Junior Management Consultant Review

My role as a Junior Management Consultant involves myself being put into both internal, and client facing roles within the business. These roles allow us to meet our set apprenticeship requirements, including skills such as communication, team work, IT capabilities and Management consultancy. Along with being in these roles, there is a set individual learning plan which we are required to complete. I aim to do 8 hours of this a week. Depending on the role, depends of the daily activities. Most days start with a standup with your team, to identify blockers and impediments in the team, and get a general understanding of who's doing what. From previous projects I have worked on, I have had responsibilities of owning commercials sheets, hosting stand-ups, promoting the operating model I worked on, owning the Trello b board, and general day-to-day business hygiene for the project.

Since starting I have developed in every way possible. General IT skills have majorly been developed, especially since working virtually. This has meant that I have become a lot more independent, as you don't have peers and coaches next to you to ask for assistance. Consequently, I have become a lot more confident too, messaging colleagues for help when I need it. In order to stand-out, confidence is really important as well, especially as everything is now online. My people management skills have improved, including the way I conduct myself in teams and respond to others. This is due to lots of training courses with advice and tips on how to achieve this.

I throughly enjoy it. It is hard work, with lots of responsibility, however you're treated as an equal, no matter what level you are at. There is endless support when you need it, and everyone is willing to help. It certainly throws you in the deep end, however this is good as it meant I could start to learn and develop quickly and not get into my comfort zone.

My programme is very organised. I have something called an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) which sets out all the tasks and courses which we are required to complete by quarter. We have monthly sessions to talk through different sections of Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours which we must demonstrate in our portfolio. There is a progress bar, to help see where you're at and a hour tracker to see how many 'Off the job hours' you have completed (apprenticeship learning).

IBM has been incredible, with endless support, especially during the pandemic. There are so many support groups, you name it, there is one! They are so inclusive and welcoming to everyone and makes it feel like an incredibly safe place to work. You are an equal. I know that if I had any concerns or queries, that there is a plethora of help I could get.

We have endless amount of courses available to everyone, covering every aspect of the business world which we would need to know to pass. We have criteria documents, which break down the requirements for every Knowledge, Skill and Behaviour that we need to complete the apprenticeship. These are broken down into both a 'pass' and 'distinction'.

Our individual learner plan has been specifically created with certain courses to benefit us in our everyday roles, from how to conduct yourself with clients, to how to write a business email. By completing these courses I know that my skills have b been developed, and I apply them in every way possible. I am more conscious of my mannerisms, how I talk, and general presentation of myself and my work. there are also more specific courses relevant to IBM, including methodologies, operating models and badges that we can complete to understand our company better.

Everyday there is many new social activities which we get 'learning points' for. Personally, I have taken part in an online escape room, for national apprenticeship week, a virtual Easter egg hunt and will be hopefully competing in the corporate games in September, representing IBM. We have BRG's, which are business resource groups, such as BAME, foundation female and connecting woman (many more too) These all host their own social activities, from having a general chat, ask me anything sessions to 'what are we working on currently'. On our messaging app, Slack, we have people who host lunch sessions to get to know other apprentices, and post fun riddle challenges and topics of the day for us to comment on!

Yes

The endless support and opportunities that are available to you are unmatched. Having joined during the pandemic, I felt scared that my experience wouldn't be as good, however the way that IBM has organised everything has eliminated those fears indefinitely. Everyday brings a new learning opportunity, new people to meet and new tasks for you to complete, expanding you and your knowledge. It feels like more of a family than a huge cooperation, everyone is so friendly and willing to help you learn. I have already made great friends, whom I can't wait to meet, and I even have connections with extremely senior members, something I wouldn't have anticipated!

Be confident. If you are not confident in your own ability, then why would they? When applying for an apprenticeship with them, it doesn't matter how much experience you have, you are there to learn with them. As long as you show who you are, your willingness to learn and develop and a passion for the position then you should succeed. Go above and beyond, prove to them why you deserve the position over the next person. Do your research, what's going on with IBM currently, anything big and upcoming? Know the big names, who's the competition? Ultimately just make sure your personality comes through, that's what they want to see.