Trainee manager Review

I am a trainee manager who has now had experience running the kitchen, weigh room and green zone, high risk, and is now training to be able to do the senior zone manager job. The program has allowed me to experience roles across the organization to get a holistic view of the company and the roles of the various sections.

This apprenticeship has given me the opportunity to develop existing skills into a far wider audience in a different setting. The skills required are much the same as most organizations with a heavy importance on people skills, organizational skills, diplomacy, tenacity and curiosity. It has shown me that the skills I have accrued are definitely transferable.

I enjoy the programme a lot. It has the right mix of learning and experience for me. I enjoy learning new things but I also enjoy studying academically too which suits me really well. I am able to apply the knowledge learned in University to the real world of work which makes it useful.

The university side of things has been very well organised even through the transition into online learning. It generally has good structure, pace and depth. The company side of things has been a little more hit and miss along the way which some episodes of disorganisation, weak timing and lack of communication. However, over all it has been fine.

My employer is very supportive, I have the time I need to complete assignments set and to attend university which is great as there is no stress involved with getting what I need. They are also willing to work around needs and are keen to push me on to try ne things and to stretch my expereinces.

As stated previously my employer is very supportive but so is the university. I have a mentor who is in contact on a regular basis via email or meetings and the lecturers are really accessible and are happy to field any questions you may have about the course or topic area.

The topics covered have been directly relatable to the work I do and the roles I've had. It has been a little spooky in how well matched up they are as I generally find that on return from a university session, the topic covered will pop up in the work place and I can use it to help either understand a situation or to fix it/ work with it.

I help out with organising some social stuff for staff at the site but there isn't anything else socially going on at the site nor within the shift on an official basis. The staff do socialise outside of work but it is not a company thing. Most of the workforce is Polish so there is a strong cultural contact within the staff but I'm not Polish so I do not have the cultural connection to link up with.

Yes

Over all it has been a good experience and the company have delivered what they said they would in general. There is a desire to have good quality managers in the company and to do that by bringing in talent from outside of the business. This is a good way of doing that especially in an industry where it is notoriously hard to get new people to enter.

Greencore requires people who like people and all the challenges and benefits they can bring. You need to be resilient, practical and honest. There needs to be the ability to lead by example, be true to your word and be the very best team-worker you can. A good sense of humour and fun will also take you a long way!