Work Based Experience Report

This report documents a student's work-based experience as an HR intern at Thomas Cook. It details the research process for selecting the company, negotiations with academic and work supervisors, a plan for the experience, and an analysis of the benefits for both the student and the business. The report includes a detailed account of tasks undertaken, including recruitment and selection, wage preparation, and training and development. It also discusses challenges faced, revisions to the initial plan, and suggestions for improvement. The student evaluates their own performance and identifies areas for future development. The report concludes with a summary of the learning experience and recommendations for enhancing future work-based experiences.

Work Based Experience

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
1.1 Researching and evaluating suitable organisations to acquire work based experience........2
1.2 Negotiating with work and academic supervisors a proposal for the work experience........2
1.3 Recognition of business constraints on the offered work experience...................................3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................3
2.1 Accepting and prioritizing of tasks and responsibilities involved in the work experience...3
2.2 Producing a plan for the work experience.............................................................................5
2.3 Analysing the benefits of the proposed activities to the business and the learners...............7
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................8
3.1 Fulfilling the requirements of placement by conforming to all related codes of practice....8
3.2 Producing systematic record of undertaken work.................................................................8
3.3 Revising the initial plan........................................................................................................9
3.4 Making suggestions for improvement by reviewing it to the appropriate supervisor.........10
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................10
4.1 Monitoring progress against original proposal...................................................................10
4.2 Evaluating the quality of own performance........................................................................11
4.3 Analysing the learning taken place during the work experience........................................11
4.4 Recommendations for an enhanced experience..................................................................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13
APPENDIX....................................................................................................................................15
Appendix 1: Email to work supervisor of Thomas Cook ........................................................15

INTRODUCTION
Work based experience is especially referred to some remunerative or non-stipendiary
jobs in the form of internship that is mostly attempted by the students seeking higher education.
It is basically meant to achieve a desirable opportunity of job to pursue it after a successful
completion of one's educational perceptions. However, such work based experiences provides a
primary cognitive content of working into the industries with certain requisite qualities and other
related cognition to it (Lange, 2014). It is thus considered to be a preferential facet by many
individuals who are consequently dignified as employed pupil. Furthermore, a work-based
experiencing together assist in enhancing the essential skills of employability into the job
seeking scholars which directly results into a coveted acquisition of job into an enviable
organisation. It is also recognised to be a crucial subsistence for the candidates where most
renowned number of firms are largely referring to appoint such experienced people into their
enterprises.
This is however due to another prime reason of minimised opportunity of employment
into the nations. As a result to which the active enterprises are too opting for the primarily
experienced candidates who will significantly work into their prospective criteria of operating.
Such execution will in turn result into a raised perspective of production which will directly lead
into an enhanced state of their sales and revenues, etc. It has directly resulted into a tremendous
rise of competence among the candidates willing for a recognisable job (Dragoni and et.al.,
2011). The below report is based upon a similar conceptualisation which has effectively
exhibited the related aspects of work-based experience with its leading benefits and other
outcomes.
TASK 1
My name is Tee Abraham and I am currently pursuing my higher education into the field
of Tours and Travel course. This is my final year in EDEXCEL BTECH, HND after whose
successful completion, I would like to prosecute my career into the similar sector of tours and
travel industry. It is where I dreamt of working as an HR executive into the most renowned
industry of this particular sector in UK. Below defined are some related investigation activities
conducted by me in order to discover a similarly attributed enterprise of UK.
1

