Kate Flynn, Marketing Scheme, DCC Vital Healthcare Division

My favourite thing about working for DCC is the direct impact you can make from early on in your placement. I was exposed to senior level people within the business and was given the opportunity to work with them on various projects. Any idea I suggested was always heard and I received great support from my manager throughout the placement.

There are a few reasons why I chose the programme. The first reason was because of the professional training and qualifications you get when on the programme. There are many training days throughout the programme, and I also got to complete a professional diploma in Digital Marketing. I also chose the programme because of the diversity in the placements. In my first year, I worked in Certas Energy in the UK and in my second placement I was based in DCC Vital in Dublin. I really enjoyed working in two completely different industries which gave me great experience.

The highlight of my work so far was setting up an E-commerce medical device website for DCC Vital. I had responsibility of the whole project from start to completion. This involved working with various stakeholders within the business to see the project through and it was a great accomplishment to achieve while being a graduate.

My day-to-day tasks include:

• Managing 4 different websites including an e-commerce
• Content creation for websites and social
• Social and Google ads
• International marketing campaigns to distributors
• Data analysis of campaigns and CRM systems
• Email marketing campaigns
• Market and competitor analysis
• Business development presentations

I really enjoyed my placement in DCC Vital as I was given the opportunity to work with a great team and members of management. When I showed an interest in digital marketing, I was given the opportunity to work on various digital projects and expand my skills in this area.

If there was any area that I wanted to expand my knowledge in, e.g. Excel data analysis, DCC Vital gave me the chance to attend course training days. I had no previous knowledge of the healthcare industry prior to my placement which I was nervous about however there was no need for me to be as I was given training sessions and exposed to various areas of the business to teach me how the industry works from pharmaceutical projects to international medical device campaigns.

The application process is challenging as there are various stages to complete however I enjoyed the assessment centre as I got to meet various senior business leaders and learn from graduates who are already on the programme and ask about their experiences.

Be confident in your abilities and show your willingness to learn and develop within the graduate programme. Ask all the questions you can in the first few weeks, no questions are a silly question and the more knowledge you have the more enjoyable your role will be!