I never thought I would get to write that as a headline – but that’s exactly what happened in Chennai this month! Working in the scientific services group, one of our roles is to support claims, demonstrations and approve marketing communications for the brands we support. Demonstrations are a really powerful tool in communicating with our consumer. It’s easy to be sceptical about claims made in TV advertising, it’s a lot harder to disregard when you see it with your own eyes!

This month marketing organised a “Great stain-off” which included use of a 20foot cloth, lots of messy stains and numerous packs of Vanish! We invited residents to throw wine, iodine, ketchup, juices, tea and coffee at 4 targets on our 20ft cloth. 3 stains successfully within the target won residents a prize – I’m sure you can guess what that was !

After a messy hour, the yellow cloth was looking a bit worse for wear and it was definitely time to bring out the Vanish. Taking half the cloth for washing, residents looked on as Vanish got to work. Everyone was intrigued by the oxygen action you could see and had lots of burning questions. The Grande finale was revealed when washing was complete and the cloth was hung next to its messy counterpart.

I think the results speak for themselves!

 Over the past few days, my team and I were in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, for a marketing research project.  We were able to head out into the field for a truly amazing experience.  Unlike the usual analysis done in the office, our project was conducted at The Great Smoky Mountain National Park.  We all hiked through the Appalachian Trail and up to Clingman’s Dome (the highest point on the trail).  It was great to really feel the essence of the park, and truly understand why our concept would be successful.  The mountains were beautiful and the air was clean and refreshing.  It was surprising to learn that the reason they’re called the Smoky’s is because of air pollution!

Also, this is the #1 most visited National Parks in the United States.   At one point during our tour of the mountain, we could look to our right and see Tennessee, and to our left, North Carolina.  This trip was not only a great way to conduct research; it was also a good team building activity.  There were discussions on consumer insights, industry trends and long term growth strategies.  We also brainstormed on ways we can continue to grow our business.  This just further reinforced the idea that not all marketing research is done in the office and that it can be fun, exciting and unique, just like RB!  I’ll leave you with 5 quick facts about the Smoky Mountains. Please post a response on any of the cool places you’ve been to around the world!

5 Facts about the Smoky Mountain Nation Park

1. Clingmans Dome is also the third highest mountain East of the Mississippi behind Mount Craig (6,647 feet / 2037 metres) and Mount Mitchell (6,684 feet / 2037 metres).

2. With approximately 9-10 million visitors annually, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is also the most visited national park in the United States. (In contrast, Grand Canyons National Park receives less than 5 million visitors annually)

3. Great Smoky Mountains National Park encompasses approximately 244,000 acres in Tennessee and 276,000 acres in North Carolina for a total of 520,000 acres or more than 800 square miles.

4. In addition to the Appalachian Trail, Great Smoky Mountains National Park features more than 850 miles of hiking trails.

5. The raspberries and blackberries found throughout the trails  are absolutely delicious (I found this out myself)

Source: www.Escapetothesmokies.com

As I am fairly new to the company I thought it would be interesting for anyone considering RB as an employer to hear what my 5 favorite aspects about RB are so far – this will give you an idea of what you are likely to experience when joining the company.

1. Young/fast paced environment

The first time I was toured around the R&D site in Hull I couldn’t believe how young everyone looked! I remember doing my placement year for GSK and wondering were everyone under a ‘certain age’ had disappeared to, it definitely appeared like you had to be middle aged to hold a managerial position.

Reckitts is completely different from any other company I have worked for as age is no barrier to your progression. My manager is 27 and my department director is 37. Not only is the company fast paced in project timings but if you’re ambitious your career progression will be too!

2. Your opinions count

At RB I feel like I can really make a difference! My opinions are always respected and listened to. As long as you can back your opinions with valid reasoning it doesn’t matter who you are speaking to and what level they are at within the company.
Maybe all the arguing with my sister when I was younger had a purpose after all

3. Early responsibility

This is the original reason I wanted to get onto the graduate scheme. Jobs I had before bored me as development was so slow! Currently I am leading two NPD projects and also looking at developing new concepts for future projects. I have ownership and responsibility of these – I am accountable!

