TUI retail apprentice Review

On a day to day basis, I sell holidays to customers, help with checking in and also answering any questions customers may have. I also take payments and answer phone calls. I also use a virtual call centre to answer customer phone calls and help them. I also sometimes deal with complaints.

I have always been quite confident but feel I have built on this due to constantly being customer facing. I also feel a lot more confident with cash handling as this is something i do almost everyday now. I also feel like I can now deal with customers over the phone better. My geographical knowledge is also much better.

I enjoy the programme for the most part, I get along well with the people I work with and sometimes the job can be rewarding when helping customers in need. However, the job can be quite stressful and some things are self taught. Sometimes angry customers can make the job more difficult.

My tutor is really helpful and makes sure I am happy with my learning plan and what work I will need to do and if I ever need help with any work then my apprentice coach is there to help. However, I don't feel I always get the time I need to complete my work as I find myself serving customers a lot of the time or answering the phone.

My apprentice coach is really helpful and is always there to help me, she also makes sure I am okay. I receive help from my employer the majority of the time if the store isn't busy and a lot of things you learn on the job are self taught or you just pick it up yourself by doing day to day tasks.

I receive lots of help from my training provider and feel that I can always ask for help if I am unsure on anything. There are other apprentice coaches I can ask for help from when my apprentice coach is not available. There is also an online group where I can ask for help.

Quite well- I feel like the things that I learn in my job role help me everyday to serve customers and complete my apprentice work. I am also more aware of what is going on in the travel industry. I feel like I learn something new everyday and this helps me in my role.

Yes - every now and then the team I work with plan meals/nights out so we can spend time with each other outside of the workplace. We also have team meetings to discuss our targets and how we are going to improve, we also use this time to do team building exercises.

No

As much as I enjoy my job most of the time, it can be really stressful and hard to make any plans for your social life. The targets (even as an apprentice) are very daunting and you can sometimes feel bad for not hitting them. You are left to your own device unfortunately to learn most things so would not recommend this job to someone who doesn't easily pick things up with little to no explanation. This job is very fast paces and would suit someone who can easily work under pressure and work on new systems.

The advice I would give is to be prepared to have to learn new processes/systems all the time mostly on your own or with little help. I would also say that you have to be able to deal with irate members of the public and be prepared to be spoken down to by them.