Stephens Scown has a diverse, dynamic apprentice recruitment scheme; in this article, Katie Clements shares her experiences as an HR Apprentice.
Joining Stephens Scown as an HR Apprentice in 2018, I came from a customer service background, having worked in retail and a call centre since leaving college. I applied for an HR apprenticeship to change the direction of my career, as I knew I wanted to do so much more than answer phones. Read on to find out how my apprenticeship has taken me further than I’d ever imagined.
My start as an apprentice
After leaving college, not having a degree was a barrier for me and I found that job opportunities were limited for non-graduates. At a few years older than your average school-leaver apprentice, I wasn’t in a position where I could take a break from paid employment to return to full-time study. The apprenticeship role with Stephens Scown was perfect for me, as it allowed me to gain a qualification while working full time.
When I joined the team, I was given two main projects to manage: coordinating the induction programme for all new joiners and managing appraisals at the firm. Having just joined, these were really great ways to engage with my colleagues across the offices, and start to put names to faces.
Putting the ‘human’ in human resources
The best thing about working in HR is that every day is different. My job is a real mix of back-office projects, administrative support and dealing with employee enquiries. We are a very busy team, so I often support other members of the team with their projects too.
Upon completing my apprenticeship in 2019, I was delighted to be offered a permanent position in the team as an HR Administrator. Since then we’ve taken on a new HR Apprentice, and my responsibilities have shifted once more. Last year I was involved in setting up the firm’s Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For campaign, which was an exciting and rewarding project to work on and we will soon know if we’ve ranked for the sixth year running!
I felt that my apprenticeship was a great way to get to grips with the role and the firm, and I was able to strike a good balance between work and college study with the support of my team. I was given a great opportunity to gain the skills and experience needed to begin a career in HR and the end of my apprenticeship was just the beginning for me. I now find myself at a very exciting place in my career, and look forward to continuing my journey with Stephens Scown.