Head of IT for a day – being inspired by our apprentices
A group of the council’s young employees have enjoyed a special opportunity to develop their careers.
Apprentices gained an insight into life as a senior manager when they took over as our Head of IT for a day.
We aim to inspire and develop the workforce of the future, nurturing young talent and valuing its staff. As part of this, apprentices were challenged to become Head of IT by resolving problems, attending meetings and learning how decisions are made.
IT is critical in helping us to plan and deliver high-quality services for local residents and communities. The apprentices were supported throughout – and they were inspired by their experiences:
What did the apprentices say?
Morgan Pallister attended the Picture of Kirklees event, which celebrated the progress that partners achieved over the last year and shared intelligence about the issues that impact on children, families and communities.
Morgan said:
“It was a great opportunity to network and meet new people who I would never normally meet. It also motivated me and made me feel like, one day, I could be doing a job like this in the future.”
Omar Williams attended a meeting about future ways of working. He said:
“I had an opportunity to speak to them about apprenticeships and they asked me questions on the subject. It helped me further understand how senior managers approach situations strategically. Having supportive managers who are genuinely interested in your development makes you want to keep working toward your goals.”
Andy Hampshire was at two very different events – one about fibre network expansion and one about an IT system which helps organisations to work together.
Andy said:
“The whole day provided me with a glimpse into the various ways technology can be applied to support and improve communities. It was a fantastic experience. Attending a meeting that the Head of IT would normally go to was genuinely exciting.”
Gareth Swift was invited to a cyber security event. He said:
“This was a regional event and a real world ‘test’ of the ability of small groups of councils to work effectively together in a major crisis. I was impressed with the knowledge of the people on the table, from Kirklees and Leeds, and I learned a lot from the day. It has inspired me to follow this up and find out more.”
What was the impact?
The apprentices were set their challenge by our Head of IT, Terence Hudson.
Terence said:
“As an organisation with focus on developing our future workforce, we hope other organisations do the same. Young people with aspiration are our future and we need to make the best of our workforce. Everyone got different benefits from the experience and our apprentices grasped these opportunities with both hands. They have clearly been inspired and we hope more of our apprentices will aspire to bigger things and brighter futures.”
Are you interested in an apprenticeship?
If you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about apprenticeships, there are more details on our website.