Let me be honest - writing this blog has been a lot like solving a puzzle for me. Today is my last day and bringing back all the memories and experiences in just a few words requires a great amount of skills that are not my strength. Anyway, here’s what I’ll take from my time at PensionBee…
Breaking traditions
On my first day of the internship I was a bit too overdressed and came with a mindset of ‘traditional’ corporate culture - you know, being serious all the time and wearing a suit and tie.
However, I was pleasantly surprised when I got into the office and sat down, as everyone seemed easy going, stress-free and sort of informal. I never expected that in one of the world’s biggest business cities a company could be like this. But boy was I wrong!
Not your normal 9-5
I never felt like I was going to ‘work’ on any given day of my whole internship. PensionBee felt like the complete opposite to what I expected a pension company to be. Before I started I worried I might be joining a business where everyone was deadly serious, and I felt uneasy about asking questions out of a fear of being laughed at. I really needn’t have worried though, as PensionBee is the complete opposite. Everyone is happy to be here and happy to help wherever they can.
As the days passed I started realising why some companies continue to prosper while others don’t. I saw that at the end of the day being productive is the main key to success. Every employee in the company contributes to their best and it just could not get any better!
Happy employees make for happy customers
One of my tasks was to do a comparison of FinTech companies. No matter what the criteria the result was always the same - PensionBee sitting at the top in terms of customer satisfaction. It quickly became clear to me why PensionBee is loved by its customers and continues to grow and grow!
I learned a lot while working here, including:
- Research skills
I worked on various projects which required intensive researching.
- Communication skills
Calling (sometimes difficult) providers really helped me improve my communication skills!
- Writing skills
Articulating my point of view on the research findings helped me improve my writing greatly.
- CV building
I got into this company with a blank CV with no real work experience - only some volunteering. Now once I update my CV I think it’s going to gleam like never before!
And finally, I’ve made lifelong friends which goes without saying. Friends I went to lunch with every day and spent 6 weeks of my life with. I think I tried every food place that there is near the office and each of them was amazing! It has been a truly great learning experience.
Period | Market Event | FTSE World TR GBP (%) | 4Plus Plan (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
4Plus Plan’s inception – 6 Sept 2013 | QE Tapering, China Interbank Crisis and its aftermath | -5.44 | -2.41 |
3 Oct 2014 – 15 May 2015 | Oil price drop, Eurozone deflation fears & Greek election outcome | -5.87 | -1.77 |
7 Jan 2016 – 14 Mar 2016 | China’s currency policy turmoil, collapse in oil prices and weak US activity | -7.26 | -1.54 |
15 June 2016 – 30 June 2016 | BREXIT referendum | -2.05 | -1.07 |
