My Apprenticeship – One year on
It’s hard to believe that it has been almost a year since I joined Cisco. The opportunities and the experience that the Cisco Apprenticeship program has presented me with has enabled me to take control of my learning and self-development, and progress from a pupil to an employee. For me personally, this is something I don’t believe that any other path out of school could have given me to such an extent.
I joined the apprenticeship program on the 18th of August 2014 as one of 16 new hires being on boarded into the organisation for the FY15 year. Working in conjunction with our training provider QA, we embarked on a 3 year program that sees us rotating round 13 different departments within Cisco. This rotation structure gives us a high level overview of the Services and Sales organisations also with the opportunity to participate in an exposure working with HR. Subsequently, we as apprentices are gaining knowledge and skills that we are able to transfer between rotations, both benefiting us and the teams we work with.
Possibly, the best thing about this scheme is the opportunity to give back to the business. The fact that I, a 19 year old who has come straight out of sixth form, can go home at the end of a day feeling as if I have made a true difference to the company I work for is extremely fulfilling. This is by far one of the most rewarding elements of my job. I don’t feel like I’m in any way different to any other employee, which is something I value greatly. Every day I am faced with challenges I must overcome that push my ability, whether it’s a large presentation, certifications, or a blog post! I can always rely on the support from my manager and my colleagues to see me through each step of the way.
Year two of the apprenticeship scheme is on the horizon and now comes the time for me to make my decision as to where I would like to start focusing my career path. This is where the sheer coverage of Cisco in our first year really benefits us, allowing us to make an informed decision, based on experience, as to where we aspire to be in 2 years time. However, even after making our initial choices, we still have some flexibility to adjust our decisions should we find that next year our choices don’t best suit us. Choosing these departments and job roles to focus our career on is a very hard decision to make. Very often with the placements we do, it’s not just the work we’re involved in but also the teams we work with that make our time there as enjoyable as it is.
The past year has proved invaluable to my development as an individual, and the people I have the privilege of working with on a daily basis have made it the utterly enjoyable experience that it has been. I thank everyone who has helped me reach my goals in FY15, and I can’t wait to see what years 2 and 3 of the apprenticeship scheme, and Cisco hold in store.