4. Exposure to the business

I could natter on for a few minutes about all the different functions I consult with in my day to day work, to list a few; marketing, regulatory, technical agencies, design agencies, supply, procurement..

I guess my point is in R&D you are not segregated from the commercial side of the business, in-fact you probably have the greatest exposure. Real variation means your day is always exciting and fast paced.

5. Role movement within the company

Averagely people spend 2-3 years within a role at RB, it really is that fast paced and if you crave to get your footing onto the career ladder and climb it in giant steps then RB really is the place for you. The career ladder at RB is not straight up, it’s a bit like snakes and ladders – you’ll make many sideways movements which gives you wider exposure and experience.

The role movement in the graduate scheme consists of 3 placements over 2 years – these are working for the 3 pillars of R&D – Category development, scientific services and new technologies group.

So there are my top 5 reasons to work for RB. Sound like the working environment you’d thrive in?

Hello everyone and welcome to my first Blog post!

As is tradition, I thought I would use this white space to properly introduce myself and give you a tasty snippet of what’s to come. I started at RB after taking a gap year to travel, something I fully recommend to anyone considering it, you’ll make memories you’ll never forget, plus a very weighty photo album – and then there is the ‘life experience’ for your CV .

Aircare

My first placement on the graduate scheme has been for Airwick – one of RB’s powerbrands which is sold in over 60 countries. Working in category development I manage projects in an R&D capacity from development to launch. I am really enjoying the exposure to the business as this is something which was missing from my previous jobs. My days are always really varied and I can be doing anything from visiting technical design agencies to holding TCs with our suppliers in China. I have real responsibility and freedom to make decisions which will effect the company’s progression.

One of my most exciting moments so far was seeing our new Airwick campaign on TV – I even made my friend rewind it on sky so we could watch it again!

FMCG

Working in FMCG I feel a real sense of pride unlike that when I worked in other industries. Every time I walk though a supermarket I see our products everywhere and it’s a great feeling to be able to say ‘I work for the company who makes that’. As the company is so fast paced, (we bring products to market in 2-3 years) its not long before you’ll be walking through the supermarket and you can say, ‘ I managed that product – that was me’.

Hull

Location, Location, Location – Hull really isn’t as bad as people say! I really enjoy living here – apart from the ice cold sea breeze in winter – eek! There is always something going on in the city centre and you are not far from Leeds, York and Beverly for a more scenic day out – or a crazy night! You can definitely get the work/life balance right at RB.

Are you thinking about applying for the RB graduate scheme? Leave me a question – I’d love to help!

So I thought it was time to give an update from South Korea… The past month has been phenomenally busy! I have been back to the UK for my Christmas break and whilst in Europe I took business trips to Poland and Portugal.

This is an example of how RB people are constantly looking for and creating opportunities to maximize our understanding of our industry. Where many people would concentrate on a relaxing holiday, my first thought was returning home created perfect opportunities to visit European RB factories. These trips allowed me to get real first hand observation of how certain products are produced and now I plan to run production line trials for both products in one of our Korean factories in the next couple of weeks.

Like my colleagues, I’m totally focused on my work and if that means staying at work late to finish an experiment or taking last minute trips then I’m more that happy to do so. This may sound like a lot of hard work, and trust me, working for RB definitely isn’t for everyone, but if you have a genuine passion and drive then you can have the most rewarding successful career you could imagine.

So far in my 17 months with RB I have worked on an innovative new Airwick launch, travelled to Italy, UK, Poland and Portugal with the business and I’m due to launch two new products to the Korean market in the next few months. All this has been made possible because I joined a company that disregards traditional laid-back career progression and pushes you to develop quickly and constantly. If this sounds like the pace of development you want from your own career then have a look what opportunities are available with RB at the moment.

If this post has made you think of any questions you have about working for RB, the graduate scheme or R&D jobs in general, please comment below and I’ll answer.