1.1 Researching and evaluating suitable organisations to acquire work based experience
It is where I carried both primary and secondary sources of assessment to find out the
most suitable firm of tours and travels in UK that can together provide me a work based
experience that I can continue with my other perceptions of higher education. However, this
inquiry work has significantly aided me into acquiring a coveted cognition of such enterprises. It
is mainly due to my vital tools of researching where in primary sources I considered referring to
my acquaintances (Gruenewald and Smith, 2014). This refers to my classmates and instructors in
college who have further given me some reliable contact numbers to call upon. The secondary
research was however done with a crucial implementation of internet and social media. This is
where I further attempted to search some relevant reviews of tourers into their sites of some
company journals where I mostly relied upon some notable travel industries of UK.
Thomas Cook proved to be an ultimate outcome of my entire research work where I
assessed it to be the most efficient firm in both terms of handing their clients and customers by
together gratifying the liable interest of their workers. I was highly impressed by their varied
functional prospects into which they efficaciously deal with a diversified and active manpower
resources. This is where the appointed individuals together belongs to a highly proficient
background of education from which many of them were on the job scholars like me (Ro and
Choi, 2011). I thence found it to be amongst the most desirable firm to work with a cognitive
state of heading towards my dreams.
1.2 Negotiating with work and academic supervisors a proposal for the work experience
It is in order to reliably convince the supervisory bodies of Thomas Cook to acquire a
momentous chance of working with them. However, it is a slight ambitious task which will
require some relative tools and techniques of negotiating into a desirable manner. This is where I
am primarily supposed to make a foremost contact with the work supervisor of the cited entity.
For which, I will require using some primary contacts of my associates and educators who have
allocated me a primary cogitation of designating this peculiar firm (Carter, 2016). Soon after
contacting with the supervisory bodies of Thomas Cook, I will subsequently refer to the head
supervisor of work who deals into such procedures of hiring, etc.
Once after getting in a direct contact of the work supervisor, I will try to convince him
into an influential way into which I will be acknowledging him about my passion to work with
them. This is especially where I would like to join into the position of HR executive which will
2

be guided by my relative contents of educational degree in Human Resource Management
(HRM). Furthermore, after having a fine conversation regarding the same, I will consequently
send him my Curriculum Vitae (CV) by email. This will also acknowledge my vital
considerations of working with them where I will significantly assure them to adhere by the
considerable rules and regulations of their work (Evans and Wilson, 2016). It is basically to
ensure them my earnestness and sincere orientation of working with them as per their set policies
of the organisation.
1.3 Recognition of business constraints on the offered work experience
Below ascertained are referred to some vital restraints of working as an Intern with the
designated Tours and Travel firm of Thomas Cook. This is where I can directly get affected by
their huge existence of work load. Due to which, it will be really difficult for the respective
bodies of supervisors to attend me and my related queries into a desirable manner. This is where
I am largely focused towards attaining a coveted expression into the field of HRM. However,
such engaged perspective of the HR manager in Thomas Cook can directly limit my cogitations
of resolving my subsisted questionings (Jones, 2016). Thus, this is referred to be the foremost
factor which may limit my sustainable offer of work experience at a recognised business entity.
Another related limitation is an absence state of training or induction.
This is where a newly joined candidate is always required to render a liable session of
training to acknowledge the basis perceptions of working into the firm as per their laid down
policies. However, such lacking agent can directly result into a limited consequence of my
learning. It is mainly due to my new association of practically tasking into the HR department of
Thomas Cook as an HR executive with no prior acquisition of their framed principles. Therefore,
on new assignation of responsibilities, it will be significantly difficult for me to attempt the given
tasks into a desirable format which could directly result into any uncertain outcome of results
(Russ and et.al., 2013). Such non amenable transitions can thus result into an undesirable state of
tasking where I will together lose my confidence on such endeavour of work.
TASK 2
2.1 Accepting and prioritizing of tasks and responsibilities involved in the work experience
An HR manager into almost all enterprises are abided by some vital requisitions of hiring
individuals. This reflects their foremost positioning into the firm where they play the most
3

