Finance Trainee Review

My role currently focuses primarily on cash management and forecasting, foreign currency deals, accounting month end and project work in one of our manufacturing plants. Generally, my day will be a mixture of project work, meetings and accounting work to help support the factory. I enjoy my work as i get a lot of different jobs and it can vary which i really like and prefer as it keeps me on my toes and intrigued as to what work i will be getting next.

In terms of the Academy as a whole, you'll begin to learn skills from the first day of your first placement. These business skills will be built upon throughout your time on the Academy and each individual placement will help to you to learn skills ranging from dealing with customers, specific financial transactions, product knowledge to specific site cultures. Alongside all this, you'll obviously have your studies in CIMA to further enhance any financial and accounting skills learned within the office.

I thoroughly enjoy the programme. University wasn't something that appealed to me and the Academy gave me the opportunity to get into employment through a different route, whilst still building on academic qualifications. I feel as though the apprenticeship here is of a high standard and i feel like a valued member of the team however i wouldn't say it was really excellent. There are places Siemens should look to improve on but generally i enjoy my programme, meeting new people, doing varied work and feeling like part of the company already.

If you're prepared to work hard, recognition will always come. You'll be given more advanced topics to work on, be able to get involved with a variety of different activities and even from day one, you're not being given remedial tasks to complete; it's target driven tasks that actually contribute to the business. I think that i am looked after very well and taken care of. My needs are always met within the company and if i need help i know there are many people i can ask and will be happy to lend a hand.

The programme is very structured with support offered throughout your time spent on the Academy, whether the support required is business related or personal. The Academy and Siemens as a whole don't just throw you in at the deep end, support is always there when needed. I enjoy my programme a lot and i would definitely rate it well as to how organised and structured it is as a whole, i think it's developed well over the last 5-10 years too with feedback from past apprentices.

My training provider whilst being an apprentice at Siemens is BPP. BPP are a brilliant training provider and learning system. The tutors are always eager to help when you have an issue and BPP as a whole, are always interested to see where they can improve their service. The notes, revision kits and online kits all are really useful and will help pass your exams. I know i can email my tutors if i need help and they generally get back to you with information within a day or two.

As stated, both placement related and personal support is offered throughout your time on the Academy, but you are enetering the workplace and won't have you hand held at any point. You have to make decisions and try to begin building a career for yourself. Nobody can do that but the employee. If i am stuck with a particular job then i know i can ask my immediate co-workers and they usually can correct me and help me on the right path.

The salary and supporting package is a very competitive one that will meet all needs. Apprenticeships aren't the best for a good salary as a whole however when applying and looking at the system for apprenticeships you find this out pretty quickly. Personally i am happy with any money i get as i know that if i was doing the same training/education course on my own i would be out of pocket by quite a lot. I value my apprenticeship a lot because of this.

There are a variety of different opportunities outside of the workplace. By the end of a placement, you're working with friends as well as colleagues so events and activities will always come up. Just make the most of them! I enjoy meeting up with my colleagues for evening out having a few drinks and getting to know everyone a bit better. The company itself doesn't give us many opportunities to do work elsewhere however they do inform us of local events and opportunities.

Yes

I think Siemens is a really great place to work, i would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in their field of work and is unsure how to progress in their career or start their career. I have definitely chosen the right path for myself as i was not too keen on university and i think opportunities for apprenticeships as good as siemens are more common then people think. I think that schools and colleges should promote them a lot more as i was unaware of them until my parents mentioned it to me and i did the research.

Ensure that you're interested in working in the Engineering and Manufacturing sector along with interest in finance and commercial aspects of business otherwise the scheme wouldn't really be applicable. Also, try to find something that stands you out from every other applicant, whether that be through volunteer work to work experience. Being able to talk about that thing that makes you different from everyone else really does count.