npower

Graduate jobs explained

RWE npower had 36 graduate positions available in its 2011 intake, down from 46 in 2009. The actual number of vacancies varies each year, as their intake is based on business needs. It currently has over 100 graduates working on its graduate schemes, and a further 36 graduates will be recruited in 2012.

Most graduates will work at one (or more) of the company’s UK locations, which include Birmingham, Didcot, Newcastle, Swindon and Worcester.

Placements abroad are not guaranteed, but some graduates may have the opportunity to work overseas as part of the scheme, particularly those with the relevant language skills.

Programmes

There are several different schemes open to graduates, most of which last two years and involve four six-month placements. The exceptions are the finance scheme, which lasts three years, and the quantitative risk scheme, which lasts 18 months.

Business analysis: Placements could include:

• Commercial risk analysis
• Programming
• Market assessment.

Engineering (operations and technology): This is primarily based in the generation division. There is a number of placement opportunities available, including work on construction projects and station development.

Engineering (energy services): Placements are situated across all aspects of the energy services business, which includes three main areas:

• Business development
• Operations
• Sales.

Customer services: This graduate scheme includes various customer-facing roles such as contact centre management and bespoke projects.

Finance: Placements could cover any finance functions, such as project finance or forecasting.

Sales: Placements will be in areas such as:

• Client consultation
• Customer relationship management
• Product development.

Human resources: Placements will be in areas like:

• Change management
• HR service delivery
• Organisational development
• Project planning
• Recruitment
• Rewards.

Information technology: This is in the RWE IT UK unit, which provides software and IT services for the whole UK business. Placements, which may include a stint in Germany, are in:

• Applications
• Infrastructure
• Project management
• Service management.

Marketing: Placements will be in areas such as:

• Advertising
• Customer insight
• Market analysis
• Online media
• Sponsorship delivery.

Quantitative risk: This scheme is for candidates with a postgraduate qualification related to financial mathematical modelling. It involves placements in areas such as risk management, hedging, and supply contract pricing.

Future roles

While all the schemes are designed to develop future leaders for the company, the roles graduates can move into following their graduate programme will vary depending on which stream they chose. Here are some (but by no means all) of the roles available:

• Accountant
• Business consultant
• Commercial developer
• HR officer
• Marketing campaign manager
• Mechanical engineer
• Portfolio manager
• Resource planner (operations)
• Structural analyst
• Structuring and modelling.

Work experience explained

Two different types of work experience are offered by RWE npower: a summer internship and a one-year industrial placement. In 2011, 10 positions were available in each. Both schemes are designed for students in the penultimate year of their degree studies.

There are no specific entry requirements for work experience placements, though candidates are generally expected to be studying a relevant degree discipline, particularly for engineering roles.

Summer placements will be filled mainly by candidates who have previously participated in the company’s Energy Challenge and Future Leaders competitions. Applicants apply online using the same facility as applicants to the graduate programmes.

Roles available

There are five different work experience schemes for summer and industrial placements:

• Business analysis
• Customer operations
• Engineering
• Marketing
• Sales.

A year-long finance placement is also available.

Benefits include a salary of £16,000, invitations to company events (should they arise) and, obviously, gaining first-hand experience of the business.

The one-year industrial placement

After starting their year-long programme, students can expect both on-the-job training and three special courses that are designed to develop their skills and provide networking opportunities.

As well as undergoing training on corporate skills such as presentation-giving, interns will join the graduate intake on their induction course for a day, so they will have the opportunity to meet current graduates and join the graduate network. Engineering interns may also get the chance to visit one of the company’s power stations for a few days, and get an overview of operations.

At the end of the placement year, a development centre is held to test students’ progress and showcase their achievements. Top performers will be invited to join a graduate scheme when they finish university – so effectively, it’s an early assessment centre for the graduate programmes.

Training and development

Before embarking on the graduate scheme, new trainees attend a week-long induction at which they will meet the chief executive officer. They will also be given their personal development plan and a training schedule detailing the courses that they will attend throughout the programme.

Graduates will undergo a range of different training courses during the scheme, run both internally and externally. Each programme will involve some job-specific or technical training, but there are also general courses attended by all graduates, such as a week-long residential workshop covering skills like networking and giving presentations.

Professional accreditation

Graduates on the engineering and finance schemes will work towards accreditation by a relevant professional body as part of the graduate training programme. These bodies include:

• Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
• Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE)
• Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)
• Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3)
• Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE)
• Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC).

While these two streams are particularly geared towards professional accreditation, there are also opportunities for graduates on other programmes – for example, HR graduates can work towards chartership from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

Accreditation from a professional body can take several years, so training will likely continue beyond the end of the graduate scheme.

Mentor support

Throughout the process, graduates will be supported by a designated mentor, with whom they will have meetings every quarter (or more often, if needed). On the quantitative risk scheme, the mentor will be a director, so support can be pretty high level.

The company also runs a buddy scheme through which new trainees can connect with current graduates, and there will also be support from line managers while out on placement. There will be regular catch-up meetings with managers – one at the start of each placement, at least one half-way through, and one at the end – to make sure graduates are on track with their placement objectives.

Support doesn’t end with the graduate programme; a management coaching and mentoring programme was launched company-wide in 2009, giving other members of staff access to this facility.

Long-term training opportunities

The company says it is committed to ongoing training, and that fostering the development of skills and knowledge in the workplace is essential to its long-term sustainability. Training and development opportunities are tailored to each employee through their own individual personal development plan, but everyone has access to the same pool of courses and training options.

One of the key training facilities available to employees is the development resource centre, which was launched on the company’s intranet in 2009. The system provides information and support materials for training, and is designed to help employees take control of their own career management.

Also available are the company’s four learning resource centres in the North East of England, which provide a wide range of courses including languages, professional skills and IT skills. The success of the Skills for Life literacy and numeracy programmes run by these centres helped the company gain a Business in the Community ‘Big Tick’ award in 2009.