I applied online via the IBM system. First stage was a online test (IPAT) which was pretty tough compare to others. Once passed, I was invited to an assessment centre at IBM Hursley. The assessment day was surprising enjoyable. It started with a confirmatory test which tested whether you had the correct reasoning and logic skills to be a Software Developer. Next was a short presentation on "What technology means to me". The presentation was to one person and with presenter and presentee seated so was very relaxed. A one-to-one interview was next - again very relaxed and pleasant. A role-play exercise (individual) finished the morning (something about recommending a sales system and ongoing support for a pet accessory company). The afternoon consisted of group exercises and were much tougher, as much because of the nature of group exercises as anything. I also suspect that some of the problems were unsolvable and designed to see how you work in a team under pressure. The exercises were a negotiation task, a team-working task and a group interview where our responses were individual but had to expand on others' answers. I really enjoyed the day and it was made clear early on that the dozen or so candidates were not competing against each other. As such, the candidates on my day were a great group and everyone seemed to get on great. Unfortunately, I passed the assessment centre but IBM had no software development roles in a location that suited me. I was very impressed with IBM and their operations though.