Finance Manager Review

My role requires me to report on actual costs, incurred by the business to budget. I manage various business units and reach out to stakeholders. At the ned of th ereporting period I report my findings to my customers / stakeholders and they will ask further questions on amounts which I may need to look into in advance of the next reporting period.

When I first began my apprenticeship I would argue that I was shy about reaching out to senior managers. Being an apprentice however gives me the excuse / ability to approach senior leaders and ask them some of the basic questions. Doing this in my first year really helped me develop into the person I am. Confidence and communication / network skills.

I find the on the job learning is in most cases more benificial than the actual learning. Writing essays on what I do on the day to day isnt necessarily the most benificial to me. I also find some of the exams and lessons I have not to be relevent to my role.

I am able to be flexible on when I choose my exams and on demand learning. I am help to a certain end point time but I am really in charge of it which suits me as it allows me to advance and change roles. I think it woul dbe better if rotating roles was more encouraged and then the structure can come from the program rather than myself

My employeer is supportive and has backed me up when I have had issues. Sometimes it is hard to gain my 20% time off just do to the job element being demanding, thus why rotating roles to be more spported than in a solid role. My employeer overall is incredibly supportive.

My training provider keeps me on track, keeps me aware of what I need to do. Exam bookings can be a bit of a pain but they are working on imporving this. They run good program sessions and are always contactable. There are a variety of methods of working to choose from.

Alot of the more senior finance roles require the qualification in order to be successful. Also of what im learning at the moment does not seem greatly relevent but that could be because i work in a niche area. Again a rotation of role within the work place would better suit this.

There are some. Mainly social events with the team, but because teams are spread these can be quite hard. There is a great deal of volunteering opportunities available which I always like to put myself forwards for. There are not a great deal of events going on in Yorkshire, more in Bristol and London.

Yes

Lloyds Banking Group is a reallyt inclusive employeer. I worked for the bank initially in telephony. I think the customer service element can be demending but thats the nature of that line of work. In finance it is really friendly and inclusive and i have enjoyed each manager Ihave had. Importantly I enjoy my job.

I could give a lot of advice depending on what program they are going for. I would focus more on meeting the group values than anything else. Being yourself and willing to learn and succeed in a job is incredibly important. I also think you get as much out of something you put into it so do make sure you prepare and know the group values off by heart for any interview.