Apprentice Relationship manager Review

My role consists of playing a supporting role within a Commercial banking portfolio. This means I assist customers with many of their day-to-day banking needs. It allows me to interact with all different varieties of customers as as a bank we provide them their lending needs to help their business thrive

I have learnt many new skills during my apprenticeship. The most prominent of which are my maths skills, by calculating cash flow and returns, my maths skills have came on leaps and bounds. A further skill that has developed is my English skills, whereby communicating to various professionals on a day to day basis has improved my English skills ten fold.

I thoroughly enjoy my programme, it has allowed me to study the theory side of learning about banking and finance, whilst at the same time putting it all in to practice. The practical side has really helped me develop alongside professionals and seasoned bank veterans who have really helped me develop.

I think the structure of the programme is relatively well organised. I think the initial inductions were very good, and we have been looked after throughout covid. However, one area that could be is the programme having a clearer page on the VLE that really outlines the different sections of the programme

I receive a lot of great support from y employer. My team are constantly thinking about development, which is great for myself and the rest of the team who are thinking about the future. The team is always on hand to offer support and they are genuinely interested about how they can help, which is fantastic.

When working towards my qualifications i receive a fair bit of support. They held weekly webinars on the lead up to the essay on Professional Qualifications. They also offered support and to send any questions that they will answer. Perhaps we could have received more support for the exam but this was more the bank's decision.

I think the qualification certainly helps me to perform better in my role. The historic learning of banking and the trials and tribulations are a great way to learn about the current situation. Furthermore, the exam also helps to develop our lending skills and how we calculate the affordability of facilities

Within our work place there are many extra-curricular activities, there are hundreds of societies and what we call Employee Led Networks. This is great to be involved in as they allow us to see many different sides of the bank and give an insight aside from our own little teams

Yes

I would positively recommend NatWest to a friend as they have been execptionally supportive throughout my time here. They genuinely care about development and career progression and you are given the time and space to develop alongside learning the role. It is one of the best decisions i have made joining the team

The best tip i would give to others applying is to be diligent in what you are applying for and really research the company. I also feel you should be confident in yourself and try to bring your best version to the table, as they will certainly allow you to flourish