In January 2023, we met with the first team of Apprentice Customer Sales Advisors based in Sky, Cardiff. Jalal Alfadreek, Hari McGuiness, and Sean Singh were the latest recruits at Sky who enrolled on to our Level 2 Customer Service apprenticeship.
Twelve months later, and with their qualifications fully completed, we caught up with the three graduates to discuss their journey and experiences.
On the job training
Talking about his experience, Sean said “we were trained on the job and got to study our qualification throughout the apprenticeship. What we learned from the theory directly benefited our job role and what we learned on the job benefited our qualification. The two went hand in hand. I have completed my apprenticeship, and I am staying on with Sky.”
Hari, who is one of the youngest apprentices, commented “I started when I was sixteen, and a year later with the experience, I have been given more opportunities. I started this job not being a very confident person. I was so shy, but I now feel like a different person and the qualification we get opens up more opportunities.”
Training Academy Role Model
Jalal, already has his sights set on progressing into leadership and management, taking on the role of a Training Academy Role Model within Sky where he supports new staff. Jalal said, “I have now been involved in Sky’s Training Academy Role Model programme for new staff. New members of staff are required to go through four weeks of training where you learn all the basics. I get the opportunity to help with the new teams when they start taking calls. It’s an important stage in the training process where staff transition from the theory to practice. Hopefully, this will give me the chance to progress even further. In time I would like to complete the Stepping into Management qualification to further progress to a team leader.
What’s good about doing an apprenticeship with a company like Sky is that we can progress not just in Cardiff but all over the UK and further afield. Some people have progressed and do training in places like India while others have done training in London at the Osterley campus.”
Collaborative and supportive environment
Speaking of the success of the learners James Martinson, Sales Manager at Sky, said “It’s always rewarding to see the progress and growth of our apprentices. The Apprentice Customer Sales Advisors have come such a long way in just over a year with the incredible support of the team at Sky and Educ8 Training. The collaborative and supportive environment has made a real difference in the development of their skills and knowledge.”
Emily Davey, National Account Manager at Educ8 Training, commented “this has been a fantastic opportunity for the apprentices with feedback from their Trainer Coaches that they have performed above expectations and proven to be very successful within Sky. The success and high performance of the apprentices, as well as their demonstrated motivation and commitment to achieving, showcase the real impact that apprenticeships can have on both individuals and businesses.”
We’d like to say a huge congratulations to all the learners who completed their Level 2 Customer Service apprenticeship with Sky and Educ8 Training.
Study Customer Service with us: Customer Service – Educ8 (educ8training.co.uk)
