Executive Assistant Review

by Unilever

Best Apprenticeship Employer

Rating

7.7/10

1. Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:

My job title is executive assistant and on a daily basis I will be organising and hosting meetings, and doing analysis reports. I will work with the Director of IT and the management team internally and with the O365 and Apple team externally. One of my projects is to focus on improving customer satisfaction by running constant market research and hosting multiple events.

9/10

2. Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?

As I am in still in the apprentice ship I have not gained my full qualification. However I have become a 'Subject Matter Expert' in Skype for Business, One Drive and Customer Satisfaction. My skills in communication with internal people have improved as have my skills with IT (especially Excel).

10/10

3. To what extent do you enjoy your programme?

The work I have is challenging and enjoyable and give me the opportunity to develop professionally and personally. The team I work with are supportive and fun to work with. The programme was better than I expected to be with regards to the opportunities and my enjoyment.

9/10

4. How valued do you feel by Unilever?

I do feel valued, I have regular meetings with my line manager and they along side my team are happy to support me if I need it

8/10

5. How well organised/structured is your programme?

The programme has a clear route and from start to the current position I am in now has been well organised. The induction was helpful and the support can be good, but the issue is with regards to the coursework is that it can sometimes be unclear on what needs to be done.

7/10

6a. How much support do you receive from your training provider?

If I ever have a question they always get back to me eventually and clarify with me what needs to be done.

7/10

6b. How much support do you receive from your employer?

From the entire team if I ever have any questions I am fortunate enough to have them invest a lot of time into helping me. I receive regular feedback and guidance on new tasks that are given to me.

10/10

7. How well does your salary/package meet your costs?

The salary does meet my costs, however with my living costs it is hard. I moved to Kingston to work here and the rent is very high, which means that most of my money goes there and this can make things hard. If I have to travel in the month I can pay this and it is helpful that I can claim expenses for travel. With social costs, as most of my money goes onto living costs, I have some left over for social activities however I cannot do this regularly.

4/10

8. Are there many opportunities outside of work?

There are a few opportunities outside of work. A gym is on every site which is very useful and they will have a workplace Christmas party.

5/10

9. Would you recommend Unilever to a friend?

Yes

9b. Why?

There is opportunity to develop in lots of aspects of your life as long as you put in the effort.

10. What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Unilever?

As hard an frightening as it can be to start with, always ask for feedback on how you can do better in the future. Socialise and build bridges with your team and other in the office as this will help with networking and obviously always put in 100%.