Technology Apprentice (Service Specialist) Review

As an apprentice Service specialist in a third level support team my role is to be an expert on a particular application. Day to day I deal with off host incidents affecting the platform. This means anything affecting the front end including servers.This involves a lot of analysis using monitoring tools and collaboration with a number of different teams within the bank. My main aim is to identify root cause as quickly as possible. I attend a number of meetings daily and weekly including team meetings and incident review meetings. I also update our monitoring tools making them more efficient.

Definitely. I have always been interested in problem solving and my role is ideal for this and I have become much more skilled in that area. I have learnt a lot about servers and using unix command line to access and interact with them. I have gained a lot of knowledge about the particular application I support reaching the level of subject matter expert. I have learnt about incident management and change management as well. Although I don't directly do programming in my role I do need to read the code in order to diagnose issues and therefore I have also gained some programming language knowledge.

I have had a really good experience with my programme. A lot of the modules aren't completely relevant but I have really enjoyed all of the knowledge based ones. I find the career skills and work based units less interesting and I don't learn as much. it is mostly attaching evidence to workbooks. During the coronavirus pandemic all of the courses have been online and I have enjoyed this format. I also really enjoy the role I have been put in at Natwest.

This year I have been really impressed with how organised and structured the programme has been. Previously I completed level 6 (before maternity leave) and my experience was not great. This was fed back and I really feel NatWest and BPP have taken this on board. Our accessor keeps us updated regularly and we have a learning plan and seat deadlines. Even with the pandemic this hasn't been altered which is great. BPP had to change plans as they couldn't hold our face to face sessions. They quickly organised alternative online sessions which have been well organised (apart from some technical issues in the first one which were quickly fixed).

I have received lots of support from my employer. I have had 2 very supportive managers that have given me the time needed to complete my coursework. My team have also given me thorough training and support where needed. I paused my course for a year due to maternity leave and NatWest were very supportive of this and a plan was in place for my return. The only thing I think could be improved is the information given when starting as I felt it lacked.

Bpp have been fantastic this year in terms of support. Gail my accessor is great and replies to any emails or queries quickly. She is always available to have a call if you are struggling or need a bit of help. I needed an extension for one of my modules due to leave and Gail quickly actioned this leaving me with no stress. The other staff are also very supportive and the lecturing staff who provide the training have been great at answering questions.

As I mentioned earlier, A lot of the modules haven't been directly related to my role. However, I would say all of the knowledge based training is applicable in someway whether that is in the overall picture of my department or as a potential in future role. The career skills have been less useful and I have felt more they are a tick box exercise. That isn't too say others wouldn't find them useful, particularly those who are school leavers and may have less work experience.

There is network groups which you can join. These include the womans network, aspire (young bankers), LGBT and multicultural network. They have lots of events year round both social and networking). There are also lots of social events advertised through the events hub. There is a gym onsite so there are classes and sports that are held there. Often there are opportunities to meet with the board or senior executive team at Q and A sessions.

Yes

I have found NatWest a brilliant place to work. I feel that they really care about wellbeing and aim to make it an enjoyable place to work. Flexibility is there which is great. I normally work from home twice a week and am in the office three times a week starting at 8 and finishing at 4. Managers are very supportive and feels like they want me to do well. There are a lot of extra things to get involved in if you wish which is a bonus too.

The application process is very competitive. NatWest are looking for enthusiastic people with the right mindset. Before applying make sure to read the NatWest website and all about the values as this is key in the application process. Have a think about what your goals and ambitions are and why you want to work for NatWest over other organisations, what is it that you like about the organisation. Don't be afraid to ask questions.