Finance Apprentice Review

I work on the finance reporting team at softcat. My day to day tasks tend to include things like tracking invoicing, completing bank recs, reconciling prepayments and helping with assurance testing. I am usually working quite closely with my team as well as lots of the other bus ops teams.

When I started my role I knew very very little about finance, my team have been great at teaching me at a pace that has both allowed me to get involved in as much as possible while not overwhelming me. As well as learning about finance working at softcat has allowed me to develop lots of other skills useful to me and my career such as confidence, communication, organisation, time management etc

I thoroughly enjoy my job in every aspect. The work I'm doing is engaging and challenging and there is always something new for me to learn. My team are always massively supportive and make sure to get me involved in as much as possible. As for softcats culture there is always something fun going on and so much to get involved in.

We had a structured induction process when we started to teach us about the business and then after that all new apprentices were taken on a trip to help get to know each other and learn more about softcats values. Managers at softcat are super supportive and there is always tons of people you can reach out to if you need absolutely anything. The organisation is well and clearly structured meaning it is always easy to find whoever you need. Our apprenticeship training sessions are well organised with plenty of notice which is useful during busy work periods. Between sessions we have work that needs to be completed and this can sometimes be difficult to find the time for when there is lots of work to be done. That said if I have ever been struggling to get everything done my coach and/or manager have always been understanding and helpful.

My manager is incredibly supportive and is always looking for me. Whether that is by helping me with certain bits of work, giving me more work to challenge me and expand my knowledge or supporting me when I am having a difficult day. Everyone at softcat is friendly and approachable and this makes reaching out to anybody for support super easy, even if its someone you haven't met before.

Through remit we have a development coach who is our main teacher and contact for any support. Our DC provides us with monthly group workshops, support with coursework and projects as well as regular one-to-one sessions. As well as this I have been given a learning support coach who provides monthly sessions to help with my dyslexia. This has been really helpful and my DC and LSC are always around if i need anything.

The qualification I am working towards is a business admin L3 and i work in a finance role so they don't always overlap. My work is more specifically to do with accounting whereas my work tends to focus more generally on business. That said it can provide some useful insight into how the business as a whole works and other things that may be going on in the company.

At softcat there is always so much to get involved in such as team socials, company events, networks, hobby groups etc. Personally I am part of the pride committee which involves helping to organise things for our pride network as well as things like pride or history month within the company. At softcat we also get 2 days to use for volunteering which my team having been looking to do one day together and I am looking to do my other day with some of the pride network during pride month. There is also the opportunity to visit other offices and i have already been to see our Manchester office which was great to meet people i had only seen virtually. There are also plenty of parties and team socials which allow you to get to know the people you work with better as well as just have a load of fun.

Yes

Joining softcat has not only been the best choice for my career but also me on a personal level. It had given me a confidence I never had before and allowed me to meet some amazing people. Softcat has also given me a clearer career goal and path and is committed to supporting with that.

My main advice would be to be willing to get involved in as much as possible. You will never run out of opportunities at softcat and it will help not only your career but you as a person to take up any you can. Everything at softcat is always so much fun so you will never regret it. I would also say get to know as many people as possible, everyone at softcat is lovely and the people you work with really is what makes the job.