1 year as a Bakers Apprentice
Our apprentices have now been with the company for a year. Both Connor and Beth chose to enter an apprenticeship scheme after leaving school, rather than attending university. This decision has worked out in their favour as they are both doing extremely well and have collectively completed 612 hours of training so far. As a Bakers Apprentice they receives on the job training as well as external training from the BPIF. They are both set to finish their courses ahead of their original completion date.
Beth Elliot
Beth is doing a level 3 ‘Business Administration Apprenticeship’. During her time at Bakers, she has showcased her organisational skills and her quickness to pick up new skills. Originally, she was in a Reception and Admin role but after around 6 months she was promoted to her current role, Despatch Administrator. Although her career journey is different to what she originally thought it would be, it has allowed her to develop new skills and work with a new department.
Her eagerness to learn does not stop there. She hopes to widen her knowledge by learning more about the processes that come before and after her usual tasks. ‘I would like to learn about order and quote processing as they both affect my role’. She would also like to learn ‘how to pack goods in despatch’.
Beth believes the most valuable skill she has learnt during her time at Bakers is ‘the importance of communication’. Her confidence has grown in sending emails, speaking on the phone, and liaising with courier companies. She hopes to continue learning to communicate better.
Bakers places a high importance on training, so are aware that employees may find that some methods of training are more effective than others. Beth recognises that she learns best with 1 to 1 training, allowing her to ask questions as early on the learning process as possible.
I am happy to work at Bakers, they have taught me a lot and I have grown as a person / employee.
Connor O’Driscoll
Connor is completing a level 2 ‘Print Technician Apprenticeship’. He spends his time working in the factory with print operators as well as in the office alongside our planning department. This gives him a wide range of knowledge as he gains experience with the presses and the print expertise needed behind planning how a job should be run. He says ‘I do feel like my career has really developed since I joined Bakers. My planning knowledge has increased a lot since I started a year ago, however there is still so much more to learn, so I’m eager to continue learning everything about planning.’
When Connor first started, he had no prior knowledge of printing so received lots of support and advice from other members of the planning team. He now says, ‘As time has gone on, my confidence has increased, and I can now take control of the job myself and take care of any issues or errors.’
Along with print and planning knowledge he said his most valuable skill he’s learnt is time management. ‘In planning, we must be very efficient with our time. We try our best to get the job to the customer for their requested delivery date, and we need to take into consideration what each job involves. We may need to order cutters, foil tools, tactile screens etc, so we do have to keep the job moving quickly, which is why time management is a very valuable skill I have learnt.’
As a Bakers Apprentice, he hopes to continue to strengthen his planning expertise and become more confident in more complicated jobs such as embossing/debossing and peal and reveal. ‘Eventually I want to be confident to take on any job that comes into planning.’
Connor is enjoying his time with Bakers and the training he has received has confirmed his interest in printing.
When I started my apprenticeship, I expected to think that I wouldn’t be sure what I would want to do after my apprenticeship, but I already know that I want to build a future at Bakers and develop my planning skills.
