Management trainee scheme doubles at Network Rail
by Katie Silvester
Network Rail is appealing to business-minded young people
to apply for places on its 2013 general management scheme. The infrastructure owner is looking for 40 graduates to train for roles in finance information management, property, strategic planning, contracts and procurement and project management. There are also opportunities for mechanical and electrical engineering graduates to work with Network Rail’s 2,000 strong fleet of on-track vehicles and plant-vehicles that provide business critical infrastructure support from delivering rail and ballast to measuring the track. In total, the intake will be more than 100, twice that of 2012. Adrian Thomas, head of resourcing for
Network Rail, explains that there has been a shake up of the graduate programme this year. ‘This is a growing sector which means we need more bright, commercially focused people to help us deliver the massive programme of investment we have promised the British public. ‘Ever-closer working with train and
freight operators also means we can offer broader, more integrated schemes. Graduates joining us will have a host of opportunities and career challenges. ‘Where I think we’ll see a real win-
win is the introduction of sandwich placements across the business. For undergraduates, getting that real commercial experience is invaluable to demonstrate your worth to potential employers, and for us we can showcase the rail sector as a great place to work, so hopefully we can attract more good people to join us.’ Successful applicants will spend nine
to 12 months in training, working on placements in stations, signalling centres or on major projects.
The graduate trainees will also work
closely with train and freight operating companies to learn about customer service. At the end of the programme, the participants will have the broad knowledge and skills to progress into a wide variety of roles ranging from front line management to opportunities within projects and corporate functions. Undergraduates joining the company
on a sandwich placement receive a salary of £17,000 per year.
Case study
All in a day’s work for Liam and Roger
Liam Day, a 25-year-old journalism graduate from Leicestershire, has just completed the general management scheme and is now working in the Network Rail’s freight division.
He says: ‘My graduate year has been fantastic. I was given the scope to follow my interests and seek out rewarding experiences. ‘I’ve visited many different departments from train planning to frontline operations – I’ve learned how to signal trains at Network Rail’s state-of-the-art training centre in Leeds and managed our relationship with the UK’s biggest rail freight operator during a customer manager secondment. ‘I also got to work at St Pancras station during the Olympics, providing spectators with travel information. The rail industry gets under your skin and you soon become absorbed by the scale and diversity of the industry.’
Roger Brent, a 24-year-old music graduate from Mold in North Wales has also just completed the scheme and plans to either progress to become a mobile operations manager or join the level crossings team.
He says: ‘The operations graduate scheme has given me opportunities to gain experience right across the industry with the most interesting opportunity attending signalling school where I got to go through the same process as a signaller would when they join the company.
‘It definitely helped improve my understanding of how the railway works. I also got the chance to work as a travel champion in various London stations during the Olympics, which was fantastic to be part of. ‘With so many different career paths available, the operations graduate scheme is an ideal entry point into management and the industry.’
PAGE 8 DECEMBER 2012
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