Undergraduate Profiles 2015/16

Transcription

1 Undergraduate Profiles 2015/16

2 Katie Robinette Title: Undergraduate Programme Assistant Department: Human Resources University: University of Portsmouth Course: Human Resource Management with Psychology Overall job description My role in the HR department is to successfully manage the recruitment process of approximately 100 undergraduates. My role doesn t consist of day-to-day repetitive activities as throughout the year I have many different challenges and responsibilities. These range from promoting the scheme at universities around the UK, organising and running the assessment centres, to planning and implementing the arrival of the new undergraduates. Throughout the whole year, I am also the key contact for the current undergraduates in case they have any queries or problems throughout their year at Vauxhall. Skills gained so far Although having only been at Vauxhall for a few months I feel like I have gained many skills already. The main skill that I have improved is my communication; both verbal and written. In my job role I am constantly interacting with my team and talking/ ing many different employees on different levels. I have also developed my Excel skills significantly by attending Excel workshops at the beginning of my placement year. Above all, begin on placement at Vauxhall allows you to put theory into practise from university which is proving to be a great way of learning. Experiences so far I have had endless experiences at Vauxhall from the first day I started both in and out of work. During the two week handover, all undergraduates get the opportunity to stay in halls with lots of social events going on such as nights out, ice skating and department meals. This was a great opportunity for me as I could get to know everyone else very quickly. Equally, the handover from the previous undergraduate was highly valuable and much needed. As well as attending the Excel training, I have had the chance so far to have other training sessions which include safe driving training by the AA Drive Tech School and presentation training. As part of my role I have had already had some experience of interviewing and I will be completing an interview skills course too. Being able to sit on the other side of the table and actually ask questions to a candidate and then being an integral part of the decision making team is of real interest to me and I will be able to take this knowledge away with me after my placement. Benefits of completing your placement at Vauxhall Vauxhall is a very relaxed organisation where all employees are extremely friendly. All directors have an open door policy meaning, you can just walk into their office if you have a question, no appointment is necessary. This reduces the hierarchy dramatically making you feel at ease as an undergraduate. From personal experience, from day one at Vauxhall you are treated just like a permanent employee, given real responsibility and you do not feel like a novice at all. The

3 undergraduate programme is extremely well organised with around 100 undergraduates starting all at the same time in July. This makes the programme very social with events happening every week and comradery is created between us all very rapidly. Like on most placements, Vauxhall is allowing me to put the theory I have learnt at university into practise, however, Vauxhall being a large company has endless opportunities to grow and develop with many different training courses and opportunities to shadow and learn from professional people in the organisation, which I intend to take full advantage of while I am here. Friendly Challenging Exciting

4 Claudia Kampmann Title: Product Marketing Assistant Department: Marketing University: Brunel University Course: Business and Management Overall job description I work in Marketing as a Product Marketing Assistant which is part of the Product and Carline Team. I report directly to the team and managers, who control all of the Vauxhall carline models, including sales, launches, distribution and product placement. Responsibilities / current projects I have a wide range of responsibilities and projects that combine a variety of marketing areas and skills. Here are a few listed below: Completing Analytical Competitor Reports On a monthly basis I complete a number of reports that the brand managers require to analyse quarterly and yearly which makes future carline decisions. One of the reports I work on is Reevoo, which is a customer review report that gets sent to recent customers who have bought a brand new Vauxhall. They rate the car in based on several categories and give their personal opinion and review. I also work on several reports that combine the monthly and year-to-date sales of all carlines including competitor sales and analysis. The largest report is known as the Trim Mix and is distributed to a variety of managers throughout 5 departments. The reports are my main responsibility and seem very intimating at the beginning, but it is a learning-by-doing process and everyone in the team is helpful and welcoming to assist me if ever in trouble. Assist all Brand Managers One of my other job responsibilities is being a helping hand to all Brand Managers in the team. Whenever information and data is required, they can request me to make a Word, Excel or PowerPoint document with their requests to assist them on their job and decisions. These don t tend to come on a day-to-day basis so when they do, they are fun to work on and give an insight to manager s duties as well as giving me a chance to test and develop my skills. For example, after several weeks my manager asked me make a presentation displaying all main Vauxhall retailers for Viva, ADAM and Corsa compared to their main competitors; including list prices, and this was used in a meeting with GE Europe it definitely felt important and interesting to be part of! New Astra Launch Committee Lastly, the newest responsibility to my role is assisting the Astra Brand Manager in launching the new Model year 16 Astra which is called the Launch Committee, consisting of many different departments. Part of this is dealing with the company marketing vehicles that can be booked by employees and other teams for testing, photo shoots, displays or any other events. I make sure the spreadsheets are up to date and the requests are booked through thoroughly and correctly. Being part of the committee, I attend all Launch Committee meetings in which I

