Apprentice store manager in training Review

My day to day job involves the running of a store and managing the team in that store. One minute I could be on the till serving our customers the next I could be answering the phone dealing with customer complaints. I also deal with HR issues such as absences recruitment. No two days are ever the same which is what I love about this job and completing the apprenticeship has made me more confident in my role.

I have learnt so many new skills in such a short space of time. I've completed a maths qualification with lifetime which has helped me massively. My Training with Iceland has been a huge help with me even though I've been with the company 13 years I'm learning new things every single day. I've learnt much more about HR having started the role and not knowing anything I can complete investigations through to the end. Through the learning of all these new skills my confidence in leading and managing the team has improved massively.

I have enjoyed my time completing my apprenticeship with lifetime the support from your trainers and lifetime themselves is second to none. My trainer is there when ever I need her and is always happy to help. The support I've had from Iceland and my manager instore has been great I've been allocated time to compete my work.

The structure of the programme is perfect I know what is expected of me on every review and nothing is ever dumped on me as a surprise which is great as I can plan my apprenticeship work around my day to day job and If I feel I'm getting snowed under my trainer is very understanding and will help me ease my workload to ensure I can complete both my day to day job and apprenticeship work.

As I said above I cannot ask for more support from my employer I am allocated time to complete my apprenticeship work and if I need more time my manager will always give it to me with no questions asked. My area manager always asks how I'm doing my with apprenticeship and if I need any other support he is always happy to help. And support from head office is great and they are always there when I need help.

I couldn't ask for more support from lifetime than I already get although I haven't had a face to face with my trainer since March due to covid I am still able to call/email/text when ever with any questions and I will always get a reply back. I have been having remote reviews which is great as I'm still able to complete my apprenticeship and am still able to get the support I need

Completing this qualification has improved my confidence massively and has helped me understand retail more even through I've worked in retail for 13 years I am still learning new things every single day which has helped me improve in managing my store and team in a better way. As I understand the retail process much better I can guide my team into delivering results and ensuring customer satisfaction which not only helps me but helps the business

Yes

Iceland is a family friendly business I treat my team as part of my family as I see them everyday. Iceland is a very relaxed place to work but we all pull together and get the job done. When the directors visit our stores we are on first name terms and they are grounded and down to earth. They listen to their employees and some of the biggest businesses changes have come from members of staff on the front line. We are fairly rewarded for all of our efforts.

My advice would be to apply weather you've got retail experience or not you will be supported the whole way through the process no question is too silly. You will be made to feel welcome and part of the family from day one.