Final Week as Graduate Apprentice

So today is my final week as the Graduate Apprentice. I have now moved into a flat in Central Birmingham and I start a permanent job at Glide on Monday. In many ways this year has flown by, but my first day at Deloitte seems like ages and ages ago because so much as happened since then.

I couldn’t have asked for a better start to my career, working for three very different firms has given me a well rounded experience of different working environments and I hope to bring the lessons I have learnt at all three of them into my job next year. James Richards has been my mentor throughout this year and I have met him on a regular basis – it has been great to bounce thoughts off a neutral person who is not involved in any of the companies, particularly about decisions about a permanent position next year – a decision that could affect the rest of my life!

 I met James last week to talk about the exact role I will be doing at Glide. The company is going through a really exciting phase of transition, looking at new revenue streams after its recent rebranding. I cannot wait to be a part of it! I am looking forward to taking on a challenge with a lot of responsibility.

I am meeting Josh, who has been selected to be the next Graduate Apprentice, tomorrow for a beer and to talk about what he has got to expect this year. It was great to sit in on the interview process and be on the ‘other side.’ It made me feel very priviliged to have had this opportunity because the calibre of candidates was so high.  Good luck to Josh, who I know will have an amazing year!

Thanks to everyone that has made this year so good for me, particularly the three employers – Deloitte, Glide and Brewin and also Birmingham Future. I have got to know and worked with some great people and want to keep in touch with all of them. Although I am excited to be starting a new challenge, in many ways I am sad that this challenge is coming to an end.

Decision Time

I only have a month left now until the end of my year as Graduate Apprentice and at Brewin Dolphin.

I was in a very priviliged position to have various options for what I did next year. Having weighed up the options,  I have come to the decision that I am going to join Glide, the second placement in September. I felt that this was an opportunity to join a company that was growing rapidly with huge potential rather than join a company that is already well established. At Glide I will immediately have a lot more responsibility than I would of had if I joined a larger organisation. They have offered me a position with managerial responsibility which will offer a huge challenge, one that I am really excited about.

It has been a really difficult decision over the last few weeks, having had different advice from family, friends and my mentor but I am now really happy with the decision I have made.

I am still in touch with everyone from Deloitte and went to the Partners BBQ on Saturday, which was really nice to see everyone. I also intend to keep in touch with everyone at Brewin Dolphin because I have made some great friends here.

Time will tell whether I have made the right decision!!

Update

Everything is still going really well at Brewin Dolphin. I get on really well with my team and everybody in the office.

We regularly go for Friday drinks and runs at lunch time which breaks up the week really nicely. I am learning more about investment management by the day and now feel that I really contribute to the team, helping with annual reviews which go to clients and making valid recommendation to the investment managers.

On a personal note, I have decided that I definitely want to continue my career in Birmingham and I am viewing flats tomorrow around the Jewellery Quarter with a view to moving in next month – exciting times! I love the working atmosphere within Birmingham – it is a city with big opportunities but maintains its small community feel. Everybody knows everybody – as Graduate Apprentice I have had the opportunity to gain lots of contacts within Birmingham and now I struggle to make my way home without seeing somebody I know and stopping for a chat!

Applications for next years Graduate Apprentice have reopened and I would encourage every Graduate to apply. I have had an amazing year so far and I cannot think of a better way to start a career in the professional world than experiencing three companies in such a short space of time. I still pinch myself sometimes because of how lucky I got in getting this opportunity and I hope to use it as a spring-board on to bigger and better things!

The link to apply for next year is below!

http://www.graduateadvantage.co.uk/internships/view/1871

 

Brewin

I am now nearly half way through my time at Brewin Dolphin.

 Like with the other two companies it has been a steep learning curve. Starting three jobs in 12 months is hard work – getting to know everybody in the offices, getting used to the different software they use and all of the technical job specific stuff! It has all been worth it though! At Brewin I am a trainee investment manager… this is helping manage clients portfolios -the managers invest in different stocks and shares to make up a portfolio individually tailored to each client. My role is researching different companies and making recommendations for investments. I also do all the admin that goes with this… writing to clients etc. With Brewin I have been to London for an induction, had an overnight stay in Newcastle to see the office there and have been on a couple of black tie dinners!

