Alexander Lehm
Find out how a placement year helped Alexander develop both his technical and professional skills.
Tell us about your placement
I worked for ALDI UK/Ireland within the AHEAD global transformation project. My team focused on delivery and testing of Store Operations IT, with national and international Business and IT teams. My roles included Data Preparation Single Point of Contact, supporting test coordination and environment maintenance, Subject Matter Expert for a new support process, and UK project contact for an additional rollout project. The placement lasted 12 months and was based at the head office in Atherstone, UK.
Why were you interested in doing a work placement?
I knew that I wanted to experience the IT field outside of software engineering, and an industrial placement was the perfect way to gain experience before having to choose a career path. I originally applied for the Business Intelligence team. Before my final interview I was offered to interview for the Project team, which I joined. After speaking with the hiring director and manager, the combination of project management and IT delivery felt like a fantastic opportunity to gain the new experience I was searching for. I was lucky enough to be selected, and accepted the offer.
What support did the Careers Service give you with your placement?
I found out about the placement by searching through websites such as Gradcracker, and used the Careers Service daily vacancies alert, both of which were invaluable. I also attended a placement student panel hosted by the Careers Service which further inspired me to pursue a placement year. The application process was standard for IT roles, and included: an initial application, a one-way digital interview, a virtual assessment centre, and a final interview with my prospective director and manager.
What have you got out of your experience?
The placement year taught me professional skills at a level I had never experienced before. I changed from a person nervous to speak to office colleagues into delivering training sessions for an international team on a process I became an expert in. I gained responsibility for data in cross-department tests, as the single point of contact for Store Operations. These experiences were invaluable and shaped me professionally and personally. My practical technical skills of course improved greatly, but the confidence and soft skills I gained have prepared me better than I could have imagined for my next career steps.