5 am required to write the minutes discussing topics and decisions made and send them out to all attendees after completion. It gives me a great insight into the launch of a new car and even the chance the see products and brochures prior to many others. Skills gained so far Through my placement at Vauxhall, I have developed a very strong set of Excel skills as well as database knowledge. I believe my organisation skills very already strong prior to my placement but working on numerous monthly reports, simultaneously for a variety of people, has taught me to prioritise better. Additionally, there has been a development in my research skills as many jobs that are given to you from colleagues depend on your knowledge, skills and imagination to complete them on time and uniquely. It teaches you to work with what you re given and find the best possible solution to the tasks on your own and with all resources available to you at the time. Above all, communication, interaction and team work skills are the most important and in Vauxhall s work environment these are easily learnt and developed. It s put all theory from school and university into actual practice and it s a great way of learning. Experiences so far I have been given the opportunity of many exciting experiences, in and outside work, since having started as an undergraduate at Vauxhall. During handover period we met all the undergraduates from the year before ours and this included a lot of social events such as department meals and nights out. I was also given the chance to go on an agency visit to London and accompany two carline managers to the VXR Days at the Croft Circuit in Darlington, which has definitely been the highlight of my time at Vauxhall so far. We were also given several director talks and presentations during handover to introduce us to all departments in the company. All of the undergraduates were also given presentation skills and database trainings, tours of the Vauxhall Plant in Luton and the Warehouse in Toddington. Benefits of completing your placement at Vauxhall Vauxhall very much incorporates and welcomes their undergraduates into their day-to-day business and encourages every single one to take part in all aspects and duties of the company. All teams are engaging, open and helpful throughout your stay and really give you chances to advance in your professional career and studies and learn as much as possible during your stay at Vauxhall. The automotive industry is such a rapidly changing environment and it makes every day a new challenge and fun and dynamic work place. It has definitely helped me develop my interests in product marketing further and know what I want to pursue in the future. Dynamic Exciting Opportunities

6 Alice Stevens Title: European Supply Chain Analyst GME Aftersales Department: Materials Management University: Portsmouth University & University of Applied Sciences, Muenster Course: European Business The Aftersales Materials Management department is spread out across Europe and it is responsible for the forecasting, planning and scheduling of after-sales parts into different European warehouses such as the UK, Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands. I work in the Toddington Road Warehouse alongside 2 other undergraduates and our manager. Our role is to provide forecasts and reports to the rest of the department and senior managers to help them with their day to day tasks, as well as long term strategies. Responsibilities and Projects: A typical day for me would be arriving at the office and making sure that all of the overnight processes have worked. On a good day, everything has run and I am able to get on with any other daily, weekly or monthly tasks scheduled for that day. However, occasionally a process can fail and it is my job to figure out the problem and fix it as quickly as possible. Once all of the overnight tasks and other routines are finished, I am free to get on with any projects that I am working on. Projects are assigned to us as and when they come about. I can be assigned a project by my manager, or I can take on my own project that I believe would benefit the department and speed up any processes that we run. Our aim is to make sure that we are providing the department with the most accurate figures and data possible, and to provide it when it is needed. As undergraduates, we take on a lot of responsibility in the department and are constantly contributing to the smooth running of it. So far, I have been involved in one large project called First Pick Availability (FPA). This is a measure to see how well the warehouses are performing, and whether we meet our targets. FPA is currently measured by each individual warehouse across Europe. The project I am working on is to standardise this process, so that my team measures the statistics and reports it. It will be a consistent and central way of measuring the First Pick Availability. It will also provide us a detailed insight into what our customers are ordering and whether we are fulfilling them. Skills gained so far: As an undergraduate at Vauxhall, I have been given training opportunities that I otherwise would not have had. As standard, all undergraduates are given presentation skills training and excel training. These have benefitted me by refreshing skills I had once learnt but haven t used recently. I have also been fortunate to have the chance to receive outside training in Visual Basic for excel. I have also learnt a lot of skills, both technical and non-technical on the job. Having never heard of a batch file before my placement, I know work and write them on a daily basis. I have also

