Retail Business Placement Review

by Marks & Spencer

This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.

Rating

3.6/5
  • The Role
    4.0
  • The Company
    3.6
  • The Culture
    3.0

    The Role

  • 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?

    • A enjoyable, yet challenging experience, there were certainly bad and good days. My experienced varied according to the several different managers whom trained me over the 12 months, some good and some bad.

    4/5
  • 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?

    • Every store I worked in was welcoming and treated me as part of the team.

    5/5
  • 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?

    • Had some very good support during the beginning and end of the placement, but was a definite lull in the middle period due to working with a manager whom had no experience of placement students in the company.

    4/5
  • 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?

    • There was always plenty to do, which often meant working longer hours, but rewarding results at the end of it.

    4/5
  • 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?

    • Given a lot of responsibility, spent two out of the twelve months in live roles, running departments with teams of up to 50 people and 4 managers.

    5/5
  • 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?

    • Certainly helped me developed a wide variety of skills, communication being the best example, developed through interacting with senior business leaders and completing whole store team briefs.

    5/5

    The Company

  • 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?

    • Worked in several stores varying in size, from one of the biggest in the business to much smaller stores. Always a good atmosphere to work in.

    4/5
  • 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?

    • Very clear structure set out on paper, with various different placements over the 12 months in different aspects of the business. However communication between stores and HR graduate representative not always apparent.

    4/5
  • 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?

    • Clear, concise development plan available, but very self driven exercise, had several friends on placement and experience varied widely on this front. Towards the end of the placement much improved and very detailed exit interview from the business.

    4/5
  • 10. What were the perks on your work placement?

    • Subsidised Canteen

    Financial Bonus

    Staff Sales/Staff Shop

    Healthcare/Dental
    3/5
  • 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?

    • Offered a graduate job with the business.

    4/5

    The Culture

  • 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?

    • Attended a few store staff parties, good network of other graduates/ placement students, however probably did not meet up as much as we should have done.

    4/5
  • 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?

    • Lived at home for the duration of the placement so relatively cheap.

    3/5
  • 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?

    • Hard to answer as will vary on location for each individual

    3/5
  • 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?

    • Oppurtunities to get involved in charity events such as the companies Bike24 event.

    4/5
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Details

Placement (10 Months+)

Retail, Sales

North West

November 2013

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