A Week in the life of a new starter
By Rebecca Duke, Customer Service Team Leader
Rebecca recently started at Swiftclean, in a brand-new role to us and her, and we caught up with her, to find out what a week as a new starter looks like – and beyond.
When I arrived on my first day, I was met and welcomed to the company by Julie, HR Administrator. She carried out an initial HR induction and introduced me to the wider team, which included a tour of the building.
I was introduced to Vinney, Integrated Systems Support Administrator, to go through my IT setup and system login to ensure everything was set up correctly and working ok. A nice touch at my workspace was to have pens and notebooks and everything that I needed all set out on my desk ready for me.
I then met with my line manager, Alison (Kitchen & Air Services Manager), and went through my role again (we had gone through this previously at the interview stage). We also reviewed my new job description in more detail.
I got to see where the service delivery team sat within the whole flow of the company, and who to go to for what.
Later on, I worked through some mandatory Health and Safety eLearning, before having a debrief of the day with Alison.
Day two followed, and I met with Chloe, Head of Operations, and had an induction session with her.
Throughout the week I was able to interact with multiple different departments – I sat with Sales, had time with the finance team, and I also had a timeslot with Gary the MD, who went through the company values of ‘Respect, Honesty and Ownership.’ All these meetings helped me to learn how my work would impact other people and departments.
I felt it was a thorough overview of the whole company, and I found my first week a positive and friendly experience, the office had a nice atmosphere. Everyone was really helpful, and guidance and tips were given throughout my induction.
My learning experience certainly continued following my first week of induction and in week two I attended an External Customer Service Training Course with the rest of the internal service delivery team.
In week three, I had the opportunity to participate in a quarterly strategy review meeting. It was encouraging to learn about the various ongoing projects and initiatives. The focus on continuous improvement is truly a valuable aspect, and I believe it will contribute significantly to our overall progress.
My attendance at a BESA grease hygiene course, which is just one element of our industry-specific training, is pencilled in for the near future. Apparently, Swiftclean is one of the only companies that trains our internal service staff and external field staff in grease and air hygiene.
As part of my induction, I was assigned a mentor, someone who has been involved in the business for a number of years and usually is not in the same department. I was told that this is so the new starter can gain insight into other areas of the business. My mentor is Jackie Lansley, the Marketing Manager, who has been with Swiftclean for over 15 years.
Jackie says “I was delighted to have been chosen as Rebecca’s mentor. At our first meeting, I learnt all about her love for Formula 1 racing and Disney! I truly believe she will be an asset to the company in her role as Customer Service Team Leader and hope that I can assist her in settling in at Swiftclean and in her future career with us”.
Rebecca sums it up, “After just a few days, I realised I was already starting to feel at home. I felt as if I had been part of the company for a long time, even though it wasn’t long at all. Although the more I learn, the more there seems to be to learn!”