7 improved my organisational skills by having to keep track of all the work I have completed and the work that I have yet to do. Benefits of working at Vauxhall: There is a large undergraduate community at Vauxhall, with around 80 undergraduates starting at the same time each year. A two week handover period with the outgoing undergraduates means that you can settle into the job and learn from people in a similar position to you. The Vauxhall community as a whole is very inviting and friendly, making it easy to settle into the job, even after the outgoing undergraduates have left. A placement with Vauxhall is also a real hands on job role, you will never just be tasked with making tea. The job that you do will make an impact on you department and the company as a whole. Overall, my experience at Vauxhall so far has been great and filled with lots of opportunities. I am looking forward to seeing what the rest of my placement year will bring. Interesting Informative Independent.

8 Beth Katuszka Title: Product Affairs Assistant Department: Communications University: Canterbury Christchurch University Course: BA, Public Relations, Media and Marketing The communication department is busy, diverse and exciting to be a part of. Divided into three sections; product, internal and consumer, my role is within the product team. The teams aim is to ensure the product; cars, commercial vans, technology are being featured/being noticed within media. Being part of the communication team is enabling me to learn and gain experiences from a fantastic team that have a vast array of knowledge within the communication, media, and PR industry. My role includes: - Maintaining the Media website - Photography - Liaising with journalist - Supporting Press Launches activities - Supporting Press Fleet Skills gained so far Being part of the communication department provides an extremely diverse range of tasks. One minute I might be editing the media website, the next organising a photo shoot. Every day is different and requires flexibility at all times. This role requires a huge focus on time management skills as there are always deadlines when completing tasks. The most valued experience I have gained so far is working on a photography shoot for the new Astra which is launching in September. The experience of participating on shoots are interesting as you re involved in the organisation/co-ordination of it all and working with the photographer to ensure the images are suitable. It is surreal seeing images you ve been a part of creating being featured within the media. Experiences so far Vauxhall s undergraduate program has been extremely well equipped to help an undergraduate have a smooth transition from university student to Vauxhall/GM employee. The initial two weeks are called handover period, this enables you to gain a thorough insight into the role you ll be taking over from. It is during this time that you ll meet the team and adjust into your role.

9 Benefits of completing your placement at Vauxhall The biggest benefit of completing my placement with Vauxhall is the invaluable experience I will be gaining throughout the year. There is only a certain amount that you can learn at University until you must gain first-hand experience to put what you ve learnt into practise. I ve also learnt that my apprehension was not needed due to the support provided by Vauxhall. If you decide to complete your placement with Vauxhall, you ll be a valued member of the team. I would highly recommend applying, as you learn so much it such a small amount of time. A great opportunity

10 Callum Malpass Title: Fleet Sales Analyst Department: Fleet University: Bournemouth University Course: Business Studies with Project and Operations Management Overall job description Fleet Sales is responsible for selling over 160,000 vehicles per year into Corporate, Rental and Motability markets. The role of Fleet Sales Analyst involves focusing on the most profitable part of the Fleet department, the True Fleet sector. The role has a large focus on creating and completing reports on various aspects: from Market Competitor analysis to focusing on Sales Targets, to name but a few. Responsibilities / current projects My main responsibilities are to create a wide range of ad-hoc analysis across all Fleet departments, to create reports to help support future business decisions as well as to manage the fleet database (Salesforce). Due to this, it is a highly varied role and one that demands excellent time management. I also have to review any current reports and systems currently in use, to evaluate how useful they are and how much value the reports add to influence key decisions. I have to report to various managers, as well as working with external reports, such as a government report for example. I use many different databases, and have access to vast arrays of information on the Fleet market, to enable me to produce a whole host of reports. Skills gained so far Coming into this placement I had limited experience with using Excel. Within the short time that I have been at Vauxhall, my knowledge and understanding of how to use Excel has grown significantly, due to its sheer volume of usage. Away from Excel, my communicational skills have improved due to the amount of phone conversations and the amount of work that is reliant on another colleague. I have become far more confident in regards to voicing my observations and the team has encouraged this from day one. Time keeping is another skill I have also improved on and I have learnt how vital it is. Some days will be quieter than others, but some periods, a lot of work can build up so being organised is a skill I have already improved vastly. Experiences so far Firstly, I have learnt how important taking notes is, Due to the variance of the tasks required, remembering what to do for who can be a struggle. That s why using a note pad is imperative. I have also learnt that coming into an office environment is not daunting at all, even though it may have seemed so before the first day. Also, I have learnt that the best way to do your job is to ask questions and the more you understand, the easier the job is to do.

