Step in Sabina’s Shoes as a Sales and Marketing Graduate

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Ever dreamed of turning your passion for iconic snacks into a thriving career? Sabina Sabova, Sales and Marketing Graduate, spills the beans on what it's really like to kickstart your journey at Mondelēz International, from chocolate-filled inductions to hands-on project leadership. Be inspired and discover how you can make it your best in the world of snacking!

Can you describe your initial days/weeks at Mondelēz International, and what aspects of the onboarding process were most helpful during your initial adjustment period?

My Mondelēz adventure started with a two-day induction at our Bournville office, where I had the chance to meet all the talented graduates in our cohort and get introduced to the company through networking lunches, short presentations, and fun games. We couldn’t miss the opportunity to visit the Bournville staff shop (and fill our suitcases with chocolate), take photos in front of the iconic purple wall, and even play (and win!) a round or two of the Traitors game.

After the induction (and successful laptop set-up), it was time for us all to meet our managers and teams – right in the midst of week 1, which I learned was the busiest time for my function, Sales Revenue Planning (SRP). By this point, the nerves had set in, but there was truly nothing to be worried about, as we had a month of functional training ahead of us.

One thing that stood out to me was having a buddy to answer all my questions (no question is a stupid question), someone who had been in my shoes before and could support me from the get-go. My colleague, now a friend, Valerie, showed me the ropes, introduced me to the team (and their respective roles and responsibilities), and ensured I was well set up for a great experience in my role, as well as in the broader Mondelēz environment. Thanks to her, I didn’t have to wonder where to sit in the office, what time lunch break is, or who to turn to if I have a problem.

Did you feel like you had sufficient resources and guidance to succeed in your role?

What’s great about Mondelēz is the amount of support you receive as a new joiner in the business, from training and team days to handover materials, personal inductions, and the never-ending excitement from everyone around you. The graduate scheme has been run successfully for a couple of years now, and there are loads of training available, and it truly is a well-oiled machine that sets you up for success.

The training is spaced out across the month. It becomes a mixture of the everyday with inductions into different functions and specific functional training, which helps you to slowly gain more and more understanding of how the business works and what part you play within it.

Equally, I am so grateful to go through training with my graduate cohort and share the experience with them – allowing us to learn from each other, build friendships, lift each other when times get tough, and share a good laugh.

Reflecting on your journey as a graduate at Mondelēz International, what kind of training or development opportunities have you been given during the scheme?

As a graduate at Mondelēz, I have never felt like a graduate. This is not the type of internship where I get to bring coffee for a meeting my manager is having. Most likely, I’m there in the room with my entire team (even my manager’s manager, eek!), standing in front of the screen and explaining why we should change the product promotional strategy. It’s truly a hands-on experience, where I get to lead projects and take responsibility for projects from start to finish.

Aside from functional training, Mondelēz puts a strong emphasis on personal development. And so, while it is essential to understand the scope of your role and responsibilities that come with it, I find it equally important to have the right mindset and develop your interpersonal skills. I had a chance to take part in volunteering, dive deeper into my behavioural patterns, and through a series of fun personality tests, figure out how to best work within our team.

We also have different employee resource groups, in which employees can take part to contribute to the Mondelēz community based on the causes they are passionate about (such as Women@MDLZ, LGBTQ+ Network, Disability@MDLZ, Race Relations Network…). I have a huge passion for early careers and events, so I’ve been super lucky to join the Young Professionals Network to support the planning and execution of our 2025 Summer Sizzler – which is a Mondelēz summer festival for all our employees (how cool!).

Do you feel connected to the larger Mondelēz International purpose? If so, how?

When I was growing up, we had Milka chocolate present in every special moment, no matter how big or small – a birthday party, Christmas, or a family weekend trip wouldn’t be complete without Milka. And that’s what I found wonderful, that a product can hold so much meaning, and I wished to be a part of creating that magic in everyday moments for people across the world.

Now, being so lucky to work in Mondelēz, I get to play my part in doing exactly that – whether I’m attending a project call to launch a new product, reviewing promotional effectiveness of existing products, or making sure we have enough product available in-store for when our consumers need it. This is probably the part that continues to amaze me the most: how many hands a product goes through before being in my fridge or cupboard – and the magic just multiplies throughout that entire process.

Would you recommend our early career schemes to others? Why or why not?

Absolutely! The scheme is awesome, especially in its combination of breadth and depth of experience. During the three years, you have the option to try out three different functions (and categories), which gives you the option to understand not just the business from various perspectives, but also understand which role suits you the best and which one you like the most. Additionally, having a year in each function really allows you to explore the function in depth.

I must admit, I was quite hesitant about joining the scheme at the beginning, as I thought marketing was where my heart lies and was sure that I wanted to be a marketer for the rest of my life, not wanting to lose time rotating across functions I don’t feel passionate about. But how would I know that I don’t like something (or won’t be good at) it if I’ve never even tried it? I will be forever thankful to my now-colleague Bryony for asking me this question and unknowingly re-framing my thinking.

Take this as your sign to try out different things, because now, after a year in SRP, I can safely say I enjoyed every bit of it (and had a blast!), even when I was convinced at first that it just wasn’t for me.