Emerging talent is very important, developing talent is a way for us to invest in the future of our industries. We’re proud to offer a range of opportunities for anyone wishing to kick-start their career.
A little over a month ago, we welcomed three apprentices to the SEA team as part of our Emerging Talent Programme. Codie and Maisie joined as Business Support Apprentices, and Bradley joined as an IT Support Technician Apprentice. We checked in with them to see how they’re getting on.
You’ve been here for a little over a month, how are you enjoying your time at SEA so far?
Bradley: It's definitely been a step up from my last job. I’ve been helping out on the IT helpdesk, and I’ve started onboarding people with SEA and introducing them to the company. It's nice to be in a different environment, to be able to help people and feel like I'm actually an asset to a company.
Codie: It’s been really nice as soon as I got here. Everyone was lovely and welcoming. It’s great we have the opportunity to rotate around the business, it allows me to find a part of the business that I do really enjoy.
Maisie: I'm loving it! SEA has such a welcoming environment! I've got really lucky with the team I've been put with in my first rotation. I think that's definitely made me more confident in speaking to people inside and outside of the business and carrying out certain tasks in my team. I’m really enjoying getting involved and looking forward to the next rotation.
You’re juggling coursework and on-the-job experience, how are you finding that?
Bradley: I've got a lot of online learning with LearnTech. They’re really accommodating and so are people at SEA. It's typically Tuesdays that I have a lesson, and the IT team will make sure I’m covered, and everything goes smoothly. That way, I have plenty of time to do what I need to do.
Codie: Maisie and I have our college day on a Thursday. We can do most of our college work on the day, but if I do have any free time during the day at work, I can catch up on assignments I’ve been tasked with.
Maisie: Like Codie mentioned, SEA has been great in giving us the ability to complete college assignments at work if we have the time and finding that balance of work-life.
Codie and Maisie, you work on rotation, how does that work?
Codie: We have around like two to three months in each rotation. I started in Project Management, and I wasn't really too sure actually what that was, but I’ve really enjoyed it. I don't have a favourite department yet; I literally have no idea! That's why I'm excited to go to each department and see which one I like best.
Maisie: I think I just got really lucky going into Marketing first and I’m quite sad to leave them. I’ve already fallen in love with it! I’ve really enjoyed the creativity; writing, talking to people and organising events, it’s something that I think I do well at. Looking forward, I'm still going into different departments with an open mind, though.
What kind of projects have you been working on so far?
Bradley: For me, the most exciting thing so far has been the new starters IT inductions. When someone joins SEA, I'll set up their accounts, their laptops, and make sure everything's working. I’ll make sure their laptop connects to the network and provide them with any software that's been requested. I’ll then do the induction and hand over their kit. That’s quite exciting to me, because I'm not naturally a super confident person. Doing the inductions has helped me to get to know people in the company. I’ve also been working on lots of the software stuff and what goes on behind it such as security and how we keep everything safe and authenticated.
Codie: I've been working on a huge defence project, I've really enjoyed learning what it all entails. You have to be really careful not to break anything. I don't have a favorite part, it’s all been really good.
Maisie: I've been working on event planning, internal comms and digital content creating. There’s not one particular thing that I've enjoyed the most. I really enjoyed going to Bristol for the Marketing Forum, which is where all subsidiaries from Cohort come together to discuss strategy and shared events.
What have you learned in your apprenticeship so far?
Bradley: I've learnt it's good to be patient with people and polite, because when you're responding to tickets, they'll be polite and kind to you too. It's quite often that people will walk past, and they'll say “Oh, thanks for helping me”, so it’s very rewarding.
Codie: I've learnt that everyone is here to help you. In school, if you ask a question, they may not always be as happy to help. But at SEA, you can literally ask anyone in the office anything, and they'll try their best to help you find the answer.
Maisie: I've learnt to always smile, and you’ll always get that positive response back. Just like the saying, treat others how you want to be treated. SEA is different than school, I think I've asked my manager if I can go to the toilet a few times out of habit, and she was like “You don't need to ask me that”. Overall, I’ve definitely learnt a lot of things, a new thing every single day.
Do you have any advice for someone who wants to start an apprenticeship?
Bradley: Just go for it. As we've all mentioned before, everyone's helpful here. So, there's nothing to really worry about. If you’re ever stuck, people are always eager to help you out and make sure that you're on the right track.
Codie: Just be open to any opportunity given to you and try your best. They're not going to tell you off if you can't do something, people are more than happy to help.
Maisie: Give everything 100% and go for it. For me, university wasn't really an option especially when I knew I could learn business elsewhere. I didn’t want to sit and hear someone talk for about five hours then. If you’re like me, definitely go for it, because you're constantly talking to new people every day and keeping busy.
What made you choose to start an apprenticeship at SEA?
Bradley: It happened when I went to an open event in November. I’ve never been the most confident person, but when I saw the IT desk, I decided to push myself and sit with them. I had a chat with Jamie and Rachel, and they encouraged me to want to work here.
Codie: Once I finished my A levels, I decided I didn't really want to go to Uni, but most of the apprenticeships I was seeing were in Exeter which is quite far away from me. As soon as I saw one for Barnstaple on Indeed, I thought: “Right, I need to apply to this.” I then got a phone call, and later had my interview. A day or two later, I got a call to say I've got the job. Overall, I think what made me actually pick this apprenticeship are all the benefits, like flexi days, holidays, working from home etc. I thought it was really great.
Maisie: I was pretty stuck on what I wanted to do. Obviously, I wanted to go into business, but I hadn’t really found anything that caught my eye. I was done with school, so I was leaning towards just finding a job. My mum’s friend recommended having a look at SEA’s website, saying they’re a great company. I found the apprenticeship on their opportunities page and put all my details in. A while later, I got a call that I got the job. It was kind of surreal how everything fell into place, but I believe everything happens for a reason, and I feel very lucky getting this opportunity.
Thank you, we look forward to hearing more about your careers at SEA!
You can learn more about our Emerging Talent Programme here.
