Customer Adviser Review

My role day to day involves servicing customer’s bank accounts and answering their general banking questions. This can be through our new Mobile Messaging channel via the app or over the phone depending on service needs. At the moment I am trained in general banking, internet banking and I also have basic credit card training.

Yes, whilst I have been at Lloyds I have been trained in Personal Banking, Internet banking, Credit cards and Mobile messaging so my skills have massively developed during my time here. I have also enrolled in a Modern Apprenticeship in Financial Services to further develop and hone my banking skills during my time on the apprenticeship I have learnt about GDPR breaches, safety procedures and much more.

I'm really enjoying my apprenticeship as it helps motivate me to continually develop my skills. It also helps me to put my thoughts and learning into words which I have found very beneficial. At the moment I am finding the workbooks a little repetitive and wondered if I should have opted for the exam instead. But generally I am happy with the programme.

At the beginning of my apprenticeship I thought it was quite disorganised as I was advised I could begin despite being on a fixed term contract which I later found wasn't entirely true. The lady who advised me this then left the organisation so I had no contact for the apprenticeship which meant my start time was delayed. Since I have been allocated a mentor it has been much better organised. The structure is good overall - the workbooks can be a little long-winded but I understand I had the option of an exam which I didn't take.

My employer is extremely supportive of the apprenticeship - I get time keyed off in my schedule to complete my workbooks and site visits. On top of this my manager is very helpful and will always answer any questions I have regarding the programme if he can. We have also been allowed a full paid day off work to attend an Apprenticeship Development Day.

I believe People Plus are my training provider and they have been great for the most part. As I mentioned earlier there was a significant hiccup at the beginning of my programme. Since then I have had no problems at all with the provider or my mentor, who is always happy to help and so far has always come in face to face for my site visits which is much appreciated.

I think the qualification helps somewhat - by this I mean that it can help in specific areas which I am required to research in order to answer questions in the workbook. This means I am looking up things for my role I wouldn't have looked up otherwise so it definitely broadens my knowledge. It also helps cement my new learning in my mind as I have to physically write this down. In terms of development I feel this is more affected by my own drive rather than specifically by the qualification.

Yes, there are lots of charity events, football teams, theatre visits, zoo visits and much more. We can also get a discount on certain things such as cinema tickets and mini golf among others. In the past I have been to golf and a charity ball with Lloyds. I am in the process of arrange a volunteering day for the team - this is a full paid day where you can choose an activity to help a charity.

Yes

They are an inclusive company who look after colleagues with free shares each year, bonuses and a great pension scheme. On top of this they offer discounts at loads of retailers and have a colleague community on Hive where everyone shares ideas and helps each other out. Good pay and holidays, team managers in my experience are more than happy to help with whatever problem you're having - professionally or personally.

Be prepared for the interview process and have some generic answers in mind. Make sure you can be flexible with when you can come in for assessment days as this can be quite soon after the interview. Try not to be too shy on the first few days as it's likely you'll be in a team with several people from training. Take any development opportunities you get.