[Viole]

My train should leave me with plenty of time so hopefully all will be well!
Plus I don't have to travel around London which is a bonus!
And yeah that's really good of them to do that!

You've made me wonder about lunch now too... I didn't want to take anything.

[hobo06]

(Original post by Viole)
My train should leave me with plenty of time so hopefully all will be well!
Plus I don't have to travel around London which is a bonus!
And yeah that's really good of them to do that!

You've made me wonder about lunch now too... I didn't want to take anything.

If I'd have known they would pay for travel I'd have chosen a different assessment centre so I could avoid London my main concern really is my suit getting dirty on public transport. But then I guess hundreds of people do it every day, should be alright.
I think of the most random silly things that probably don't even matter...

[Viole]

(Original post by hobo06)
If I'd have known they would pay for travel I'd have chosen a different assessment centre so I could avoid London my main concern really is my suit getting dirty on public transport. But then I guess hundreds of people do it every day, should be alright.
I think of the most random silly things that probably don't even matter...

Yeah I'm sure everything will be fine in the end and it will all work out atleast I hope so!!!!

[hobo06]

Leaving tonight to stay at my aunts so not as far to travel tomorrow...can't work out if I'm more excited or nervous! Just sorting out my documents etc. now

****, I appear to have lost my full birth certificate

[Viole]

Good plan! I should probably look for my birth certificate
I know the feeling i'm crazy excited but also really nervous!

[hobo06]

I've got the small certificate, but it does specifically state they need the full one with parents names going to take that anyway, and let them know I'm ordering a replacement full one on Tuesday, which I'll post to them as soon as I receive it (or just a photocopy if they're happy with that as they'll have already seen the original of the small one).
Just been out to do passport photos (I hate trying to smile for photos...yet for some reason I looked even more stupid when trying to do a photo without smiling!)

Searching Google for any more clues on what will happen tomorrow, but not finding much info. Ah well, I'll just do a bit more research on the company. Already slightly familiar with the logistics side of things as I'm currently working at Gist, doesn't really help much though. What store do you currently work at by the way? (it was you who said you work for M&S already right?) Maybe I've handled some of the foods delivered to you

[Viole]

I'm sure that will be fine if you just explain to them. Can't take what you haven't got! Oh I got mine done last week, they're the most embarrassing thing! Had to do it though because I looked like a corpse in my last passport photos!

I'm sure your experience working there will help even if it's just a bit, anything is better than nothing! I'm still hunting for info. I did find this, and although I think it applies to the graduate scheme I'd imagine there are similarities.

http://www.wikijob.co.uk/forum/retai...ment-2009-2010

Oh and yeah it is me who work's for M&S, I work at the Coventry store.

[hobo06]

I found some old photos, I didn't think they looked that different but my mum insisted I needed new ones
That link is great, especially the final comment on there! Thanks
I've just dug out a recruitment guide from my former employer when I applied for their management training scheme, there's quite a few competency based questions in it, along with a list of things they're looking for. I expect the one-on-one interview will be of a very similar nature. Do you want me to send you the questions?

Ah I don't think our warehouse delivers as far north as Coventry, mostly south east stores. But we do 81 stores I think it is, of which I can only remember a few off the top of my head so could be wrong.

[Viole]

That would be fantastic if you could! Thank you!

Ah ok, that's still quite a lot of stores though! It's such a pain at work at the minute though because everyone's constantly asking me if I've heard anything etc. Trouble is I couldn't exactly keep it a secret because I had to tell my line managers and once one person knows...

[hobo06]

(Original post by Viole)
That would be fantastic if you could! Thank you!

Ah ok, that's still quite a lot of stores though! It's such a pain at work at the minute though because everyone's constantly asking me if I've heard anything etc. Trouble is I couldn't exactly keep it a secret because I had to tell my line managers and once one person knows...

That was the problem when I went for the training scheme with my old employer. Even more annoying is the fact that I never heard a thing back about it, not directly to me anyway. Only when speaking to people at other stores. Mainly the reason I no longer work for them.

I'll PM you the questions.

[Viole]

Exactly! The next few weeks will sure be fun waiting to hear anything. I wonder how long it will take for them to let us know the result after...
Ok thank you!!!

[hobo06]

That will be one of the first questions I'll be asking tomorrow! I'm going to a festival next weekend so that will help keep my mind off it, but then when I'm back I'll be hating the wait!

[Wizz09]

(Original post by hobo06)
That will be one of the first questions I'll be asking tomorrow! I'm going to a festival next weekend so that will help keep my mind off it, but then when I'm back I'll be hating the wait!

Best of luck!

...Although I'm sure you wont need it :P

I really hope they get back quickly .. nothing worse than the waiting game.

Also, do you guys know the locations of the training stores by any chance?

Oh also, how does the managerial ladder go at M&S? I thought it was along the lines of Section Manager => Commercial Manager => Store Manager. So Where does a Line Manager come in to this?

