Having that dual experience of studying and gaining experience in the workplace is invaluable.
- Diane Lorgeré
Tell us about your current role and your organisation
I currently work in the signalling part of the organisation, operating as a finance business partner with teams delivering projects on the railway in the South East of England. Network Rail provide, maintain and upgrade the railway infrastructure for the whole of England, Wales and Scotland. I enjoy my role because I get a good balance of working on longterm projects that will improve the finance function and completing ad-hoc reporting which improves my financial and communication skills. Network Rail is a great company to work for because no week is the same. I'm usually travelling at least once a week to a different office.
What was your background before becoming an apprentice?
I studied Economics at the University of Bristol having gone straight from passing my Baccalaureate in Paris. The only work experience I'd had was completing a summer internship with Transport for London in their finance department, where I spent six weeks working on safety reporting and six weeks completing an audit project for one of their suppliers.
Why did you choose an apprenticeship?
An apprenticeship offers the best of both worlds - I spend my time getting real experience, where I have responsibility and the opportunity to get involved in projects that interest me, and at the same time the balance of studying for CIMA. It really is rewarding to know I have the support of the apprenticeship scheme which looks at my development. We have mandatory days for training which means I've never felt like I'm not being invested in. It's refreshing how topical and applicable what you learn in CIMA is to the workplace as opposed to my Economics degree which felt very theoretical.
Why would you recommend undertaking CIMA and an apprenticeship to others?
CIMA is an internationally recognised qualification with a wideranging skill-set that promotes leadership through change, which is something the finance function is very much subject to, in the light of current automation levels of standard accounting processes for instance. Getting experience of what the workplace is like and what the challenges your company face are, combined with those tools from CIMA, will set you up for life. Apprenticeships aren't easy because you balance so many different aspects at once. But if you want to go far in your career, having that dual experience of studying and gaining experience in the workplace is invaluable.
