Technical Specialist Review
at IBM
Placement (10 Months+)
Computer Science
Portsmouth
Review Submitted: July 2021
Overall Rating
4.9 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
5/5
-
Overview of Role
5/5
-
Skills Development
5/5
-
Support and Guidance
4.8/5
-
Company Culture
4.5/5
-
Overall Experience
5/5
-
Future Career Prospects
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis.
I lead development of small scale websites (microsites) and delivered them to our clients and partners. I worked regularly with a team of client advocates, as a developer I would never directly communicate with the clients. I participated in daily scrums with the rest of my team and worked with our advocates when our clients sent in new content or updates.
Were you given much responsibility during your placement / internship?
Straight away I was involved with real client work, delivering real content to paying IBM customers. I was also handed responsibility for managing an email TaskID, sorting through emails and replying/forwarding messages when needed.
Please rate how meaningful the work you were doing was
5/5
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills, or developed your existing skills?
Before I started I had no professional experience in web development. I am now confident with HTML and CSS and my JavaScript has improved too. I've also learned skills outside of computing - my presentation skills and communication has drastically improved.
How would you rate the training provided during your experience?
5/5
How would you rate your development of industry-specific skills during the experience?
5/5
How would you rate your development of personal / soft skills during the experience?
5/5
Please rate how these skills have helped you in your career development
5/5
Support and Guidance
How much support and guidance did you receive during your placement / internship?
My task manager organised bi-weekly catchup/mentor sessions which were very reassuring and great for sorting any issues that I had. IBM has a very strong system for support and there are hundreds of experts available that will be more than happy to help.
How would you rate the support and guidance from your line manager?
5/5
How would you rate the support and guidance from the wider team?
5/5
Company Culture
What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?
The culture was generally really positive and warm. Many IBMers I have spoken to have complimented IBMs ethos of allowing people to switch roles if things aren't going quite right. I got the impression IBM likes to invest in it's people - IBM actively encourages participation in THINK events as well as hosting regular expert talks and thousands of hours of online learning available.
How would you rate the inclusiveness of the culture?
5/5
How would you rate the social opportunities?
4/5
How would you rate the diversity initiatives?
5/5
How would you rate the charity, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives?
5/5
Overall Experience
To what extent did you enjoy your placement / internship?
My internship was 100% at home which was a major detractor, but besides that I have really enjoyed my time at IBM. From my first day in July my team had fully migrated to a virtual working setup which worked really well. It felt as if we were in the office with how easy it was to collaborate virtually. I couldn't have asked for a friendlier and more supportive team.
Please rate your level of enjoyment on your placement / internship
4/5
Please rate how your experience met your expectations
5/5
Future Career Prospects
Please rate the future employment prospects at IBM
5/5
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend IBM to a friend?
Yes
What advice would you give to others applying to IBM
Spend some time researching IBM's developing technologies and what markets they are doing well in and where they are expanding. Make sure to stress your soft skills like communication, versatility and resilience as these will take you a long way.
