Beginning the Invent UK Accelerate Programme: My Induction Experience

It all started on the first Monday of October. It was time to finally start a full-time job after completing four years at university. Once I arrived in the lobby of the Holborn office in London, I met the whole intake, 14 others, one by one. All nervous, but very excited about this new adventure.

After introductions, I felt immediately relieved to see a familiar face, a fellow candidate I had met during our assessment centre earlier that year.  A few minutes later our hosts and now ‘buddies’, both Consultants, came to pick us up and take us to the 6th Floor of Holborn offices in London. They were responsible for facilitating all the mandatory activities, trainings, inductions and organising all the fun stuff for the first two weeks of our start at Capgemini Invent. They were a fantastic team to guide this cohort to becoming consultants.

The first morning welcome session had all the works – breakfast, games and lots of useful and fun ice breakers. After feasting on hot beverages, fruits and croissants, we were ready to kick off the day. This is when our hosts explained that every day would be met with daily schedules, expectation setting sessions and the assigning of roles. We knew we were in for an intense but exciting two weeks.

Initially our group was quite excited about their new start despite their shyness. A few hours in the group became more dynamic and comfortable, and this was because of the activities we had in the morning. The exercises and activities we went through really displayed the diversity of our backgrounds, origins, previous work experience, education and hobbies – an aspect of Capgemini I am so proud of.

The finale to the first day was a surprise social event, the first of many. We went to make (and eat) some pizzas nearby – cool stuff for a first after-work event. Having fun outside of the office was perfect after an intense first day and lots of new information. Little did we know this was the first of an extensive number of social events, both in and out of the office, including dinners, a cooking lesson, ping-pong and after-work drinks!

By the second day we were all a lot more comfortable with each other. After spending an entire day exploring the different aspects of Capgemini and our individual backgrounds, the fifteen of us had become a lot more like friends.

As a group, we attended multiple sessions to be prepared for our future work , such as learning how to use appropriate tools, how to improve ourselves in presenting or even learning the basics of what a good consultant does – applying the skills that we learnt through case study exercises and presentations. The activities were very challenging at times, taking us outside of our comfort zone. However, what we learnt was a confidence to present our work to a range of people from Invent, with varied backgrounds and expertise. We learnt this as a group, as a team and definitely as individuals.

After each session we would cover our previously set expectations to see if we had met them. Wrapping up the day by going through each session in order to evaluate the positives as well as things to improve. We really understood the importance and the value of feedback during these first two weeks within Capgemini. Here, we call it a gift.

On top of learning the fundamentals of what makes a good consultant, the first two weeks of induction here allowed us to connect with the rest of the company. We were introduced to a wide variety of people, ranging from Associate Consultants on the same Accelerate Graduate Scheme who began 6 months previously, even to the CEO of Capgemini Invent UK himself. It was amazing to see the array of expertise from each individual and their views regarding the program, the company and their different roles.

Through this experience, the fifteen of us really got the chance to understand the nature of the business, its people, culture, spirit and share some incredible moments of learning, sharing and fun! Thank you to all the people for organising, coming to the different sessions and to our hosts for making these two weeks an unforgettable experience.

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Author

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Maxime Blanchandin

Associate Consultant, Capgemini Invent

Maxime joined Capgemini Invent in October 2019 as part of the UK Invent Accelerate programme following a degree in Cyber Security Management from Bournemouth University.