eCommerce Industrial Placement Student Review

On a daily basis, I communicate across different departments, within and external to my department, as well as external suppliers, to gather information and resources required for the team. This help's the processes run smoothly, which is where you get to see the positive impact of your work. In my role I have the responsibility of overseeing and reviewing the teams work. This requires high attention to detail, ensuring the team are lead to the best results. Additionally, I am helping with future planning whilst the business is going through departmental change. I do this through assisting and working on business wide projects and also developing future processes for my team, helping to manage the change within the team.

In Aldi as a placement student, you are given a really high level of responsibility which really helps develop skills. Firstly, communication and co-ordination is a main skill developed across any role in Aldi. From communicating with multiple different departments on a daily basis, I have developed the skills of quick yet effective communication to help co-ordinate work and deliver results. Additionally, my leadership team in Aldi have provided me with opportunities to develop my soft skills, such as my presentation skills. I was provided opportunities to present to the business on multiple occasions, helping to develop my presentation skills. At the end of the year, confidence is the key skill that I have developed. As the business trust me with handling important roles, tasks and projects, as well as leadership opportunities within the team, I have gained confidence in my own ability to help drive success in business and have the knowledge to do so, but also just my day to day confidence in my working life.

During my placement, the business provided me with high levels of responsibility, treating me as worker within the business, not just an external placement student. This responsibility varied from managing projects, implementing my own project ideas, to helping lead the team via reviewing work to make sure results are being met, that ultimately make the journey better for the customer. These high levels of responsibility can be daunting at first being thrown in the deep end, but if you are willing and want to take on the responsibility, the business help support you with this.

I had two different management teams during my time with Aldi, both of which were really supportive. They were supportive with my role in Aldi, helping to develop my soft skills, providing me with opportunities, giving me more responsibility where necessary, whilst ensuring I was learning and getting exposure to as much of the business as possible. However they were also supportive with my future career aspirations, providing me with opportunities to learn more about the graduate programmes and meet key stakeholders within this.

The culture throughout the whole of Aldi, whether spending time in stores or in the office, is a hard working and driven culture. Everyone drives for results, and I think that is largely due to the responsibility, accountability and ownership everyone has over their own work. In my experience, I had lots of support from my leadership teams that helped me fit in to the culture. As a placement student, if you are a generally positive and hard working person then it is a good environment for you.

Despite critical changes within my department whilst on my placement, my leadership team ensured I gained lots of experience and opportunities. This led to me really enjoying my year at Aldi. I felt supported and could develop as an individual. I also developed really great friendships with the other placement students which really helped throughout the year. If you are living away from home near the head office, it is not the biggest town so sometimes you could feel a bit out of it, but connecting and making friendships with the other placement students really enhanced my year.

Yes

Be yourself and don't be afraid of the responsibility. By being yourself you get to see whether the business is right for you and whether you fully enjoy it. Also try to get the most exposure to everything you can- this year is the year to learn what you do and don't like, so getting the most exposure if the best thing you can do to really get a feel of what you enjoy for the future.