Meet our People
My name is Suneet Chavda and I joined AXA’s Actuarial Sandwich Scheme in July this year. I saw video testimonials from current students on the Actuarial Sandwich Student Placement scheme which made it sound like a really interesting place to work – and that's definitely proved to be true! AXA is one of the few companies to offer such a scheme. It's also a large organisation known worldwide, and that credibility was an important factor in my decision to apply. I knew I could take pride in working for AXA.
Things were positive right from the start. The company responded quickly to my application, invited me to take an online test and offered me an interview. They were also surprisingly flexible about interview dates. I was told who would be interviewing me, I did my research and as they say, the rest is history!
I started in July and have been here nearly two months. Right now I am working in the Actuarial Technical & Project Support team, and my role involves correcting problems on investment bond plans. My colleagues have given me lots of training and that has enabled me to contribute to some outstanding work. I realised early on that AXA recognises all contributions, big or small, and that gave me the confidence to try new things and work at my own pace without being rushed.
The culture around the AXA Centre is very warm and strong. There is a sense of equality and people are willing to help each other regardless of position or status. I have been treated as a 'real' employee and given a 'real' job, not just making tea or filing papers away. That's helping me make the most of the year. But there's much more besides. There's a really friendly atmosphere here. The facilities are amazing, with the gym, sports hall and canteen all on site, and the sports and social club a short distance away to play some cricket or tennis. Also, the AXA bus runs to and from the centre of Bristol where I live, so getting to work and home again in the evening is simple.
I've been amazed by the emphasis on performance management at AXA. In my first week I had a one-to-one meeting with my line manager and another with my 'buddy' in my team. For the first month, I also had weekly hour-long meetings with my manager to discuss my progress and wellbeing. And all placement students are assigned a mentor, who I see every fortnight. There are so many people who are willing to talk to you, listen to any problems and try to solve them. In fact, there's a strong feedback culture here that has helped my personal development and career development.
This actuarial placement has given me a very 'real' insight into the actuarial profession, and I hope to learn even more by talking to other people and visiting other teams. Having a year's experience in this field will be priceless when applying for a place on an Actuarial Student Programme. AXA even allows placement students to fast track through the initial application stages and go straight through to the assessment centre. There is that saying that 'time flies when you're having fun', and that has certainly been my experience at AXA so far.