important role into the organisation. It is where the HR are fundamentally responsible to place
the hired candidate at the most liable designation whose ascertained responsibilities together
matches the evaluated cognition of the selected individual (Siassakos and et.al., 2013). This is
basically for corresponding to one of the most factual cogitation of the firm according to which
the recruited and placed individual should be finely able to work as per the appointed obligations
of the job profile.
Other than the procedures of hiring employees, the HR department of Thomas Cook is
also responsible wit some other enumerable tasks. Into which they are subsequently required to
enhance the static skills of their appointed personnels with a constant inclusion of training and
development programs for them. Furthermore, payment of wages with a continuous practice of
retaining the efficient workforce is referred to yet another vital cogitation of an HR manager
(West, 2012). Thus, below depiction is in regard to embody such prioritised tasks of an HR
where I have specifically implemented a time management grid to gradually learn my prioritised
tasks of HR in it-
Urgent Non Urgent
Important Recruitment Training
Non-Important Wage assumption Techniques of retaining workers
This is in regard to prioritize some related practices of HRM with a significant execution
of a time management grid. It will considerably assist me into attaining the desirable perceptions
of my learning sessions. This is where I have designated the foremost task of recruitment into my
first priority of learning. It is mainly due to an interesting nature of this task with a primary
responsibility of the HR to fulfil it into a binding time period. However, training is positioned
into a non exigent yet first list of priority. This is where conducting training and development
sessions for the appointed personnels is a relatively important consideration of an HR just after
completing the principle responsibility of selecting the candidates (Chen, 2014).
Furthermore, payment of salaries to the appointed manpower resources is a relative
content which has been placed at the next level of the framed grid of time management. It
together refers to an equivalently important consideration of the management that is further
based upon numerous such cogitations of preparing a liable description of the vacant job profile
4

and person specifications, etc. These measures thus assists into the further decisions of fixing the
wages and hence, I would surely learn such recommended methods (Work based experience,
2015). Lastly, I have placed another vital learning of techniques to motivate the employees with
some epochal utilisation of tools and techniques. Thus, with a main motive of inculcating these
critical obligations of an HR, I will definitely amend my existent cognition to take it to a more
active position.
2.2 Producing a plan for the work experience
Below demonstration is in order to produce an effective plan to conduct the above
designated activities of learning within a stipulated frame of time-
Scheduled Tasks Proposed Reviewing Date Anticipated Outputs as Referred by
the Supervisor
Recruitment and Selection-
Below described are the
vital functions enforced by
the HR manager of Thomas
Cook into their R&S
procedures-
 Preparation of job
description and
person
specification.
 Advertisement of
the vacant profiles
into some leading
newspapers and
magazines.
 Scrutinization of the
acquired resumes to
select the accepted
ones (Bailey, 2014).
Assessment date is within
a specified tenure of 4
weeks.
A vital expectation of my supervisor
from me is a firm acquisition of the
prominent sources for recruiting
employees. It is where he together
expects me to direct my own efforts
into the upcoming sessions of
selection. Into which, I can place a
candidate at an exact position.
5

 Contacting the
prospective
candidates to attend
the session of
interview.
 Selecting or hiring
the most succeeding
individuals.
Provisioning Wages-
Related tasks for
preparation of salaries are
as mentioned below-
 Job evaluation is the
foremost task to
ascertain the salary
proposition to the
appointed
personnels.
 This will together
refer to some other
valid cogitations of
leaves, etc.
 It is with a final
disclosure of all
summative factors
to consequently
prepare and
distribute the
assumptive salaries.
It is with a revised tenure
of 3 weeks.
The leading expectation of my
supervisor is to hereby relate the
critical assumptions of fixing
employee wages into a significant
form.
6

Activating Training and
Development-
This is in relation to
conduct some liable
sessions of training and
development for the
appointed staff members by
together arranging the
session of induction for the
newly appointed personnels
into a step wise manner, as
defined below-
 Evaluation of
field for arranging
the drill sessions
for the employees.
 Finding apt
methods to
acquire a standard
outcome of
enhancements
(Gander and et.al.,
2012).
 Implementation of
the planned
approach.
The review session for this
will be conducted after 1
and a half month of tenure.
My supervisor hereby expect me to
directly relate such requisition of
sessions at the workplace by
significantly analysing workers needs
and demands.
2.3 Analysing the benefits of the proposed activities to the business and the learners
Acquiring work-based experience is considered to be a beneficiary approach for both the
business and the individuals who are attempting such vital learning's. It is thence referred to my
own cogitation where Thomas Cook is equivalently benefited by such hirings of scholars at a
7

