Links between My University Studies and Work

Discuss a work experience that will bring relevance to what you are studying at uni? Has a work experience motivated you to explore new areas of knowledge? Why? How are your work experiences helping you develop your professional skills? I am finding that there are many topics that I have learnt across the past year and a half that are relating to different tasks that I am completing in the workplace. What we learnt on reconciliations in Semester 1 last year gave me a basic understanding on what they are. I have however, been able to develop this understanding through in quarter end completing a variety of different reconciliations for different accounts – mainly employee related cost accounts. In quarter end I also helped the costing graduate with her journal entries, setting up the journal template. I was able to put into practice and debit/credit different accounts due to their expenses. This activity also allowed me to further consolidate my understanding on the movement of money across accounts and the reasons for these movements. However, I am also finding that a lot of the work I have learnt so far is not relating to many of the tasks that I am undertaking at Janssen. One of the projects I had to undertake was looking over our current customers and deciding whether we should increase their monthly credit limits. I needed to decided and provide enough evidence if it is feasible to increase their credit limit and whether they will be able to reliably make the payment of this increased amount. To do this I had to order both the Payment Predictor and the Commerical Beauro Enquiry Reports from Dun and Bradstreet. These reports highlights the customers ability to make their payment and if it is a correct decision to increase their limit. I had to have enough evidence that the Financial Control would approve the increase. At the moment I am helping with the FBT banking. I have been consolidating the FBT 2013-14 years costs from SAP, using a variety of excel skills that I have been learning as my placement has progressed to ensure that I am giving the correct amounts for each account. They are then checked against the amounts in gsrx and if different have to be investigated into to check and find reasons for the differing values. Working with the graduate on this task has allowed me to explore a lot more of the costing side of Janssen, which I am finding quite interesting. My professional skills have been developing constantly as my placement has been progressing. Over the past few weeks I have been given more complicated tasks and tasks which relate to different areas of the business instead of just mainly to the accounts receivbale. This has allowed me to gain a greater understanding of different roles and develop different skills, especially advanced excel skills that related to this more complicated tasks. I have also had to communicate a lot more with people in different departments and with our customers and wholesalers. Most of my tasks also need me to communicate with others in the Business Intelligence Group, this means I am constanly improve my professional interpersonal skills and my understanding of different areas. I have also had to write instructions out for many of my tasks in a coherent and fluent way that when the next intern comes in to continue that they will be able to read through the instructions quickly and complete the task.