11 Benefits of completing your placement at Vauxhall The business operates in a fast paced market and the work that I do as the Fleet Sales Analyst will impact on strategies and decisions that the National Fleet Sales Manager makes. This shows the level of responsibility given to me from day one. Although this was rather daunting at first, it helped me to understand how important my role is to the fleet department. Also, one aspect of the placement is that the experiences of the real world business environment will stand me in great stead in both my final studies, and also help give me valuable experiences to carry forward in my future career. There is an excellent number of undergraduates hired each year, around 90 of us, which is also a huge plus as there is always something going on when you finish work. The community of undergrads is very strong and helped enormously to settle in as quickly as possible. Engaging Welcoming Inclusive

12 Ed Morgan Title: Sales Forecasting & Business Planning Specialist Department: Sales & Marketing University: University of Kent Course: Business & Management Within the Sales Forecasting business function I am part of a small team made up of 3 colleagues and my manager. Within the team I am tasked with compiling a number of reports for a variety of people within the organisation on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. These reports in turn help to drive production requirements and financial planning. Within my role I have real responsibility in the tasks I am assigned and without the completion of these tasks others would not be able to complete their own jobs. I am responsible for putting together a number of reports analysing the performance of Vauxhall s different carlines through a variety of different sales channels, and also the markets within which Vauxhall operates. One particular report done on a Thursday is put together into a presentation which is then presented to the Managing Director on Friday Morning, so it is important that the job is done correctly. I also have other responsibilities such as compiling forecasts for variables such as engines, door plans, and trim mixes. The engine forecast I am currently working on will get sent to GM headquarters in Europe, once again highlighting the responsibility of the role. One big part of the role involves ad-hoc requests from different people in the organisation and providing support and analysis regarding any queries they may have, this in turn has allowed me to meet a number of people in different departments within the organisation and be exposed to numerous parts of the business. So far on placement I have continued to develop a variety of skills, this is both through both formal training and through informal learning on the job. For example, within the first two months at Vauxhall, training has been provided for presentation skills, Excel skills, and even safe driving training. However the amount that is learnt on the job is also huge, and this is in terms of transferable skills and also about the organisation and the car market as a whole. Specifically, I have gained skills in IT, problem-solving, numerical and analytical and communication. My experience at Vauxhall so far has been great, both professionally and socially, with such a large group of undergraduates there is a great social side to the placement that may not be available in other companies. Professionally this year will be invaluable, and cannot really compare to anything that University has to offer in terms of gaining skills and personal development, and will without doubt help me in my final year of University and in my future career. Welcoming Interesting Challenging.

13 Juan Agudelo Montoya Title: Assistant Buyer Vauxhall/Opel Aftersales Department: Global Purchasing and Supply Chain University: Middlesex University London Course: International Business Overall job description I take part in sourcing aftersales parts, negotiating with suppliers, presenting findings by face-toface presentations and telephone conferences. It is my job to continuously find cost saving opportunities for GM all over the world. It is also my responsibility to generate profit by taking charge of the scrapping of old parts, and the tools used to make parts which are no longer in demand. In order to carry out my daily tasks, I work within a team here at the Luton HQ. I am in constant communication with GM colleagues from all over Europe and at times, colleagues who are even further away. I am frequently dealing with many other departments within GM like Engineering, Finance and Materials Management. Responsibilities / current projects As mentioned above, I am in charge of sourcing aftersales parts for body exterior. This includes many parts like windshields, bumpers and bulbs. To do this, I issue enquiries for quotations from our wide range of suppliers from all over Europe. At the moment, I have just started a new project for all bulbs with a supplier in Poland. I will be in charge of going there, evaluating their processes, facilities and standards in order to negotiate the sourcing of bulbs to our warehouses within Europe. I am also in charge of toolscraps. At the moment I am working on a scrap which contains parts used in three old models. It is my job to get all the data for these tools used to create the parts and authorise the supplier to scrap them. I will then forward the revenue to us. Skills gained so far So far I have gained strong communication skills through dealing with weekly meetings with the teams here at HQ and across Europe via telephone conferences. I have also gained and expanded my knowledge on accessing and using various computer software like the GM exclusive GPS system and more common systems like Excel. Experiences so far Working within a very welcoming team of existing employees Meeting many new people, other undergraduates and existing employees