low scale of wages to us. This significantly saves their routine operational cost up to a desirable
extent. It is mainly due to their regular operational practices that are now being preformed by us
at a minimised wage level (Michaelsen, Sweet and Parmelee, 2011). Moreover, such inclusions
also helps the quoted entity in enhancing their profitability ratio into a coveted state with such
lowered cost of payment to me. However, this have together assisted me to boost up my static
state of knowledge. It is by converting it into a practical sense of enforcing the learning
outcomes. This is where I can vitally implement these acquired skills into my subsequent
workplace or organisation.
TASK 3
3.1 Fulfilling the requirements of placement by conforming to all related codes of practice
This is in regard to state the vital considerations of legislative acts that are being followed
in Thomas Cook. As a result of my own assessment, I have found that the cited entity duly
pursue all mandate proceedings of their legislature bodies. An evidently proven consequence is
an active association of two leading enactments of Employment Act and Equality Act. According
to which, the HR manager of Thomas Cook is primarily responsible to create some requisite
documentations of their vacant profile that gives them a further cogitation of fixing the salaries
and wages of their appointed personnels (Tietze and Musson, 2010). It is together related to their
another mandate proposition of providing an equal opportunity to their hired individuals with an
equivalent scale of payment to them. This is as per the two ascertained enactments of law to
eliminate any sort of discrimination from the workplace. It has thus aided me to enhance my
knowledge into such crucial field of ethical consideration while working into the cited
organisation.
3.2 Producing systematic record of undertaken work
This in relation to represent some vital considerations of mine while working in Thomas
Cook to acquire a work based experience into the field of HRM. It is where I have used varied
requisite tools and techniques for firmly jot down my learnings. This is where I have mainly used
three essential elements of logbook, diary, portfolio and spreadsheets, etc. Like for an instance,
on my very initial day of training I was primarily enlightened with some foremost consideration
of hiring procedures by the HR manager of Thomas Cook, who was my direct supervisor
(Crawford and Lepine, 2013). I thence noted the significant points of resourceful procedures of
8

R&S into my diary. The second day activity was based to comprehend the vital stages of wage
preparation that has been maintained into some enumerative spreadsheets, as taught and
displayed to me by him. This has specifically enhanced my knowledge to apprehend the vital
formation of salary and maintenance of those records. However, on my third day training
session, I have learned about conducting development programs for the staff members into a
requisite manner whose steps have been recorded into my logbook.
3.3 Revising the initial plan
This is relation to form an amended version of my above designated plan with a revised
format, as delineated below-
REVISED PLAN
Scheduled tasks consisting of number of
activities
Proposed date for revising the framed plan
Recruitment and selection
 This is in regard to an improvised state
of interview session into which HR
manager will primarily refer to conduct
a group discussion (GD) among the
participants who are being called to
attend the interview session.
 The succeeding candidates of GD will
ultimately proceed towards two vital
sessions of tests where aptitude teats
and logical reasoning will be the major
association of evaluating their abilities.
Reviewing it after a revised period of 6 weeks.
Wage Preparation
 It is where the selected candidates who
have attained higher than the
standardised set of passing marks will
further need to attend a negotiating
session for discoursing their liable
This will be reviewed after a revised session of
1 month.
9

interest of acquiring salaries
(Guglielmi, Chiesa and Mazzetti,
2016).
Training and development
This has been referred to be an effective plan
and thence need no specific changes into it.
 Evaluation of field for arranging the
drill sessions for the employees.
 Finding apt methods to acquire a
standard outcome of enhancements.
 Implementation of the planned
approach.
Revaluation after an upgraded period of 2
weeks.
3.4 Making suggestions for improvement by reviewing it to the appropriate supervisor
This is in regard to demonstrate the changes executed into the initial plans made by me.
This is mainly due to some lacking elements into the primary plans where the HR manger of
Thomas Cook have been suggested to make some precise inclusion of certain requisite activities.
For instance, it is being referred to the foremost procedures of R&S into which the existent
policies were clearly missing some vital inculcation of tests round for the applicants. However,
such inclusion will significantly help the quoted firm to work with a more enhanced approach of
designated some highly proficient individuals into their organisation (Nguyen and et.al., 2016).
This will directly result into an enhanced state of productivity by the appointed personnels which
will in turn benefit the cited entity. Another altered plan is into the subsequent state of wage
preparation where a liable arrangement of discourse session with the appointed candidates is
crucially important. This is to fundamentally assay their existent level of interest rather than
directly disposing the single consideration of the designated enterprise. It is also important for
the retention of the efficient workforce where they together feel to be at a prominent positioning
at the workplace.
10

