PMO Administrator Review

My role as a PMO Administrator has many responsibilities. My daily tasks include filing documents, minuting meetings, tracking the project timeline and tracking the financial budgets and projections of the project. Throughout the day and week I have many meetings from various teams within the project that require to be minuted.

Through my first role I have further enhanced my communication skills through being involved in meetings and discussions. I have also enhanced my IT skills through the use of excel and other programmes that are vital to the project. I have developed new skills in that of minuting meetings as I have never experienced this previously which also developed my communication skills. Finally, my organisational skills have enhanced which is vital not only for my project but also my degree.

I thoroughly enjoy the programme and the variety of modules we study as it opens up my knowledge of various industries and skills. I enjoy the group work especially as it enables us to develop in groups rather than individually which provides more enjoyment and an ease of doing so. If I had one criticism of the programme it would be the lack of Business related modules. While I understand I am working for an IT company I am on the business degree and it is very IT based with very little business modules where as the IT degree is completely IT related. It would be good to have a better understanding of business modules and gain further experience to increase career growth prospects within our organisation in the future.

I feel extremely valued within the company as from day one there is a huge emphasis on responsibility on us and we are given high level tasks from the beginning of our role. I frequently get good feedback from my manager which highlights my importance and progression within the company and also I receive constructive feedback which also tells me I'm valued as it shows CGI are keen for me to progress and develop.

The overall structure of the programme is very good with the balance of university and working within the company. Also there is much support through work based mentors and people mentors who are there to support us. To develop skills there are also many training courses we can undertake to develop our skills. However the university course I believe is not well organised as there is much confusion at times with modules etc and it is not until the last minute we get told changes in the programme which provides stress to all students.

I receive a fairly good amount of support from the university however on certain modules questions can be left unanswered or very vague and we are frequently told to look at certain documents that do not contain our answers so we are left still confused. The majority of module leaders are very good at supporting us through email and also taking time out of their day to speak to us with any issues or questions we may have.

I receive a vast amount of support from CGI from the various mentors and managers I have that I have contact with on a regular basis and they provide advice and suggest ways of resolving issues I have or suggest training courses or tasks to undertake to further my development.

While I believed the starting salary was a good salary for the programme it has turned out challenging due to the constant outgoing costs of travel to the workplace and client sites as well as travel to university which costs a large amount each week. Also due to regularly not receiving an expense repayment it means I am paying out more per week in travel costs than I earn so it can be extremely challenging to balance my money on top of already outgoing bills.

There are various opportunities to undertake social activities such as sports, dinners and entertainment, also there are various opportunities to undertake voluntary work within the community.

Yes

Because it is a good opportunity to gain both a degree and on the job experience. It is a friendly company that provides much support and opportunity for growth.

Ensure you are confident and a people person with good communicational skills as it is a job that is heavily involved with client communication. Ensure you are well disciplined and organised due to the structure of the programme with working full time alongside studying for a degree. Also demonstrate your creative capabilities on the assessment days as this is crucial and seen as hugely beneficial to the company.