We're supporting National Apprenticeship Week!
At CGA we have apprentices in a number of different areas across our organisation, such as GreenCare, People Services and Gateway PropertyCare.
Providing apprenticeships means that we open our doors to fresh ideas and new perspectives and increase our talent pool here at Gateway. Apprenticeships also mean that individuals get the opportunity to learn practical skills on the job making them highly employable.
Meet Michael, our People Services Apprentice. Michael joined Gateway 18 months ago after finishing sixth form and has become an important part of the team. Whilst working as an apprentice Michael has also been studying a CIPD Level 5 Diploma, which is equivalent to a foundation degree.
Within three months of joining Gateway, Michael was nominated for the Rising Star Award which he won at Staff Day 2016, cheered on by his colleagues.
“I was over the moon. To have my efforts recognised and to know that people outside of my team had also voted for me was a massive boost to my confidence and self-esteem.”
Occupational Health queries, learning and development, recruitment and health and wellbeing drives are all initiatives that Michael has helped with as part of his role in the People Services team. Michael has recently led on making sure our operatives’ health records are up to date and are accurate.
“My favourite part of the job is recruitment. I’m a people person and recruitment is really interactive. I’m quite a talkative person so I enjoy it.”
We asked what piece of advice Michael would give to those wondering whether they should go to university or take the apprenticeship route.
“Don’t follow the crowd. Be true to yourself. I didn’t know what I wanted to do, but I knew I enjoyed business studies and HR suited my personality. Being paid on the job was a no brainer and it’s taught me life skills like money management and professionalism.”
Michael is just one example of how apprenticeships can help an individual to thrive and that’s why we’re supporting National Apprenticeship Week!
#NAW2018