Case studies : Summer internship, AkzoNobel: Louise Wood

Louise Wood did a summer marketing internship at the global paints and coatings company.

I knew that I wanted to undertake an internship in marketing but at first I wasn’t sure at which company. After doing some research online and talking with family and friends, I knew that AkzoNobel really appealed to me. It was clear to see that the business invests a huge amount in developing its people and exercises a strong drive for results in the decorative paints market, with innovative products and marketing campaigns.

Whilst working on my third-year placement in Barcelona, I applied online to AkzoNobel. After a series of steps, including a telephone interview and assessment centre at HQ, I was accepted onto the internship scheme in the summer of 2009.

Lasting three months, the internship is aimed at penultimate year students. You will be given real-life projects covering a variety of topics such as portfolio management, PR and product development to enable a framework of marketing skills to be developed.

The best bit about my placement was seeing my projects come to life. I enjoyed being given the responsibility of having full ownership of a project and seeing it deliver value to the business.

I would encourage anyone undertaking a placement to really make the most of their time within the company by having the courage to ask questions and utilise the knowledge of others. Everybody at AkzoNobel exercises a real enthusiasm to share knowledge and meet with new members of the organisation. It is the power of these networks that can really make a difference to projects and decisions.