14 Benefits of completing your placement at Vauxhall Vauxhall is a massive company which operates in Europe as Opel and across the world, I will have gained work experience by taking on a real job in a business environment, this will be of huge benefit once I graduate and apply for graduate jobs as it will make me a more outstanding candidate than the ones who do not have this experience. There are also many employee benefits! Enjoyable Challenging Engaging

15 Matt Baker Title: Retailer Measurement Specialist Department: Retail Network Development University: Nottingham Trent University Course: Business Management & Economics The Retail Network Development (RND) department is responsible for managing and developing Vauxhall s franchised dealer network. RND s goal is to have Retailers operating in the right area, with the right business model and being managed by the right people, As a Retailer Measurement Specialist, I am primarily responsible for undertaking key operational analysis of Retailer performance which is then used by management for strategic decision making. My role in particular focusses on the mystery shop performance and standard elements of the retail network. I am also solely responsible for the coordination of the Mystery shop programme. Because of the nature of the department, the role requires a high level of communication with other areas of the organisation and external parties which is great for getting used to the business environment. My key responsibilities include: To assist in the maintenance of the RND data warehouse. This in-turn is used to produce key performance analysis for Vauxhall. To coordinate the management of the Vauxhall mystery shop programme. To produce a number of reports monitoring Retailer performance for both RND and other departments. However the majority of my responsibilities/ projects are so varied that it would be impossible to list them. The variety of the tasks makes the job fast-passed and exciting! Working at Vauxhall has enabled me to improve my networking skills through taking part in a number of projects with various departments. In addition to this I have also improved my IT skills, organisational skills and my ability to analyse data and communicate it to others through various mediums. Having real responsibilities and doing real work here at Vauxhall gives you experience that University just can t offer you. I ve learnt so much about the way in which large corporate organisations operate in such a short period of time. The support and help from the people around you is second to none and as it is an established programme, they are all used to new undergraduates. I anticipate that the final year of my degree will be supported heavily by this placement as I will be able to use practical experiences to complete my dissertation and other pieces of academic coursework. Exciting Interesting Valuable

16 Sophie Holds Title: Information Security and Risk Analyst Department: IT University: Birmingham City University Course: Forensic Computing My role falls under the Information Security team within the IT Team based at Griffin House, I work alongside other members of the team throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. My role focuses on ensuring that GM Information remains secure and confidential and that access is restricted on a need-to-know basis. Role Responsibilities: - Risk Tracking: Identification of security risks that are associated with external applications which are used in the IT environment. Throughout IT many external applications are used to assist with their processes, and part of my role is to identify any issues or risks that arise from them, and track them through until the external owners have put an action plan in place to address and fix these issues so that they comply with our Security Standards. - Identity and Access Management: This element of my role is exactly as it sounds: it concerns ensuring a person is who they say they are and based on this what level of access they are allowed to GM Information. Identification of a user is a crucial part of keeping information secure and restricted, and is therefore a vital part of the role of the Information Security Team. This applies across all GM Sites Offices, Warehouses and Manufacturing/Plants. - Cyber Forensics Investigations: Whilst this only a small part of my role here, it is an interesting one. I work alongside a member of the Cyber Forensics team who is based in the UK in assisting on investigations and shadowing his work to pick up useful tools and tips to do with both the acquisition of digital forensic evidence and the subsequent analysis and investigation of this evidence. Skills gained so far: IT & Technical Skills: I ve developed many IT skills so far including SharePoint, Outlook, Excel, Windows Command Prompt, Computer Management & Task Scheduler and HTML Coding. I m sure I ll further these skills and pick up even more throughout my placement year Communication Skills: Communicating with people from many different countries and technical backgrounds has helped me to develop my communication skills and has taught me to adapt conversations to different levels. For example, if I m contacting someone outside of IT who may not have the technical knowledge required to answer my questions I have learnt how best to word s to make things easier to understand. Data Presentation Skills: A lot of Information Security Policy is stored in big, long documents that are full of text. Reading over these and creating more attractive and easier to read InfoGraphics has

