Industry Comment
Rexel apprenticeshipsgo from strength to strength
In March, we celebrated National Apprenticeship Week. Now, Rexel reflects on its apprenticeship scheme, which continues to go from strength to strength – and meets one of its apprentices that has already gone on to become a mentor just a few years into her career.
the next generation of talent that will service the sector in years to come. From those training as electricians to those working in the wider industry, such as in a distribution environment, ensuring a steady flow of ‘new blood’ is essential to keeping it dynamic and forward thinking. As a leading distributor in the electrical
A
industry, Rexel realised that it needed to set itself apart from the competition and raise the bar in terms of its apprenticeship offering. To achieve this, the company has moved away from using third party training plans and providers and instead launched its own scheme in 2018, which now treats apprentices as direct Rexel employees from the outset. All apprentices are paid more than the amount as outlined by Government guidelines and they also receive holiday pay and other employee benefits, things that were not provided under the previous third party apprenticeship scheme. The company believes this goes a long way to making Rexel an attractive proposition for those looking for an apprenticeship and a real career alternative to the university degree route and all that entails for young people starting out in life. One of Rexel’s most recent apprentice success
stories is that of Jola Brocka, who joined the company’s scheme in 2015. Today she is the Trade Counter Supervisor at the Rexel Worcester branch. Following completing an Extended Business Diploma to Level 3, Jola was looking for an apprenticeship scheme as she was keen to work in the electrical wholesale industry and to ‘earning while learning’. Jola admits her first year was challenging, as she had no product knowledge and had to learn everything from scratch. Jola said: “Everyone at the branch was very helpful and I was able to learn the system quite quickly, while at the same time picking up the necessary product knowledge. I worked on customer quotes, taking phone calls and serving on the trade counter, which went a long way to building my confidence.” Jola’s career continued to be successful and she undertook an NVQ in Customer Service,
32 | electrical wholesalerMay 2019
which led to her moving into an internal sales role in April 2016. This was followed by her receiving an Award for Training Excellence at the Electrical Wholesaler Magazine Awards 2017 in London.
Nowadays, Jola also undertakes the key role of
an apprentice mentor, where she is able to pass on the benefit of her experience to other up and coming apprentices at Rexel. When asked about what advice would she
give to other young people considering an apprenticeship, Jola said: “Always be yourself and don’t pretend to be anyone else. Also speaking to customers on the phone really is the quickest way to learn about the industry you are working in, the product and services and so on.” Rexel offers between 70 – 80 apprentice
opportunities every year.
rexel.com
I worked on customer quotes, taking phone calls and serving on the trade counter, which went a long way to building my confidence.
ewnews.co.uk
pprenticeships have always played a key role in the electrical industry in terms of attracting and developing
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56