TASK 4
4.1 Monitoring progress against original proposal
This is regard to evaluate any progressive change into my existent state of knowledge due
to the entire session of learning in Thomas Cook. It is where I have thereby implemented a
critical measure of monitoring any occurred changes into my own performance in opposition to
the original proposal of learning. It has basically helped me to eliminate my serious concern over
ascertaining the factual consequences of my entire session of internship at Thomas Cook. This is
mainly due in lieu of this fact where I have seen some apparent progression into both of my
personal and professional skills (Shipman, 2016). Due to which, I have made some necessary
changes into the initial stipulations of plan with an improvised statue of the revised plan. This
was evidently proven by the revised plan of R&S procedure by which the cited entity have
acquired some highly proficient and professional staff members into the organisation.
4.2 Evaluating the quality of own performance
This is in order to evaluate the qualitative considerations of my own performance while
executing the vital functioning of my training session at Thomas Cook. This is where I have
fundamentally approached the senior officials of the cited entity along with my head supervisor.
It is mainly referred to the HR manager of the quoted firm where they have associatively helped
me to recognise my daily outcomes and other related concerns. This is where, as per their
valuable feedback, I worked as a highly contributing element into their enterprise for which they
have also taught me some additive consideration of the organisation (Valentine, Nembhard and
Edmondson, 2015). It was with reference to some accumulative obligations of the HR
department with a broad range of their variedly associated principles and other related policies.
This is where I have specifically learned some vital cogitations of HRM in relation to their
affiliated systems of R&S, wage preparation and training and development, etc. However, I am
still struggling into some other significant arenas of retention procedures where I am putting my
full efforts to acknowledge its related aspects through varied methodologies.
4.3 Analysing the learning taken place during the work experience
Being placed as a trainee position of HR executive have significantly helped me in
enhancing my knowledge where I can relate it to both my personal and professional perspectives.
This is where I have attained adequate knowledge into some leading compositions of HR into the
11

field of travel and tourism. Thomas Cook have thus given me a practical sense of implementation
where earlier I was merely having a theoretical knowledge of its related facets. However, some
additive cognition during my internship period into the cited firm will surely assist me into my
future goals and prospectives (Corno and Anderman, 2015). It is mainly due to its vital sense of
modality where I have significantly achieved some progressive facets into my prevalent skills of
communication, decision making, etc. It has thus improved my major attributes of employability
where an enhanced state of interpersonal skills is also included into this active list.
4.4 Recommendations for an enhanced experience
This is basically to enhance my antecedently considerate factors of work based
experience at Thomas Cook where I was mainly deputed into the position of HR executive as an
intern. It was however a pleasant experience to work with a practical sense of implementing the
theoretical perspectives of HRM. However, to further intensify the recently acquired experience,
I will follow some lateral points into which I will assuringly consider getting regular feedback
from my superiors on weekly basis (Lange, 2014). This will significantly help me to higher my
cognition about he accurate procedures of working into a standard set of predefined regulations.
It will also result into lesser chances of mistakes by me where I will gradually pursue the vital
considerations of my supervisor's responses on my executed tasks.
CONCLUSION
Differential ways of negotiating with the managerial bodies of industries have been a
prime depiction of the recently presented report. This has resulted into a liable acquisition of a
benefited firm where the negotiator role of administrator have evidently proven to being certain
affirmative outcomes for the entire firm and its related operations. The substantial parts of this
report has together exemplified about some requisite tactics and other affiliated abilities for the
employees. This is especially to perform into a desirable manner with a relative enforcement for
acquiring a timely accomplishment of assignations.
12

