What training is provided for newly-hired graduates? Did you find yours interesting?

Hi Francis,

Thanks for your question. In terms of training, there's a few different types of training, learning and development that the Graduates engage in, from when we first start on the program and throughout its duration.

The first is experiential learning. As the program is rotation based, the training you receive for each rotation is different, and is tailored to the type of work you will be doing in that business area. It is not necessarily formalised, and more involves working on different tasks and projects and developing your capabilities in quite a practical way, through experience. I like this approach as it means that I can start learning and applying new skills from the moment I join a team and everything you’re learning feels relevant.

The second is online education through AllianzU, which is the learning and development platform that we use. This has a Graduate specific pathway to help develop our professional capabilities and focuses on things such as building your personal brand, networking and other soft skills. However, there are lots of different pathways and modules for you to engage with depending on your personal interests. When I first started at Allianz, I was not confident with using Excel and so I completed some modules on AllianzU to develop my competencies.

As part of the Graduate program we also complete a formal qualification. Depending on which stream of the graduate program you are in, determines which qualification you will need to complete. I am part of the General Insurance stream and so I am completing my qualification through ANZIIF. There are exams as part of acquiring the qualification, however the Graduate program encourages grads to work together to study and support everyone in achieving their best which takes away the stress of completing further study. We are also entitled to study leave so that we have time to prepare for the exams which I have found really helpful.

We also have a few workshop series that are hosted by other grads, senior leaders or external providers that are designed to give us exposure to different areas of the business and new ideas to help us transition and integrate into a professional environment. These workshops can be used to highlight the key functions of a business area and what you might learn on a rotation there, or what techniques are helpful for managing your time and workload. These sessions are usually interactive and are a great opportunity to ask questions and engage in discussions.

I definitely feel as though I have benefited from all the different learning opportunities I have had access to as part of the graduate program.