Since the last time I posted a blog I attended BYPY as a VIP guest…one of the perks of being the Graduate Apprentice. This was a really good night and feels like Birmingham’s Oscars! The night was inspiring and seeing what other people had done both in and outside of work to go the extra mile really inspired me to get involved in everything I can inside and outside of work, particularly with Birmingham Future – perhaps one day I could be nominated for an award!

On Tuesday it is the interviews for next years Graduate Apprentice. I am really looking forward to being on the other side of the table and meeting all the candidates. It is an amazing opportunity and the person that gets picked on Tuesday is in for an amazing year! Good luck to those interviewing on Tues!

Coming to an end at Glide

With the Bank Holidays coming up I now only have 3 days left at Glide.

I realise I keep saying this but the time has absolutely flown by – it doesn’t feel like long ago at that I was starting here. I have got on with everybody at the office really well and I am sure I will keep in touch. In some ways, it is frustrating that I cannot have a week longer here because I have contracts out with clients worth over £75,000! I have learnt so much during my time here and have developed so many skills – on the phone, increased confidence, increased understanding of SME’s and how they operate, sales skills and the ability to manage my own diary.

Today three of us from Glide went and cooked for 40 people from a shelter in Redditch – this is part of Glide’s policy to allow staff to do something for the local community – this was really rewarding and it made me think about how easy it would be for companies across Birmingham and the whole country to make a real difference. We cooked spaghetti bolognese and it turned out to taste really good!

Last week I received an invite to go to Birmingham Young Professional of the Year as a VIP on Birmingham Future’s table. I have heard that this is a really good event so it is v exciting to be going as a VIP – it is such a perk of being the Graduate Apprentice to be able to attend such events for free – the people I meet at such events often are in the position where they might be able to open up opportunities for next year. James, from Glide, won it last year and so he will be doing a speech.

My attention is now tuning to Brewin Dolphin and trying to make an impact there. I am happy that I have performed well in the first two placements and I am determined to have a similar experience at Brewin and develop my skills further. I feel like I am 10 times more employable now than at the start of the year!

Half way through Glide

I am now almost halfway through my time at Glide.

I have spent most of my time so far going around student unions to promote Glide to students across the country. I have been all over the country from Plymouth and Portsmouth to Hull and York. The driving is really tiring but I have really enjoyed interacting with the students. The product has had a really good reception from the students across the country and I am sure that the project was worthwhile in promoting Glide to the students. I am really happy with how it all went considering that it was my responsibility to arrange it all.

I have now fully completed all sales training, although I still have alot to learn, and I am going out into the field and selling to landlords and letting agents. It is nice how I have the autonomy to arrange my own weekly schedule with what areas I will be working in each day andwhat days I will be in the office. It is completely different to anything I have done before and anything I expected to be doing when I graduated. That’s why I have enjoyed the Graduate Apprentice experience so much so far. I have tried things that I would have never considered and hopefully by the end of it I will know exactly where I want my career to go.

In two weeks, I’m off to Cancun in Mexico to visit a house-mate from last year. It’s great actually having some money to do something like that compared to this time last year when I had very little. I’m really looking forward to the break as I have been working really hard.

Glide

After a well needed rest at Christmas I am now two weeks into my time at Glide.

I was quite nervous starting somewhere else all over again but everybody has been really nice and welcoming. It is really different to Deloitte with a much smaller office – its possible to see what happens in the whole office and how the whole business is run from customer service to branding decisions. I have been given alot of responsibility and have been put in charge of a student marketing project. I have to make decisions and be accountable for them.

I am in a sales role and and have booked stalls at about 20 Universities across the country  to promote the product – its amazing to have my own project and be completely responsible for its success or failure. The first fair is tomorrow in Liverpool so I am both nervous and excited to see how it goes!

I have been having sales training with Omar and James and have found it more difficult than I perhaps thought I would. There is a lot more to sales than I thought there was, its not just a case of relying on my people skills which I perhaps thought – there is a clear structure and procedure to every single sale. I spent a day in Leeds shaddowing Omar, which I really enjoyed. It was good to see exactly what the job entails. I am determined to rise to the challenge and add revenue to the company.

I have a really busy week next week going to Liverpool, Chester, Nottingham Trent and Exeter Universities. I love the fact that every day will be different and that I am selling a product that I genuinely believe is a great idea. I’m really looking forward to the rest of my time here and I am determined to make an impact.

