From Classroom to Culture – Work Experience at Macbeth

What’s it really like to step into the world of work for the first time?

We recently welcomed some bright and curious students to Macbeth Insurance Brokers for their work experience placement. From spending time in our various departments to getting a real feel for our unique culture, they’ve shared their honest take on their first taste of professional life, and what it was like to be part of the Macbeth team for a week.

Chloe

During my week of work experience at Macbeth I gained a lot of helpful experience and insights into the world of work. I’ve found it interesting to learn and see first-hand how a business runs, and how the different departments work together to drive business goals. Throughout the week I rotated all around the business and spent time in each sector, learning what their day-to-day job roles consist of.

My favourite department that I spent time with was the Marketing department. I learnt about the different types of marketing, such as traditional marketing and digital marketing. I also learnt how they drive their sales and continue the success of the business by various methods of promoting the company, such as working on the Macbeth website and always keeping it up to date, as well as sending out communications to clients, posting on their social media platforms (such as LinkedIn and Facebook), uploading weekly blogs and even creating Macbeth merchandise. They also talked us through how they create their designs for these different types of communications.

I liked speaking with the Social Committee, and hearing about all of the great events that they organise for the business – even a weekend away to Rome! They tasked us with planning our own event for Macbeth, thinking about things such as sticking within a budget, different demographics and location to ensure that it was accessible and could be enjoyed by all of the employees, including those at their Marlow office and also those working remotely too.

I met lots of different people and everyone has been so welcoming, kind and eager to share what their job role entails. The schedule that was created for my work experience allowed me to really get the most out of my week, and it’s been beneficial as I have been able to gain an understanding of working in insurance, and expand my knowledge on insurance and what it is (which before this week was quite limited). I now feel more confident in knowing the basics about insurance covers.

I have learnt about all the different types of insurance covers that Macbeth offers to their clients, including private clients and businesses. It has been interesting learning and understanding how the business works together in order to provide their clients with the most suitable insurance cover to best suit their wants and needs.

Overall, this week of work experience has been very beneficial for me and I am coming away with valuable knowledge and experience of an office environment. I am grateful to the team at Macbeth who worked hard to ensure that my week was made both enjoyable and full of learning.

Jared

I chose to do my work experience at Macbeth as I wanted to see if the office environment was right for me, and I ended up learning a lot more than I thought I would! I’m not usually very good at talking to people but Macbeth is very warm and welcoming. It made it very easy to talk to all of the employees and they felt more like family and friends than future colleagues.

The atmosphere is very relaxed, and I would never have expected an office environment to be so homely. In an office I would expect the occasional, “would you like a drink?”, but here everyone is treated as part of a family – free drinks, free crisps, and even free lunch on Fridays! They’re always trying to do the best for their clients and employees, and the business is a very people focused place.

The top 5 things Macbeth does really well are:

1. Insurance – Obviously the main thing Macbeth do, so they’re naturally good at it!
2. Teamwork – Around the office people ask others questions and help each other out which is great to watch.
3. Friday lunch – Their Friday lunch club is amazing (or so I’ve heard), I’m actually writing this before trying it so I’ll update you later after I’ve tried it…
4. Speaking out – Every employee has a voice in the business. Changes are constantly being made behind the scenes to address employee issues, whether that’s being given ergonomic equipment to work with, or making changes to the company’s intranet so documents are easier to find.
5. Care – Macbeth really care about everything, from the quality of their work, to their employees physical and mental health.

Overall I’ve very much enjoyed my time of work experience here at Macbeth (and as much as they say they are talking at me, I beg to differ, it was a very much worthwhile experience). I really appreciate the team for having me and I would recommend anyone who thinks “insurance is boring” to give it a try.

And yes – the Friday lunch club was amazing!

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