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Message: <blockquote data-quote="j.s.cox" data-source="post: 220687" data-attributes="member: 20454">UpdatePace of WorkHaving well and truly settled in at bp now, I'm beginning to get a bit more used to how everything operates. This has made me realise that I am struggling with the pace of work a little bit. In my last seat at NRF, everything was expected to be done as soon as reasonably possible. At bp everything is a lot slower. I think part of this is because everything is considered very carefully from a business perspective. For a lot of the projects I'm working on, the money required is mind-boggling, so they have to be sure that they want to commit to spending it. This also means that there are many levels of approval before something is actioned. A lot of my tasks are entirely dependent on when someone else gets back to me which really slows things down.The other factor, is that most people have a very active life outside of work (including families, hobbies, and other things), which means that they simply don't have the same number of work hours in a day to be able to look at certain documents or make certain decisions. This means that where I would have been given a deadline of the next day for certain tasks at NRF, the same task at bp can take at least a week.Whilst I can quite clearly see how this slower pace could really support some people's lifestyles, I'm surprised to say that I find it so much more boring than private practice, despite the really cool projects I'm working on. It's lovely to be home by 4:30pm most days, but I love how engaged my brain was at NRF. I think this also reflects the fact that I am a lot more productive when I have a limited amount of time. If I know I have weeks to do something, I completely lose momentum unless I set myself an internal deadline. My reaction to a slower pace has really surprised me, and I imagine as I move through my career my priorities may change but for now, I definitely prefer the fast pace of private practice.SocialisingDespite the fact that I'm not the biggest fan of the slower pace, it certainly has its benefits. I've been able to meet most of the lawyers working in the London office I am in, even though they are in completely different teams. This has given me a much better indication of the business as a whole and it's such a valuable time to learn and connect with other people. Aside from regular lunches with other trainees, other parts of the team, my own team, and the business, my favourite part of the week is joining the Customer and Products team for a walk before work on a Wednesday morning. The exercise leaves me feeling very refreshed and I always learn something new and get to speak with lovely people. It's also helped me to understand the role of the Customers and Products team a lot more, which I think is quite important to understanding how our roles fit together to help the business function. Other Traineesbp takes on about 10 trainees from their panel firms each seat rotation. I think this makes it quite a unique client secondment from a trainee perspective. Although we are spread across the London offices, it's great to meet up when we can. Not only have I made some good friends from this, but I've also learnt a lot about what other firms do and how their different processes operate. I think that's also pretty valuable. As we are all at different stages in our TCs, it's also great to hear about their other seats and the qualification process at other firms. It turns out that everyone else is further along in the process than me, so it feels especially fulfilling that I have been given this client secondment opportunity in my second seat. Beyond that, I really like our small cohort, and I will try to stay connected beyond this secondment.NRF ConnectionsAlthough I am on a client secondment, I have tried my best to stay connected with NRF. I have attended some of their events (such as one for Save the Children), and I remain engaged with any emails sent out. Due to this, I have managed to have a really rewarding discussion with our Chair of EMEA. I have also been invited to take party in the Lord Mayor's Parade as part of the City Solicitor's float which is very exciting. I only see good things coming out of this continued interaction with my firm, so I am making a real effort with it.Thank you for following my journey!</blockquote>

Verification: Our company is called, "The Corporate ___ Academy". What is the missing word here?

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