Automation Consultant Review

I work as an automation consultant for IBM's clients and have worked across a range of industries including public sector, automotive and energy & utilities. There are numerous tasks involved in my daily role. Initially I will find suitable processes for automation, document these processes and then develop them using their chosen automation tool e.g. Blue Prism or UiPath. I then go through some test phases before these processes are put into production and monitored by the control room team. I will also be on hand to fix any bugs that occur in live and will have to look through things like logs and queue items to find the issues.

When I first joined, I completed a two week bootcamp training course on Blue Prism (an automation tool used by many of IBM's clients) and attempted the Blue Prism Developer exam afterwards which gave me my accreditation. Three years later I completed the Professional Blue Prism Developer exam as well. I have also done many internal training courses such as Global Blue Consulting, Sales and specific courses for my apprenticeship. Additionally I have completed many internal learning exercises and badges e.g. Agile, Design Thinking, Cognitive Practitioner, Watson Conversation Fundamentals etc. I've also learned how to be a mentor and train junior developers in automation which lead to me getting my Developer Mentor badge. I have also been working on my presentation skills and will be applying for my Speaker badge soon.

I feel I have been very lucky with the team I have been placed in. I really enjoy the work that I do and have a great support network within this team. I was placed on a project very quickly when I first started and have been on projects ever since. The work is always challenging as no process is the same, however I am obviously more comfortable now then when I first started and so I'm looking to move into architecture and learn more here. The company culture is very inclusive and welcoming, there's usually social events running each month (pre-COVID) so there's a great opportunity to network and meet people outside of your team. All in all, I really enjoy my role, team and apprenticeship.

IBM has a great induction program and runs multiple training courses throughout your apprenticeship to get you ready for when you enter the business after your end point assessment. I have a business manager who supports with finding project work and ensuring your aligned to business strategies. Additionally I have an early professionals manager (EPM) who supports on the apprenticeship side of things. The structure of the degree is good as we also have a mentor from the uni who can support with queries and ensures you're staying on the right track. At the moment, I feel we're missing a couple of middle managers i.e. between us and the senior leadership team. But we are currently hiring for these positions so this should be sorted soon.

You have a dedicated early professionals manager who is always available to help with your needs whether its about the apprenticeship or helping you find a project through their contacts. I'm given 1 day a week to do my uni work which is usually enough and they help support you if you need to have conversations with your project team about taking time off to do uni work. I've been given a mentor within my practise and there's also opportunities to find other mentors outside of your team. Being in such a big company, there's obviously a large HR team who can help with any queries or concerns, I haven't needed this myself so far though.

Like I said previously, we have an EPM who supports the apprenticeship from the business side of things and works with our university mentor to make sure we're on top of our uni work. We have meetings every term so we can discuss any concerns or issues and just have a general chat about uni. We have uni work to do 1 day a week and they give us enough work to fill this day out, whether this be online learning, lectures, or completing our self taught module called reflective practise. Our lectures are also happy to jump on adhoc calls about coursework and will always reply to any questions we have.

My degree isn't that linked to my daily role as my job is quite specific in the automation industry. So for most of the modules I have completed so far, I havent really been able to put into practise as there's no opportunity for me to. However I'm currently doing a IT Consulting module which is linked to my role and so I'm looking forward to putting this into practise upon completion. Additionally, what it has helped with me is learning to manage my time better as there's a lot to keep on top of during term time with the compulsory learning and courseworks. Additionally, the mindset of programming which I learned during our python module has helped with my automation development.

We do have a vast variety of extra curricular activities to get involved with like sport clubs and other communities. Pre-COVID, we would have first Wednesday drinks every month which gave us an opportunity to network outside of our team and make new connections. They also run giveback opportunities such as hackathons, coding challenges and also the chance to go back to your old school/college and talk about your apprenticeship and how others can do the same. We also have social events within our practise to give people a chance who aren't on project together to catch up.

Yes

IBM is such a large company and so there are so many different role opportunities once you're an IBMer to explore. This ranges from technical stuff like development and architecture to data analysts and machine learning. Also there's business roles and finance roles, the list is endless. The social aspect is also another reason why I would recommend IBM. You join with a group of grads/apprentices and often stay friends and organise your own social events. The early professional community in IBM is really supportive and often you'll be in a team of other apprentices who know what you're going through.

Definitely get your application in early, I left it quite late and joined IBM in one of the later cohorts in the year. On the assessment centre day, be confident but not cocky and make sure you don't shout over others. It's a time for you to show what you can do but also how you can work in a team. For the interview, just be yourself and don't worry if you don't know all the answers to the questions about the role they're interviewing you for.