on your own projects. Hence the role requires an amount of flexibility and fast action to the challenging environment of a secondary manufacturing site.

In this role I developed my communication and presentation skills from having to talk to other departments and relay information. Technical have to run the compliance meeting and update the boards according to have clear communication. Through my projects I had to demonstrate my critical thinking and technical skills alongside working on my leadership. I got to pitch my ideas to various departments to help continually improve the way of working for the site. Due to dealing with customer complaints and writing technical reports, I worked on my written communication. To ensure all the necessary detail was incorporated to a clear and concise manner

Yes I was given the responsibility to run some critical projects for the site to help continually improve the way of working and benefit others on site. I got to pitch my own ideas to various departments and also gained endorsement to follow through and implement the changes. I also helped to give technical insight when issues occurred within the various packaging/manufacturing areas. I also had to run Tier 1 and Tier 2 meetings to ensure information was being relayed and the boards were updated to help ensure everything was running smoothly with a chance for any risks to be highlighted.

Support was always provided when I asked for help. Everyone on site is willing to help regardless of their busy schedule. I also had bi-weekly 1:1 sessions with my manager to keep track of my progress alongside a mentor meeting with another member within my team. During the start of my placement I received the required training to carry out my role which i continued to refer to throughout the year. I also signed up for a mentor who worked in another area of interest on another GSK site who also helped to develop my soft skills

The company has an inclusive culture with specific teams to target areas like diversity, LGBTQ+ and woman empowerment. These groups allowed stories to be shared and created a welcoming environment for you to learn about different cultures and identification. On my site everyone was very welcoming and helpful. If I had any issues I could ask anyone on site and they would either be able to help or direct me to someone who could assist.

I really enjoyed my placement as it gave me a good understanding of what its like to work for a big cooperation and also gave valuable insight into the pharmaceutical industry. Although a lot of my university knowledge was not required for my specific role I got to work on my soft skills which are also key in aiding my personal development. I also had the opportunity to explore other areas across the company and ask any questions to help me look towards the future opportunities that I have.

Yes

Make sure the role you are applying for aligns with what interests you and what you want to get out of it. In the interview process and during work just be yourself as everyone has different strengths and opportunities that they bring to the team. Never be afraid to reach out and ask for help or to explore other opportunities when you are at GSK as they have a big network and there are a lot of roles to explore.