SIS has actively recruited students for 12 month industrial placements over many years, and has close links with universities, most notably Salford, which has a campus almost next door to the office in MediaCityUK. Over the years we have had over a dozen student placements, with Broadcast Engineering, HR, Marketing and Finance placements being particularly successful. The placements benefit both student and SIS – the student gains valuable work experience, whilst SIS gets an additional pair of hands and a fresh perspective.
The success of our recent placements is clear to see as five have returned to SIS for a permanent position. We managed to catch up with a few to learn a little about their placements and why they decided to join SIS post-student life.
Ellen Berry
Student Placement: HR (2016)
Now: HR Advisor, MCUK (2021)
Tell us about your experience of SIS and the work you completed while on your student placement (when, where, etc.)?
My student placement took place in 2016 whilst in my third year at the University of Salford. My role sat within what was then known as the HR Shared Service Centre at the Media City offices. Day to day, I supported colleagues through stages of the employee life cycle – providing recruitment support, payroll and benefit admin, onboarding and offboarding, and everything in between.
Within a few months, I began supporting various projects, such as the student intake for the following year. I also took external training courses in Excel & CIPD -HR for beginners.
I absolutely loved every minute of my time at SIS because everyone I worked with was friendly, supportive, and encouraging of my development.
What do you feel was the most important thing you learnt while on your placement?
It isn’t easy to pinpoint one exact thing I learnt whilst on placement because I learnt so much!
Having the opportunity to work in a small team, learning first-hand from HR practitioners with a wealth of experience and knowledge, gave me invaluable insight into the different roles within the HR function and the roles we all play to provide the best possible support to our colleagues.
What advice would you give anyone interested in a student placement?
Don’t hesitate and just do it! Even if you’re not sure it’s the path you want to take (I studied Marketing).
Having the opportunity to work within a professional setting will help you to develop various skills to take to any career. It’s also something to talk about when you leave university and start applying for jobs. I found that prospective employers were keen to hear about my experience, which became a talking point during interviews.
What did you do during the time between placement and returning to SIS?
After completing my placement, I went back to university and graduated in 2018. I then spent three years working as a HR Coordinator within the manufacturing and financial services industries. In these roles, I built on my HR and Payroll experience in new and challenging regulated environments. I was also able to build on my knowledge of policy application and supported a function through a period of transformation.
What made you apply to come back and work at SIS?
My previous employer made some internal changes to the structure of their HR department to support the organisation’s growth. Unfortunately, this resulted in outsourcing some areas of HR work to external providers, leaving little room for progression.
I saw that SIS was advertising for a HR Advisor for a 12-month period, so I applied and was lucky enough to be offered the role. This role will now give me the exposure I need to the areas I am keen to develop.
What has changed since your placement?
Quite a lot has changed as a result of the past year! The implementation of Remote First is quite an obvious change! My role now has completely evolved, and I work closely with a new area of the business – 49CG. In the short time I’ve been here, I’ve been involved in such a wide range of activities as this business area begins its growth strategy.
I’m excited about what’s to come, and I’m so grateful to be given this opportunity.