Department manager Review

Fast track to management within Tesco. Store based, initially following other line managers and after 6 weeks was given my own department to manage throughout the programme.

Learnt a lot of new skills to do the job but most skills needed for this role have to come from within. It is very much dependent on what sort of person you are if you are successful with this program or not.

I did enjoy a lot of it, the skills it gave me, the people I met. It was really fast moving a year passed before I even knew it. And I had so so many proud achievements there. But there were also too many days where I went home and cried into my pillow.

To some individuals of Tesco I felt very valued. By the department that I managed I felt very valued. To a lot of the store staff. I felt like a valued part of the management team. And I felt very valued by my senior manager. Tesco as whole however, as a company feels very mechanic and as an individual I didn't feel valued at all.

The programme was very well structured and step by step, however when it got towards the end that's where it kind of fell apart. There was no contact with the programme leaders like there was in the beginning.

Lots of support initially, probably the first 6 months. Towards the end was no contact with the programme leaders like there was in the beginning. I initially had a lot of store visits and people constantly in contact to see how I was getting on but this eventually stopped and once I was signed off we were all supposed to go over to express but no one kind of knew what was happening. I think it was the first year that they had made it a 2 year programme, it may be best going back to the one year programme and keeping it simple because people were getting lost and forgotten about

I received a lot of support from the rest of the management team that I worked with, especially my senior manager. She was determined to make sure that I was successful.

Initially not very well. For the hours that you have to work outside of your contacted hours it makes it not really worth it at all. Once signed off though I got a pay rise which made all the extra hours a little easier to do.

Not sure what this questions means. Job wise I don't think I could transfer much outside of the retail environment. It seems only relavent to retail.

No

Yes and no. As a parent which I am, no I wouldn't recommend. It was very difficult going to university and getting on this programme as it was, especially having a child also. I think Tesco suits someone with no outside of work commitments and nothing much else that will exist other than Tesco.

Tesco feels quite like a machine. You need to be a tough person, a tough individual with no emotion. You need to have very minimal outside of work commitments also to do well within this company.