Apprentice Project Manager Review

by NatWest

Best Apprenticeship Employer

Rating

7.1/10

1. Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:

I am involved with multiple projects and also manage my teams agile tracker. I partake in a lot of meetings daily and phone calls whenever disruptions happen on-site from the place I have sent engineers to. I then also do quite a lot of written work and revising for my apprenticeship.

7/10

2. Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?

Yes I now know how to use trackers more efficiently and I am now able to understand project requisitions and finance which I used to hate but am now much more confident with. I have also completed a SAFe agile lean course which has helped me better understand NatWests motivations to move towards a more agile way of working. I have integrated some methods I have learnt into my team.

9/10

3. To what extent do you enjoy your programme?

I currently really enjoy the programme that I am on. I have yet to meet anyone who isn't friendly and willing to help me out. The apprenticeship part itself can be a bit tedious with a lot of writing and repeating yourself but I can see how in the long run it will help me progress my skills in my job.

7/10

4. How well organised/structured is your programme?

Onboarding was quite long and it took about a month before anyone had access to the systems, during this time we were not kept up to date so were left wondering what was going on. However the programme itself has detailed deadline dates and pre-made trackers so you have all the tools to manage your workload at your own discretion.

6/10

5. How much support do you receive from your employer?

I am pushed to do the best that I can however because projects are more 'as and when you get them', for long periods of time you don't learn any on-the-job experience. This can be solved by simply being more proactive and asking your team to teach you things.

7/10

6. How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?

We have a dedicated tutor who we can ask any questions to.

8/10

7. How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?

As of right now I feel that the portfolio submissions we are doing are not that helpful but have been told they will be useful at the end of the apprenticeship. Where I gain the most value is through the learnings and reading over the presentations.

7/10

8. Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)

There are many professional networking events during work hours. Depending on the team you end up in will also effect how often you have social events. There are no sports teams that I know of.

6/10

9a. Would you recommend NatWest to a friend?

Yes

9b. Why?

Nice environment, friendly people, good work-life balance

10. What tips or advice would you give to others applying to NatWest?

Ensure you know the companies CPCs - trust me this will help. I would also suggest that you be yourself, the more unique you are the better chance you have of getting a role and then doing well in it.