[Viole]

(Original post by Wizz09)
Best of luck!

...Although I'm sure you wont need it :P

I really hope they get back quickly .. nothing worse than the waiting game.

Also, do you guys know the locations of the training stores by any chance?

Oh also, how does the managerial ladder go at M&S? I thought it was along the lines of Section Manager => Commercial Manager => Store Manager. So Where does a Line Manager come in to this?

A line manager is pretty much the same as a section manager

[hobo06]

(Original post by Wizz09)
Best of luck!

...Although I'm sure you wont need it :P

I really hope they get back quickly .. nothing worse than the waiting game.

Also, do you guys know the locations of the training stores by any chance?

Oh also, how does the managerial ladder go at M&S? I thought it was along the lines of Section Manager => Commercial Manager => Store Manager. So Where does a Line Manager come in to this?

Thanks! I'm not really sure how it went, some bits seemed alright, others not so much. Hope I did enough to redeem myself.
I can only remember some of the training store from the south east/Kent, south coast, and south London regions, as they were the ones I chose yesterday (they'll give you a list of all the regions on the day and you can select your preferences. My most local store is actually on there, and the store manager from there did my one on one interview. So I said after maybe with any luck I'll end up working with him in the future, and he said I most likely will if I get through. So it sounds like, unless there are several people from exactly the same area as you preferring the same stores then you'll most likely get your main preference. There were other people from Kent on my assessment but not my area.

When/where are you doing your assessment?

I think a line manager is generally, across all companies, your direct manager, so in M&S, as a sales assistant your line manager would be the Section manager, as Viole said, but then the Section manager's line manager would be a Commercial manager, their line manager the store manager, and then if you go higher, theirs would be the regional/area manager etc.

[Wizz09]

(Original post by hobo06)
Thanks! I'm not really sure how it went, some bits seemed alright, others not so much. Hope I did enough to redeem myself.
I can only remember some of the training store from the south east/Kent, south coast, and south London regions, as they were the ones I chose yesterday (they'll give you a list of all the regions on the day and you can select your preferences. My most local store is actually on there, and the store manager from there did my one on one interview. So I said after maybe with any luck I'll end up working with him in the future, and he said I most likely will if I get through. So it sounds like, unless there are several people from exactly the same area as you preferring the same stores then you'll most likely get your main preference. There were other people from Kent on my assessment but not my area.

When/where are you doing your assessment?

I think a line manager is generally, across all companies, your direct manager, so in M&S, as a sales assistant your line manager would be the Section manager, as Viole said, but then the Section manager's line manager would be a Commercial manager, their line manager the store manager, and then if you go higher, theirs would be the regional/area manager etc.

Ahh right, gotcha. Thanks for clearing that up.

Mine is on the 11th at the Oxford Street store in London. Is that where yours was too?

And just to clarify - d'you get to choose the exact store within the region where you would like to work, or just the overall region? And roughly how long was the one to one interview?

[hobo06]

(Original post by Wizz09)
Ahh right, gotcha. Thanks for clearing that up.

Mine is on the 11th at the Oxford Street store in London. Is that where yours was too?

And just to clarify - d'you get to choose the exact store within the region where you would like to work, or just the overall region? And roughly how long was the one to one interview?

Yeh mine was there. Everyone's really friendly there, especially Jaki the resource manager who you'll probably see most of. Make sure you go to the right store, there are 2 on Oxford Street, Marble Arch and Pantheon. Pantheon is the one you want (2 of the guys in our group came running in just before 9.30 after having been to Marble Arch!), close to Oxford Circus tube station (come out the tube station, turn right along Oxford Street and it's on the right hand side). You have to go through the store, out onto the street the other side, turn left, past the loading bay then there's the staff door which also goes up to the training academy. If you do get lost someone in the store will direct you.

You have to select 3 regions, numbered in order of preference. There is a comments section so you can state which store you would prefer in the region, but that doesn't guarantee it. The one to one interview they say should take about 30-45mins, but I'm sure mine was less than that, we got through the questions pretty quickly, and then we chatted for a bit, both being from the same area he was really easy to talk to. Others went on for longer though.

They also provide lunch and drinks throughout the day so no need to worry about that.

Good luck to you!

[electric.elf]

We had lunch provided - sandwiches, crisps, biscuits and fruit. There was also loads of tea/coffee/water available

[Skoji]

Nobody had any tea or coffee while I was there. We went through about three large containers of water between us though. Everyone was thirsty, but I think too nervous to be holding hot drinks.

[hobo06]

We had tea/coffee available but we all stuck to water. It was so hot, the lobby area we were sat in at the beginning/between tasks didn't have air con on (though the rooms we actually did the tasks in did). God knows how many 1.5l bottles of water we got through between us, I counted about 10 in the lobby area towards the end of the day (a couple had probably been cleared up from the table too) plus extra bottles in the other rooms.
'Do I have time for the toilet?' was a very common question throughout the day amongst us all