Openreach Trainee Engineer Review

My Role contains driving a van to go to different jobs within a certain radius. As an Engineer I either provide fibre to the premises both from underground boxes or overhead from telephone poles, fix faults at the customers premise or deal with tasks that have problems that require a solution. This is all done on behalf of the customers service provider. The job role requires a lot of physical effort and your always on the move. Everything has to be done in a safe and proper manner. I have to have good customer service skills which allows me to speak to the customers in a polite and friendly manner, or even deal with customers that are not happy, which then allows me to challenge myself accordingly to try and solve the problem with a solution to turn the customers day around if possible.

I have learned a lot of new skills as an engineer and done things I never thought I would do, but I challenged myself to face fears and be confident in knowing what I can achieve. I started at the beginning of the year doing training courses such as underground work, traffic management, climbing telephone poles and learning how to use and connect fibre together all in a safe manner. I had never driven a van before and this job allowed me to do so. I have spent weeks buddying out in the field and developing my skills and training as an engineer before going live. Personally I would of preferred to have longer in terms of buddying as when I went out on my own, I did not feel fully confident in knowing what I was doing, but I used what I had learnt and went from there. Personally I still feel under pressure within my job role and the work that is required on a day to day basis can be tiring and sometimes too much. But I try my best every day. There is still so much to learn from this job role and having an apprenticeship on top of that, I want to try and balance as best I can both learning and adapting the job and the apprenticeship. Even down to learning how to use my job apps is a skill of its own as the process is so fine and you have to constantly use it while working. Such as we have a daily safety check, we need to fill our timesheets out and sign off and on and that's not half of it.

I enjoy it to the extent that I can chose to work by myself or with colleagues depending on what the job requires on the day. I know that I can call for help if need be. It allows me to be independent and do things within my own pace. It can be difficult with such an early start, but I always make sure I wake up and start my morning right. This job can feel unwelcoming sometimes and lonely and you don't always get help, it can be difficult to get hold of the right people, but I know its because they are busy and I cannot always rely on that. It blew my expectations out the water in a good and bad way, mainly because a lot of the time things can be unorganised and messy, but its good because of how I have challenged myself more than ever before and thinking that a couple of years ago that I wouldn't be where I am now is very surprising. I did not think that I would have a chance at this type of career. but knowing that I got this opportunity, I do not want to waste it. I will be persistent in making sure I complete this apprenticeship and moving on past that to be comfortable and make something for myself within this company.

I would personally say it has been rushed and I do feel like the training could have been extended as well as the buddying. The induction was presented very well and having to travel to stay away for a week is something I have never done before for work. But was well worth it and being able to meet new people was perfect. Training was presented very well and same with the support of the trainers was appreciated. Making sure I studied using all the materials they gave me so that when I was tested I could put my knowledge to the test and push myself and this gave me great feedback from the mentors/ trainers. I believe that the programme needs to be more organised in term of being shown how we can achieve getting everything we need in terms of materials and tools so that when we go live there is nothing missing and we can start without any hiccups or problems. Same with starting our apprenticeship, I feel as if we have started late and that it wasn't even a thing, our day to day work was only based around the job and not learning or knowing what was required in terms of our apprenticeship. Only now I have discovered what is required of us and how we go about completing our port folio.

I have not yet met my manager and only briefly spoke over teams or phone call, which I find quite disappointing as it would be nice to break the ice and see that we can work smoothly together. Also I wouldn't feel comfortable having a 1 to 1 meeting when I have not got to know my manager very well and not sure how I would feel when receiving feedback from them when they have not seen me work. I do not deal with HR much, but I know that I can contact them if needed. I believe my mentor is my patch lead (supervisor), but we seem to get on without any issues and can work together very well. They provide me with good feedback and can always give advice if needed. There are a lot of ways I can receive or find support, but don't always get any luck. But I am never short of finding things or people that will help, same with guidance. Not everybody is happy to help, but no one has been rude or made me feel completely alone and ignored.

I receive a lot of support and definitely encouragement to get the training complete without any issues, they go into a lot of detail and are always there to be asked questions and even question their knowledge in a good way. Very fortunate to be able to contact the trainers if we are unsure of something so accessibility is never an issue as well as guidance. Their attitude is very positive and push me to challenge myself when I am having doubts. This gives me the confidence boost I need. I enjoy the training as I get to meet new colleagues and I don't feel like an outcast.

I feel that the definitely give me an idea of what is expected out in the field, even though it is completely different and every else has their way of doing things in a safe and controlled manner, so the training was not useless. it gave me a general understanding that I can improve on and then speak to my colleagues about when they ask... I can "talk the talk and walk the walk" almost. Constantly putting our training in to practice through day to day work. But even though its all very similar.. two jobs are never the same. The qualifications definitely helped.

There have not really been any work events due to Covid-19. But I am sure that will change over time. There are a lot of bonuses and benefits with working with the company, even voluntary things that we can attend. We can also chose to learn new courses and improve our skills and knowledge on the job. When I am not working I am either at home relaxing utilizing my hobbies or socialising and seeing family and making plans.

Yes

I believe that they are a good company to work for and as long as you don't do anything to jeopardise your job role, then you have a career for life as long as you are happy and content, focused and enthusiastic. Also being interested in the job helps a lot.

The only advice I would give is that you are patient and make sure you have all the correct materials when applying. it also helps to do your research in to the company. I found that it benefitted me knowing that I had done my research, also be honest and open as the process was long winded and different from previous applications. but show you are willing and persistent and it pays off. Also having your drivers license and having some experience behind the wheel really helps!