Human Resources Apprentice Review

My role is as an HR Apprentice this involves working on various projects as I am new to the industry and type of work. Tarmac has provided me with different projects covering different areas of the business to allow for full exposure of the role. Within the first month of my apprenticeship I was attending meetings, drafting letters/invites to various disciplinary's and investigations and sitting in on these depending on the level of the investigation with my line manager. I was allowed to arrange for myself to visit different sites and get tours so I was able to learn about the different products Tarmac creates and to give be a wider knowledge of the business. The first much was predominately getting me to all different areas to learn as much as I could and see as much before I was getting constant work. Now that I have settled into the business my usual week involves working within my main office carrying out different projects for my manager and wider team to help support them. This meaning that in the morning I have the same set of spreadsheets which I will update/check, send out regular emails depending on the week. From this any other tasks will be given to me throughout the day. My internal interactions is with my team which is predominately 5 people, along with this any other individual within my office who I will talk to if my manager isn't there to help. along with this I am attending college once a week to gain my CIPD qualification which I am being supported with, this being that the topics I am studying in class I am being given relevant jobs/projects within the business to help further my understanding and knowledge of the subject, allowing me to put it into a real life situation and practice. Lastly, I have been given my own project to continuously work on in one of our sites in London, this meaning that I have constant communication with the people within these sites regardless to if I am there or not.

Since starting with Tarmac the skills that I have learnt are: - CIPD Level 3 which is vital in understanding and learning what I need to do in what I hope to be my career - Fundamentals Skills Training - Learning different systems - GDPR Training - STAR 360 Training Skills which have been developed: - Social Skills - Typing/wording skills - Confidence with speaking - Navigation Skills, I would've been unlikely to travel to so many different places if I hadn't have worked her - Knowledge of the business and products

I enjoy my programme completely, it's exactly what I was looking for and offered me the skills and experience that anyone would need going into an apprenticeship. The people I work with made me feel comfortable and that I have a voice and can talk about different opinions that I may have, with any project going on within the team I am always given some part to play which includes me but also pushes me to progress. The company culture varies between areas of the business as we are so vast I still haven't seen all of it but wherever I have gone as I don't know areas well I am always greeted with mutual respect and anyone is happy to help, my age or that I am an apprentice doesn't falter how people talk and or act towards me, I am treated the same as everyone else. Personally, working with Tarmac has exceeded my expectations as I didn't think that being of my age and having little knowledge within any industry would go against me and that it would take the first year of my apprenticeship to fully be involved with what goes on. This not being the case and I was given plenty of opportunities from the start. Which I really enjoy as it makes me feel more valued and that my team genuinely want's me to succeed and progress within the role and company.

My induction with the company was given instantly on my first day, I was given a tour of the facilities, introduced to various people and given a run down of information I would need while working in the building. Along with this, the training that I have received was given from the start however, the booked training was still a few months in as I was given time to settle first. Anyone I have worked with or met have all offered there support when needed this being both to do with work and by studies as I have been in contact with other apprentices within the business so we are able to talk about college and help each other when necessary. I would personally say that my programme has been well organised to meet the needs of someone just starting within the industry .

The most support I receive is from my manager due to being constantly with them/working with them, because of this we have a lot of communication with them and working in a close environment I am able to have a direct communication. My HR Team offer a lot of support, they've all had different experiences so it is useful to get peoples different takes on situations. Along with this everyone seems willing to support, meaning that no one has acting negatively like they feel obliged to help but they genuinely want to. This has been shown when I've had issues they'll call me rather than email or book a meeting with me to go through a project without getting interrupted etc.

I see my tutor once a week and we are given the opportunity to book in 1:1 after class if we want to discuss anything to do with assignments or are struggling and don't want to bring this up to the rest of the class. Along with this she has given us her email if we need her at any point during the week she will aim to reply within 24hours which is always helpful. Along with this me and my class have created a group chat so that we can also support each other and again everyone is of a different background so we can all offer different experiences. Overall, I enjoy my qualification and do believe that this is useful

I think that everything I have learnt and will learn is useful when it comes to my day to day job as it is all relevant and is likely to play a part and some point, and also the reverse, something that has happened at work we may then cover in class and this helps clarify what has happened to me and also helps for me to put it into a real life situation. From doing this course I think I have a better understanding of what will be required of me within the job role and day to day business

Regarding extra-curricular activities I am aware that there are different projects and activities can get involved in which are not mandatory (these being local and spread out among the wider business) however I am currently not apart of any of these, Team's will frequently get together for social events but these aren't organised by the company

Yes

I think that the technical apprenticeships they offer are a really good starting point and Tarmac is really supportive in getting people through the door and in supporting them as an individual and allowing them to gain more knowledge and really thriving in what they do, there's plenty of opportunities to progress. This also going for office biased staff, everything offered is for the benefit of the individual and a couldn't fault my apprenticeship so far

The advice that I would give is the following: The application process isn't complicated, vacancies are always advertised on the internal website so they are easy to find. Interviews may not be everyone's favorite thing but whoever interviews you isn't looking for you to fail they will ask questions and prompt you to get the best possible answer and to make you feel comfortable. Also having a few questions in mind to ask is never a bad idea, along with doing research about the company or position that you are applying for. The same applies for assessment days, this is a great way to show your character and stand out, it's not a trick to make you look bad. Lastly, any opportunity you are presented with be open minded about, they are a great way of learning new things and meeting people which may be vital in helping you in the future. Personally, I would've like to have been told more about the assessment days and interviewing process as I feel that school/college can never fully prepare you for how you would act in a real life situation