Hello PPMA members and friends

Last week Karen Grave and our Joint Apprentice of The Year 2018 winner, Josh Pimm, were invited to join our good friends and supporters from The Guardian on a sailing event to Cowes. A brilliant day was had by all and back on dry land, we caught up with Josh to find out how life has changed for him since winning the competition and also what he got out of the trip and the impact this will have on his immediate professional development.

Josh what has life has been like since you became our joint Apprentice of the Year for 2018?

• Becoming joint apprentice of the year has been such a fantastic opportunity from the start, it has opened doors for me and allowed me to progress my career, it has given me confidence when working and tips that I use in everyday life. I went in not knowing what to expect, an open mind, but the experience has set me up and allowed me to progress faster than I ever thought I would.

What specifically did you learn from the Apprentice of the Year programme and how do you think that will help you in your current work?

• The primary lesson that I took away from the apprentice of the year programme is the subtilties of body language and how powerful it can be, to be able to effectively present it is not only what you say, but how you say it. But there are a host of other skills that have really been developed throughout the program, from leadership and team work to the importance of eye contact and most importantly having confidence. Whether that be with senior leaders in my council or working under pressure with my team towards a goal, remaining calm and confident is key to success.

What was your reaction when you were invited to spend a day with our Platinum Sponsor’s The Guardian?

• When I was first invited to attend The Guardian sponsors sailing day I was unsure whether it was a joke. The opportunity to go sailing in such a beautiful part of the county and the opportunity to meet many other hard working professionals was too good to be true. To my luck it was not a joke and an experience I will hold with me for a long time coming.

We hear you were a whizz at sailing?  What did you enjoy most about that experience in particular and the whole day?

• Having never been sailing before I was unsure what to expect, but I can say I now have a sailing bug and will definitely be getting back to the water and raising the sails. It can be so easy to get caught up in our hectic work lives that coming out on to the open water and the only sounds being the ruffling of the sails and the sea lapping at the boat can be quite a shock. The ability to sit down and chat with people was very refreshing, so much communication is done over email, but this never compares with a face to face talk. And finding out the projects that other professionals and teams are working on is truly exciting stuff.

What will you take back from the day in terms of your immediate development?

• I will need to go sailing more. But more importantly the value of networking, especially for young apprentices like myself networking can seem like a daunting and unnecessary affair. But that could not be further from the truth, it is the networks that are built that will allow you to better yourself, show off your skills to the world, further your career and most importantly create lasting relationships with other likeminded professionals. To bounce ideas in a safe environment and learn from the lessons of others, a helpful hand to guide you towards your goals.

We’d like to say a huge thank you to The Guardian for the fabulous invitation and it’s clear that both Karen and Josh had a valuable and enjoyable day!

In addition, Sarah France-Gorton from award winning North Yorkshire County Council shared her considerable experience in this area.  North Yorkshire have done some incredible work over the years to minimise the cost of agency resource in particular – so if you can, they are worth talking to.  You might find the following blog from Chris Grimes at Matrix interesting.  Additionally this whitepaper is also well worth a read.

Happy reading, there’s always something to learn about this topic.