Incident & Problem Analyst Apprentice Review

My role is quite varied, I sit within the Service Management function and have taken on a number of Service Manager tasks. I complete monthly reporting, Major Incident management, post incident reviews, Root Cause Analysis documents, user escalations to the Service Desk, incident process improvements and general signposting and helping with users queries.

I have learnt a range of skills, I wasn't very knowledgeable in IT but I now have a understanding of how our systems are connected and have a basic understanding of AWS. I have also learnt facilitation skills and stakeholder management . I have an Itil 4 qualification and currently working on my Lean Six Sigma yellow belt accreditation.

I joined the programme as a mature student having been out of education for 10+ years, there were aspects that I have found quite challenging. I didn't find the online modules very engaging and it was hard to absorb the information because it isn't my learning style. There were 2 classroom type modules that were better suited to me and I found these very valuable.

I've had no problems using 1 day of my work week for apprenticeship stuff, my manager always had that expectation that I would only be available 4 days a week. Unfortunately I experienced a bit of a bumpy journey with the apprenticeship provider, for the first few months I had been completing assignments on criteria from the portal and not the criteria set out by the Level 4 standard. There have also been numerous challenges following this.

My manager was very supportive, as well as the talent acquisition team, I could approach them at any time if I had an issue. Unfortunately my manager left part way through my apprenticeship so there have been a few challenges organising shadowing activities. My colleagues are always happy to take the time to explain things to me and help if I need support.

From my personal experience I think this could be improved, it would be valuable if the sessions went over the portfolio evidence and understanding if the content is sufficient and the reflections are as expected. It would have given me more confidence to understand what level I'm preforming at (i.e. pass, merit) but it instead feels a bit like it is being submitted blindly and there is no real opportunity to improve.

I've picked up tools and techniques to use within my role, the BA investigation stage was very close to the lean six sigma framework so I was able apply this knowledge. Stakeholder management was also very beneficial as Its help me feel more confident when facilitating and using the tools I learnt to ensure that I was approaching the right people and keeping them engaged.

We have a various activities that I'm aware of such as quizes after work, you are able to get involved as a team or help run them. There is a 5-a-side football team that play every Tuesday that you can join. We have a mentoring programme you can sign up to and this is open to employees across the wider business. There is also a random name coffee morning where you are matched with someone else within the business and you have an informal chat as a way of networking and understanding the other persons role and get to know them on a more personal level.

Yes

It is a good company to work for, there are opportunities to grow and learn. The are also really good for leaning opportunities for example, you can be supported throughout a degree apprenticeship. There are sites all across the world so there are always going to be opportunities to try new roles.

My advice would be to plan any shadowing activities early on and get involved in as many leaning opportunities as possible. I wasn't aware of the Siemens metering side until I joined and it's ok to have no prior knowledge. You will be surprised how quickly you pick the terminology up and all of a sudden it makes sense. Don't let that hold you back and don't stress over finding out every single detail about Siemens beforehand.