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bailey, R., 2014. Teaching values and citizenship across the curriculum: educating children for
the world. Routledge.
Carter, R., 2016. English Pasts, English Futures. Futures for English Studies: Teaching
Language, Literature and Creative Writing in Higher Education.
Chen, J.C., 2014. Teaching nontraditional adult students: Adult learning theories in
practice. Teaching in Higher Education. 19(4). pp.406-418.
Corno, L. and Anderman, E.M. eds., 2015. Handbook of educational psychology. Routledge.
Crawford, E. R. and Lepine, J. A., 2013. A configural theory of team processes: Accounting for
the structure of taskwork and teamwork. Academy of Management Review. 38(1). pp.32-
48.
Dragoni, L. and et.al., 2011. Developing executive leaders: The relative contribution of cognitive
ability, personality, and the accumulation of work experience in predicting strategic thinking
competency. Personnel Psychology. 64(4). pp.829-864.
Evans, A. and Wilson, C., 2016. Linking attainment to interculturalism and global citizenship.
Student Attainment in Higher Education: Issues, Controversies and Debates. p.54.
Gander, F. and et.al., 2012. The good character at work: An initial study on the contribution of
character strengths in identifying healthy and unhealthy work-related behavior and
experience patterns.International archives of occupational and environmental health. 85(8).
pp.895-904.
Gruenewald, D. A. and Smith, G. A., 2014. Place-based education in the global age: Local
diversity. Routledge.
Guglielmi, D., Chiesa, R. and Mazzetti, G., 2016. “If it is dreamable it is doable”: the role of
desired job flexibility in imaging the future. Education+ Training. 58(3).
Jones, E., 2016. Mobility, Graduate Employa Bility and Local Internationalisation. In Global and
Local Internationalization. pp. 107-116.
Lange, J., 2014. Social Enterprise Work Placements: Connecting Competence to International
Management Experience. The Palgrave Handbook of Experiential Learning in International
Business. 322.
Michaelsen, L. K., Sweet, M. and Parmelee, D. X., 2011. Team-Based Learning: Small Group
Learning's Next Big Step: New Directions for Teaching and Learning, Number 116 (Vol.
103). John Wiley & Sons.
13

Nguyen, D. P. and et.al., 2016. Internationalizing Higher Education (HE) in Vietnam: Insights
from Higher Education leaders-an exploratory study. Education+ Training. 58(2).
Ro, H. and Choi, Y., 2011. Student team project: Gender differences in team project experience
and attitudes toward team-based work. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism. 11(2).
pp.149-163.
Russ, S., et.al., 2013. Do safety checklists improve teamwork and communication in the
operating room? A systematic review. Annals of surgery. 258(6). pp.856-871.
Shipman, L., 2016. Glioma: Tumour cell teamwork. Nature Reviews Cancer. 16(1). pp.2-2.
Siassakos, D., et.al., 2013. What makes maternity teams effective and safe? Lessons from a
series of research on teamwork, leadership and team training. Acta obstetricia et
gynecologica Scandinavica. 92(11). pp.1239-1243.
Tietze, S. and Musson, G., 2010. Identity, identity work and the experience of working from
home. Journal of Management Development. 29(2). pp.148 – 156.
Valentine, M. A., Nembhard, I. M. and Edmondson, A. C., 2015. Measuring teamwork in health
care settings: A review of survey instruments. Medical Care. 53(4). pp.16-30.
West, M. A., 2012. Effective teamwork: Practical lessons from organizational research. John
Wiley & So
Online
Work based experience. 2015. [Online]. Available through:
<http://www.emcol.co.za/students/career-development-centre/work-based-experience/>.
[Accessed on 25th June 2016].
14

APPENDIX
Appendix 1: Email to work supervisor of Thomas Cook
To: [e-mail]
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Proposal to acquire a work experience.
Respective Sir
I am currently pursuing my EDEXCEL BTEC (HND) degree into the field of Travel and
Tourism. This is the field into which I would like to establish my career as a Human Resource
Manager and hence I want to work as an intern under the assistance of your appointed HR
manager into the organisation. I will hereby assure you that my active presence will not lead to
any uncertain consequence as a disturbing element into your routine work. Moreover, I will work
with a fully dedicated manner into such well designated firm of Thomas Cook as a well known
company into tours and travel industry. Kindly allow me to acquire a work based experience in
your firm.
Thanks and Regards,
Tee Abraham.
15