17 helped develop not only my data presentation skills, but also being able to skim read a lot of information and pull out what is necessary for a basic understanding Organisational Skills: Having to balance a workload between weekly tasks and things that crop up on a daily basis has meant I ve become much more organised. Having an up-to-date calendar not only means I can track my tasks easily, but also makes scheduling meetings with colleagues much easier to do. Experience so far & Benefits of Vauxhall The experience of working at Vauxhall so far has been amazing. This is a real, hands-on job where you have genuine responsibilities and really have an impact on the team you work within. The handover period is a great way to get stuck into your job role with the undergraduate you are taking over from, and sets everything up well for your time here. Everyone around you is friendly and more than willing to help you re part of a network here where you re just as valuable as the full-time staff. There are so many undergraduates that you feel supported and it s reassuring knowing that everyone is in the same boat. I am certain that this year will prove to be of immeasurable value to me both as a university student and once I become a graduate. Fantastic Unmissable Opportunity!

18 Tariq Willis Title: Product Evaluation Engineer Department: Product Evaluation University: University of Hertfordshire Course: Automotive Engineering MEng(hons) Overall job description The Product Evaluation team, who are responsible for Vauxhall UK, Opel Ireland and Chevrolet UK, are part of the umbrella department of Customer Care and Customer Experience, As a Product Evaluation Engineer a broad skillset is needed. My daily tasks range from investigating vehicle issues that occur after manufacture; which involves working closely with the Warranty department and Opel Engineers in Germany, to overseeing vehicle campaigns that range from minor actions to product safety recalls for Vauxhall retailers. Responsibilities / current projects As an undergraduate at Vauxhall you are given a lot of responsibility which is very rewarding. One of my main responsibilities revolves around investigating AA patrol data. This enables us to investigate previously unknown issues. The project and the associated data is something that I am free to develop, improve and refine as I see fit. At present the majority of my time is spent investigating vehicle problems that come from JT4 field reports. This then involves calling the retailers who carried out the work, requesting parts back (which frequently ends up with my desk being covered in parts) and then investigating the problem creating a Field Problem Report in the process to document all of the failures. The work carried out is challenging, but very rewarding. Skills gained so far While at Vauxhall there are also opportunities to go on training courses such as Presentation Skills training, Microsoft Excel training and of course the more technical courses on specific models like the new Astra K, which are run by GM Academy. Communication skills and team work are key to doing this job, no problem can be solved effectively without the use of them, as engineers in the UK and abroad will have interest in problems that occur and it s my job to explain this to them. Subsequently, I ve able to develop my interpersonal skills and professionalism whilst increasing my commercial awareness within a global business environment. Experiences so far Being an engineer at Griffin House also means you have access to the Technical Centre and their workshop s. It s always interesting to see all the vehicles during repair and impressive to see how quickly problems are resolved. I also the occasional glimpse of some American imports such as the Chevrolet Corvette and Camaro as well as The Reasonably Priced Car,

19 Benefits of completing your placement at Vauxhall Vauxhall brand is a great company to work for its well-known across the UK and being part of General Motors Group makes a true multinational organisation with staff located across the world. Vauxhall employs a lot of undergraduates and as bonus there is a great social scene with weekly football games nights out and a comprehensive handover schedule. One of the highlights of working for Vauxhall is the experience as a whole being pushed out of my comfort zone frequently to attend meetings, write reports, create and present presentations. This has definitely improved my confidence as a whole, these skills will be useful for university and of course for the rest of my career. Enjoyable Industrious Enlightening