22 December

So today is my last day at Deloitte. I’ve had a great time here and met some great people – I will definitely come back regularly for drinks and keep in touch with everybody!

It christmas party season and I’ve been to three! I went to the Deloitte one last week which was really nice.. went out for food and drink and then onto Jam House. This was the same day a the Christmas Comms meeting. Me and the other Graduates did our version of the Apprentice. It turned out really well..we had done all the filming but had not seen the edited version.. we then had to do a live boardroom in front of the office.

I also managed to wangle a ticket to the Birmingham Future Christmas party, this was on a Tuesday night and I’d planned not to be out to late but ended up having a late one. I met loads of new people and James was there from Glide, where I start in January, so spent alot of time with him.

I’m really looking forward to the Christmas break and really excited about starting at Glide in January. I went to their Christmas Party on Friday and everybody is really nice. We went wine tasting and then onto the Jam House. I think I’m going to fit in really well there, there are about 20 employees.. very different to Deloitte, but everybody gets on really well, it seems like a young exciting office that work hard and play hard!

My time at Deloitte has been really valuable.. I’ve learnt so much and met great people. I got some really good feedback and I would hope that everybody thinks I did a good job in the 4 months I was here.

5 December 2010

Another week that has flown by! Time has gone so so quickly since I started!

This week was really busy at work with the other Graduates out at college studying for their first exams. It’s really nice that this year I don’t have to do exams – I’m glad of the break after school and university – when work is finished its actually finished and there’s not the worry of having to do work for exams. I’m starting to get more and more responsibility at Deloitte with clients phoning me more and more often. We were also filming for the Christmas Comms meeting – this is the day of the Christmas party and involves the Graduates each year basically making fools out of themselves!

I also met James Villareal and Omar from Glide Utilities on Thursday to talk about my next placement and where they see me fitting into the firm. Omar is head of sales and they envisaged me being out in the field having a go at sales… which sounds really exciting to me and really different to what I’ve been doing at Deloitte.. that’s what is so good about this scheme.. I left Uni not having a clue what I wanted to do and after this year I will have experienced three completely different jobs and hopefully know what type of career I want to pursue. Talking to James and Omar, it sounds like a really exciting time to join Glide, at a time when they are expanding rapidly and having great success.

The Graduate Apprentice

Hi,

I’m Richard and this is my first post as the new Graduate Apprentice. My time so far has been action packed and has more than lived up to my excitement and expectations before hand. I am currently just over halfway through my first placement at Deloitte.

Everybody at the company has made me feel so welcome and have helped me settle in. I joined on the same day as all the permanent graduates and I have been treated exactly the same as them and have made some really good friends. My four months are spent in tax, specifically International Assignment Services (IAS). Although Deloitte is a huge company, there is still an extremely close-knit group within IAS and everybody gets on really well.

The placement started off with some introductory days and a week away in Milton Keynes for our Graduate induction. This was really enjoyable, we stayed in a really nice hotel and although there was loads of information to take in, it was really sociable at the same time. It was great to meet people in IAS from all over the country as well as get to know the others from the Birmingham office even better.

One thing that has stood out and that I have enjoyed most about my time so far is the social side of work. Everybody goes for informal drinks on a Friday after work and then there are many events with food and drink that everybody attends. So far, with Deloitte we have already had an Annual Dinner, an Away day and the Christmas party is looming.

There was the Birmingham Future Welcome Event aswell, which was a really good night – the formal event finished at about 9.30pm but lots of us stayed and I didn’t get home until after 2am! I also ran the Birmingham Half Marathon a few weeks ago which I got involved with through Birmingham Future. The event emphasized how good a place Birmingham is to work and live… even though I’m only from Walsall which is not far from Birmingham at all, I have been surprised at just how nice a place it is to work and the atmosphere and vibe the city has… I have already been looking for flats in central Birmingham.

The time so far has absolutely flown by, I have been kept really busy at work – which I’d much prefer to having to ask for work all the time. I’m really starting to understand the job more and more and feel myself getting better and better with time. The adjustment from the University lifestyle to working took a little longer than I expected -I found that I was always tired, just because I was busy all the time at work and then most nights after work.

This is an amazing opportunity and I am determined to make the most of this 12 months and hopefully gain a clearer understanding as to where I want my career to progress.

http://www.midlandsbusinessnews.co.uk/2010-07/birmingham-hires-graduate-apprentice.aspx