Change Manager Review

IBM encourages you to rotate through roles during the 3 years. Most recently I was a change manager, working with internal resources and externally with the client to monitor the work being carried out on multiple systems, assisting with the scheduling to mitigate risk to live service as much as possible. This involved hosting meetings both internally and externally, monitoring the schedules, authorising changes as required, working with development and test teams, maintaining documentation and regularly feeding back to project management.

Absolutely, have developed both personal skills and externally recognised qualifications such as ITIL and PRINCE2. I have also obtained a Level 3 Apprenticeship.

The role itself was stressful, completing the work that would usually have been done by a team, and often involved overtime (which on my account was unpaid). That being said, my colleagues around me made my time in the office incredibly enjoyable. In IBM at large, the "Foundation" organisation (which looks after Apprentices/Graduates/Interns etc) fails to take into account the work load your day job puts you under, and can set unrealistic additional targets and workloads. Foundation also quickly loses interest in your development and progression once a new batch of apprentices is taken on board, and has set up a number of internal processes that are designed to help but hinder more often than not.

While I felt valued for the work I was doing from my day to day managers, recognition for my internal and external achievements from Foundation has been nearly non-existent. Foundation tends to be incredibly political, with the majority of apprentices not being recognised for their achievements in their day job or that those they have completed externally - low morale is often an issue regarding Foundation.

The IBM apprenticeship lacks structure past 4 compulsory training programs scheduled within the first two years. It's very much like a "Choose your own adventure" book - Pick a career you want to develop in, find someone to help you get there then get on with it.

We receive no input from the college we are signed up to for the apprentice qualification. As there is no day-release or time set aside for training and documentation, work loads can get extremely heavy when completing Foundation's paperwork or the Level3/4 paperwork while carrying out the work required from your day job.

Foundation assigns you a Development manager who manages your training and overall role development during your three years in the apprenticeship. However, the support mechanisms IBM and Foundation have in place can be difficult to navigate at times, where apprentices need to know the right buttons to push to get support.

While the salary is competitive for an apprenticeship, it doesn't realistically reflect the work apprentices carry out day to day, where we often complete the roles of people earning an industry salary considerably higher than that of an apprentice. IBM has a habit of asking new recruits to move across the country when they start with no financial assistance and often at short notice, which really should be looked at or at least made clearer throughout the application process.

Yes, IBM organises various Giveback events for apprentices to complete outside work as something to add to the CV. Most locations also have a vibrant apprentice community who're usually getting up to something.

Yes

Despite some of the areas for development the scheme has, the IBM apprenticeship is still a great alternative to university - gaining invaluable industry experience, externally recognised qualifications and has fantastic development opportunities with one of the biggest brands in the world.

Make sure you're a well-rounded individual - You're hired for who YOU are, not the grades on your CV.