20 Ross Millar Title: Facilities and Technical Support Engineer Department: Aftersales Warehouse University: Coventry University Course: BEng Motorsport Engineering As part of the Maintenance Department, I am responsible for the upkeep and continuous improvement of our Aftersales Warehouse. We are tasked with maintaining all the equipment used within the warehouse, ranging from nuts and bolts to industrial fire doors and fork trucks, as well as the actual warehouse buildings themselves. A majority of my time is spent planning, allocating, tracking and evaluating our various ongoing Warehousing projects whilst also assisting with the environmental and business procedures set by our accredited ISO standards. We have a lot currently going on in the Warehouse, mainly modernising current systems. An example of a project I m currently working on is replacing the signage system on one of the dispatch docks. The current MDF signs are to be replaced by a digital displays allowing more flexible designation of roll cage lanes during busy periods. I have been involved at every stage of the project, including purchasing appropriate monitors, creating digital signs, designing/manufacturing mounting brackets, mounting them to the warehouse stanchions (18 metres up!) and training employees on their correct use. Another example is a plan to have solar panels on the warehouse roof to generate electricity. As you can imagine, a 1.2 million sq. ft. Warehouse uses a large amounts of electricity but, in-line with our continuous improvement ethos, the maintenance department has managed to cut the cost of electricity by almost 50% since 2009 and the large roof areas available to us provide a fantastic opportunity for solar energy. I ve assisted in the survey of the building and have been involved in updating then sending the various CAD Files of the building to prospective suppliers/contractors. So far the project looks incredibly promising and I m excited to see it develop in the coming months. Even though my interests are in motorsports, I applied for this role because the variety of work my department undertakes. If you imagine all the different key aspects to a building i.e. lighting, heating, offices, plumbing, structural aspects etc., the maintenance department is responsible for keeping it in working order. Therefore my role has already given me experience in various aspects of engineering and also provides the opportunity to delve deeper in the aspects I enjoy or am interested in. On a personal skills level, liaising with the team, other employees, contractors and potential suppliers has vastly improved my communication skills. Alongside this, my work has also improved my problem solving skills and has proved a fantastic real-life platform to apply skills learnt at University. There are many benefits to completing a placement with Vauxhall. We are a key part of GM Europe so have access to the most up-to-date technology and have a world class workforce who are more than willing to help if you have any issues. The Maintenance Department are a great bunch that I actually look forward to working with every day, some days can be challenging but as a team we always get the job done which is very rewarding. Even as an undergraduate here you are treated as a professional and given real-life projects that could play a large role in the success

21 of the business. Vauxhall is also incredibly welcoming to new employees with many choosing to stay here for 20/30+ years of their career. All of my expectations for my placement here have already been blown away so I can t wait to see what else this year will hold. Exciting Busy Community

22 Louis Mosley Title: Vauxhall/Opel Commercial Vehicles Finance Analyst Department: Vehicle Line Finance University: University of Portsmouth Course: Economics In my role at Vauxhall I work closely with the Vehicle Line Finance Manager for the Vivaro Van, supporting him in his operational, decision-making and reporting activities. The Vehicle Line team are responsible for all of GM Europe, not just Vauxhall and therefore I interact with a variety of people across Europe for most of my day to day work. The two main meetings I attend are called Comodif and Finance Committee. In Comodif, investment decisions are made. The main impacts that need to be approved are the initial investment and any incremental change to the cost of the vehicle, whether this is adding costs or making a saving due to the investment. During the meeting I need to make notes on any proposed cost changes and investments. Once the meeting is over I need to ensure the documentation is signed and sent to the correct people. During Finance Committee we discuss any financial matters between GM and Renault relating to the Vivaro programme and what needs to be done/who needs to be followed up in order to resolve any issues. I have recently started on a new project to use VPVIN (GM Software) to report on the variable profit of different specifications of the Vivaro. I need to extract data from VPVIN and use Excel to create a report which will be issued on a monthly basis to senior management. My other tasks include option costing and invoice checking. People from within Opel/Vauxhall may need to know the cost of an option in order to be able to price it. I work with CPURAM (GM Software) to figure out what parts need to be added and removed from the base vehicle, to then calculate the material cost of the option. I check invoices for a range of things associated with the Vivaro programme, most importantly, the price of the vehicles being built by Renault for Opel/Vauxhall. I help maintain an excel file which calculates how much each van should cost, with all the chosen options added to it. Renault calculate the cost they think it should be too and if the costs are within a certain margin of each other, the invoice is approved. Once a week I update an engineering invoice file by conducting a SAP download which is then used to provide forecasts for the following months, When I started at Vauxhall, it was easy to settle in as the first two weeks were spent living in halls with the other new undergraduates. Combined with this there was also a packed social schedule. This made the whole process of starting a new job a lot less daunting and was a great way to start to grow a network with the other undergraduates. I have found that everyone in the office is happy to help with any queries, no matter how small or stupid I think I may sound. Asking the questions has helped me to understand my job role and become a more valued member of the team. In finance, I had a 5 week handover period, meaning the first 5 weeks of the undergraduate s placement involves being trained by the person who has

23 being doing the job the previous year. This makes learning the job a lot easier as they have a good understanding of where potential problems may lie. So far on my placement I have gained invaluable skills and experience through doing real work with real responsibility. My communication, computer and presentation skills have all developed through real work situations. I hope to use my experiences when applying for graduate jobs and would certainly recommend a placement year with Vauxhall! Challenging Rewarding Exciting