Tristan: My apprenticeship was a great way of learning on the job
Learn about how Tristan completed his level 3 Team Leader/Supervisor apprenticeship with HBTC.
Usually, when I write these articles, I ask the person lots of questions and I construct an article through what they have told me. But Tristan from Robson Refrigerations created an entire article from scratch for me. So I thought it would be rude to not include Tristan’s own words so he can share his experience of his Team Leader/Supervisor course.
“As a man in my early forties, father of four and happily married, during my working career I have had a determined and focused approach to providing a stable and secure environment for my family. Having the opportunity to participate in the apprenticeship scheme has facilitated me to be able to strengthen and solidify my existing skills and knowledge, whilst allowing me to grow and develop in other areas.
I first came into contact with HBTC when looking to recruit an office apprentice. Having recruited apprentices for Robson Refrigeration, I was made aware of a management course which caught my eye. The recruitment team shared all of the relevant information regarding the course including content, timescales and answered any questions I had about the programme.
Having been an engineer for over 15 years and then promoted to Service Manager, I found myself in a position where I had limited knowledge in key areas in my new role. I had been on the lookout for a training course to further my knowledge of management and progress my career. The management apprenticeship gave me the opportunity, while still being able to complete my job role.
My responsibilities and job role didn’t particularly change through my apprenticeship, however, my ability to complete day to day tasks improved greatly, by implementing the management techniques and best practices I had learned.
The apprenticeship gave me an opportunity to further my knowledge, which I enjoyed doing while optimising the flexible learning approach of the apprenticeship.
Personally, I feel that the most enlightening area that I have progressed in is emotional intelligence. Understanding people and the direction in which they are going enables me to mould my team into a more effective and productive unit while providing a positive working environment.
While preparing for my end point assessment, I said to myself that if I got a distinction grade I would look to progress onto the level five advanced apprenticeship, which I am currently looking forward to starting shortly.
Within my role as service manager, I get involved with most areas of the business, dealing with customers and staff, purchasing, technical issues, general decision making and problem solving.
During my apprenticeship, I have learned how to manage my time more effectively and become a more complete team leader/manager within the business.
Apprenticeships are a great way of learning while on the job, I would recommend anyone who is looking to further their understanding, knowledge and career in their chosen profession to look at the availability of one. The support from start to finish of the apprenticeship has been fantastic from the HBTC team. Any issues or questions were quickly resolved when needed and a great depth of specialised area knowledge to support you through your apprenticeship. When starting an apprenticeship it may seem a daunting prospect to start a new role and learning programme but your HTBC assessor will support and guide you from the start and have an understanding of how to get the best from you.
Having employed apprentices and being one myself I believe it is a really effective way to train employees whilst they remain productive within their job. This enables the employer to mould the apprentice into a home-grown superstar!
In the future, I am looking to complete my level 5 qualification while continuing to drive the successful business team to embrace new challenges and encourage growth and development.”
If you’d like to progress your career with an apprenticeship, check out our page about apprenticeships for those that are already employed!
