I started with Parker Meggitt in September 2021 as a Commercial Degree Apprentice working in Meggitt’s legacy Services and Support Division. I spent majority of my time within S&S in functions such as Contract Management, Customer Service and Finance, until Parker’s takeover when I then joined the Braking Systems Division where I spent 18 months with the Contracts Management team. I was able to take ownership of contract renewals and provide support to the wider product group during my time in the team, all whilst completing a degree in Business 2 Business Sales with Leeds Trinity University which was sponsored by Parker Meggitt.
I transitioned onto the Parker Graduate Scheme in November, now working in Parker’s UK& Ireland Sales Company within the Customer Service team for my first of four placements.
The Parker UK& Ireland Sales company acts as the sales funnel for 3 of Parkers operating groups: Fluid Connectors, Motion Systems and Filtration. My graduate program is 24 months which is split into 6-month placements with one based outside of the UK. I will work with multiple of the sales functions to further build my understanding of Parker’s sales processes and how we work to provide our customers with excellent service to support our expertly- engineered product platforms. My first placement in Customer Service is allowing me to understand Parker’s processes whilst I work on improvement projects to aid the current pain points for the team. A current project I am working on is with two customers focusing on how we can work together to provide them with technical parts training to reduce the volume of requests coming into the team’s inboxes through salesforce. I enjoy working on projects which provide dual benefit for both the internal team and our customers, so this project is really allowing me to derive great and impactful results in my activity so far.
Since starting in the Parker sales company, I have joined the lean champions HPT, where I am working alongside a group of my colleagues to bring Lean operations strategies and tools into the non-manufacturing environment. Our project includes the adoption of the Lean boards to drive efficiency and capture current tasks and wins for each team within the Sales Company. It’s an area of Parker’s strategy which I have not got lots of experience in, so I am excited to be participating and contributing to the HPT.
I have always said that apprentices and graduates are a ‘win win’ for a business such as Parker. The young professional gains experience, training and enormous understanding into the business’ operation in and outside of their chosen function, in exchange for a new mindset, fresh skillset and a tremendous amount of excitement and eagerness to learn for the employer. The apprenticeship program developed me tremendously in terms of my skillset, but I would not be the individual I am today without the softer skill set I have learnt from my time on the program. Such as communication skills, organizational and time management skills as well as all of the contextual knowledge I have learnt about the way both the aerospace and industrial industries work. The level of responsibility given by the business to the individual enables unlimited opportunity for both professional and personal growth and I passionately believe that given the correct environment and support, Apprenticeships and Graduate Programs are the perfect path to kickstart a young professionals career. A bonus to Parker is that the person has been trained to the ‘Parker way’ meaning that all skills have been applied directly to Parker’s operating and Win strategy models.
As well as the recent win of completing my degree in October and graduating with a 2:1, a recent achievement and highlight of this FY was my involvement in the Farnborough airshow back in late July. I was lucky enough to support the Aerospace Comms team to support the in-person tradeshow activity which gave me fantastic opportunity to network and speak with the wider aerospace team. It was a fantastic week which brought lots of new connections as well as allowing me to experience the buzz of the behind the scenes of an airshow and do my bit to help the team with the running of the event. The best part of all was seeing the F35 take to the sky! An extremely rewarding but busy week.
Parker is a fantastic place to work and from working alongside many talented and resolute people who truly have a passion for the work they do and the business they work for has taught me that the true value behind an organization is its people. Parker’s Win strategy highlights this under our ‘Engaged People’ pillar and its truly clear that Parker values me and the work that I do as much as I value the company I work for. This is also clear in the support I have received from my colleagues around me who have always answered my ‘silly’ questions, provided me with a tremendous level of support and taken time from their working day to ensure I am learning as much as possible. The trust from my line managers, that I have been given is also a credit to Parker’s management of their people and processes and really encompasses just how great Parker is as an employer.
I have always tasked myself with stepping out of my comfort zone and working on tasks that I know will bring myself challenge. I love to collaborate with new people and thrive in an environment where I can generate new connections. So far, both on my apprenticeship and the beginnings of the graduate program have allowed me to work alongside so many fantastic people on lots of different projects, all of which give me a true sense of satisfaction once I have completed a task or goal.
I think I find it easy to adhere and implement Parker’s values in my everyday work because I feel as though the Parker strategy is something I personally align to. I really enjoy all aspects of my work-life, so I think I find ease in being an active contributor towards the company’s goals and objectives. I think it’s a real success to be able to say that I enjoy coming into work and it’s a personal goal of mine to see happiness and satisfaction in the work that I am doing and so far at Parker I have felt great contentment in both of my roles.
I think the best advice I’ve been given was that you won’t learn a whole lot by remaining in your comfort zone. And that the true excitement comes from succeeding at things you never thought you could achieve. I am a firm believer of trusting the process and if you are trying your best and putting in the dedication, success will always come your way. I think in instances of uncertainty I try to reflect on this, and it always allows me to remove negative thoughts when I am faced with setbacks.