To celebrate National Apprenticeship Week we spoke to one of our apprentices, Will Shaw, to find out about his life as a Packaging Technologist in our Portfolio & Margin Transformation team. Thanks Will for taking the time out to share your experiences with us!
Tell us a bit about yourself – your school/career background, anything personal you want to share?
I am currently working in the No7 Beauty Company as a Packaging Technologist in the Portfolio & Margin Transformation team and am completing a Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship as a Packaging Professional. I joined the company aged 16, straight from school on a level 3 apprenticeship 4 and a half years ago before rolling onto my level 6. In this time I have gained an invaluable amount of experience and knowledge pertinent to my current role but also the world of work in general and understanding how businesses are run and operated.
Tell us about your apprenticeship and how it came about.
My apprenticeship journey started when I decided I was ready for a challenge outside of academia. While completing my studies was, and is still, really important to me I knew that I didn’t want to just follow the route to 6th form associated with my secondary school. This is when I found the level 3 apprenticeship which allowed me to be welcomed into the workplace and gave me the opportunity to take on more responsibility which is what I had been looking for.
What is your favourite part of your apprenticeship?
My favourite part of being an apprentice is the fact you are always learning and I have had opportunities to see parts of the business that my colleagues haven’t. Being an apprentice gives you an excuse to be nosey and learn about not just your role but all of the other interdependencies which feed into it. Additionally, being on a course with like-minded individuals from, in my case, the packaging industry also with a wealth of different experiences in the sector allows me to converse, expand my knowledge and make me better at my day job when I return to work.
What is the most challenging bit?
The most challenging bit is managing your time. Trying to get the work/university/life balance is hard when you start off as you want to commit fully to all of them at once but the 80:20 rule is a great start and everyone you speak to has different tips on how to ensure you are putting your efforts into the right thing at the right time. Like anything, this takes practice but a consistent routine definitely helps me be strict with myself.
What are your ambitions for the future?
I have another 3.5 years left on my degree course so my short term aim is to succeed in obtaining my degree and apprenticeship qualifications to the best of my ability whilst learning as much as possible. My long term ambition is to become a specialist in my field of expertise, I would love to be the person people come to for advice on their problems.