Case studies: Placement, MBDA: Heidii Taylor

Heidii Taylor studied business studies with psychology at the Unviersity of Hertfordshire and completed a one-year placement at global missile systems company MBDA

For my placement year, my position was UK buyer support for missile company MBDA. My day-to-day activities included:

• placing orders;
• obtaining quotes;
• meeting suppliers;
• organising bid processes;
• being the first point of contact for internal customers;
• taking minutes;
• amending contracts;
• assisting with contract negotiations;
• providing support for any ad hoc tasks.

My main reason for doing a placement was to gain experience of real-life work in a business environment, while putting the theory I had learnt at university into practice. It was also important for me to enhance my CV.

I was attracted to working at MBDA as, unlike other companies, it offered four, three-month placements within four different areas of procurement, giving me the chance to experience the entire department. MBDA is also a large company within the area I live and therefore the location was perfect.

The position was advertised amongst the majority of graduate websites along with their own human resources (HR)/careers page and the application process was very straightforward in comparison to other companies.

The process involved three steps, with an online application, numerical tests and an interview day, where I also learnt more about the company. I was then offered the job.

Working full time to start with was difficult, going from lots of free time to very little. However, after a couple of weeks in the role I started to settle in well.

The thing that I liked the most from working full time is that after work I could relax, while at university this was harder because most of my free time in the evenings was used to study.

MBDA had dedicated HR personnel who were able to help with any graduate or placement issue throughout the year. The company also used a buddy scheme that gave me someone of a similar age and professional level that I could go to for support.

Overall, my placement year encouraged me to succeed in my final year at university and has shown what I can achieve if my grades are high enough.

It has given me a lot more to relate to in job interviews, which will of course help with my graduate employability.

It has also taught me basic skills such as time management and communication skills, both of which assisted me in my final year and will help me in a graduate role.

Thanks to my placement year, I am now clearer on what I want to do. Within the next five years I hope to have entered a graduate scheme within a company that is HR focused and allows me to develop personally. I hope to finish the scheme successfully and be in a role that gives me the opportunity to have a real business impact on a daily basis.

Finally, as advice to other students who are set to go on a placement, I would suggest to ask management for regular reviews so to keep on developing.

Try out as many areas as possible within the business to gain a varied insight and take part in any extra schemes or courses, such as mentoring or training programmes, to help broaden your knowledge and network within the company.