eCommerce Channel Assistant Review

I'm an eCommerce channel assistant which involves setting up products, speaking with brands about what they would like briefed for their funded web banners and generally taking care of ad-hoc tasks related to ecommerce. This could also include price changes, image amendments as well as helping out the wider department. Before this I used to work in SAP where I completed a SmartSpace project which involved moving 100 colleagues around and implementing a remote working system. I also learned various things about the network of SAP systems.

The role requires for intense organisation and planning skills due to the planning being required to be completed so far out. There hasn't been any external or internal training courses within the ecommerce role. I've learned more about how online advertising/marketing works and more about how to build strong relationships with brands. In the SAP developer role I had various I.T courses from an external company on different coding languages. Whilst these were interesting we never got to really use the majority of the stuff we learned and therefore I can hardly remember much from the courses.

The program had met initial expectations by providing a job role that allows for development. Other colleagues tend to be very helpful and friendly as well as understanding about the term "apprentice". The program was odd at the start as the team I was going in to wasn't even set-up and therefore struggled to offer a strong plan of development, but I had a line manager that was keen to give me a core development plan and began to provide ways I could learn. The job role wasn't very interesting in the SAP area, therefore I paved my own way into the eCommerce team, despite many people from the I.T SAP department trying to convince me this wouldn't be a great idea.

The line managers i've had are really understanding that an apprentice is there to learn lots and may make mistakes in the process. There are lots of opportunities for us to get involved in things and the business treats us a normal employee, most employees don't really see us as apprentices, in most cases they don't know that we are apprentices. There is lots of guidance to help us and we aren't left to struggle within a big business.

The intial store work was fun and allowed us to get to understand what stores go through. This helps provide understanding for when we are in head office. The store time probably felt like it could have been shorter though. Our learning time was well structured with a clear plan to get units completed for our NVQ and BTEC. Initially the teams in I.T I was a part of didn't really know what they were doing with me. It took 4 months for me to get into my designated job role as the team was still being set-up. My manager was new to Boots so I think found it harder initially than other apprentices. The other apprentices had already settled by this time so were advancing quickly. Within the ecommerce team there is a clear strategy to teach people what they need to know as well as offering other development on the side which is nice.

There are lots of opportunity for support which is really good. This can be through emails/calls or face to face. There is plenty of time available to have conversations about progress or ask any puzzling questions.

There is usually a one to one with the line manager each week to discuss concerns and issues which is very useful. It is also a good opportunity to talk about development and plan towards that. The HR team tends to give sessions on how to embed your skills into your apprenticeship work and helps to provide opportunities for apprentices to work together. I've faced difficulties when wanting to move job roles but no-one blocked anything out in the end. An example of when things haven't been great is when a HR representative for the I.T department told three of us she would hold regular meetings to check up on our progress/concerns but never did, sometimes it felt that our concerns were ignored and eventually I lost trust in some of these characters.

Well at the moment, however can be a struggle for other apprentices. If i wanted to move out/get a car then probably would be a big struggle. For using a bus and living at home i've been able to manage the salary effectively.

I've taken part in apprenticeship fairs with Boots which is a fun thing to do with regards to interacting with people younger than myself. I've also had the opportunity to go to an electronic beauty conference within the eCommerce team. This was a day where brands would showcase their new Christmas products and was really exciting. There are lots of external events we are encouraged to get involved in but haven't done recently.

Yes

There is a job role for everyone at Boots. I already recommended a friend who would be great at working on the I.T help desk after I spent some time there within the first 4 months of my head office experience. He applied at the end of the year and now has a job on the desk. There's lots of opportunity for development here. Whilst the average salary tends to be lower than the rest of the market and the work load has increased since the 700 job loss, if you want to learn quickly in the deep end Boots can provide that.

Ensure that you understand the area you are applying for as often this can be completely different compared with your expectations. Don't stress about the interview stages as they're very relaxed and everyone is here to help you do your best. Be open minded and be prepared to learn