Davies Turner repeats apprenticeship offer

If Davies Turner – the UK’s leading independent freight forwarder – was appearing in front of the Dragons’ Den investors, it’s likely they would be queuing up to put their money into one of the industry’s more successful apprenticeship schemes.

Having turned Lord Sugar’s 'You're Fired' catchphrase into 'You're Hired' last year, managers at Davies Turner are pleased that all but one of the trainees recruited at that time are still on the scheme. The success of the apprenticeships means that this year will see a greater number of trainees taken on.

Philip Stephenson, Davies Turner Chairman, says: “it’s vital for success in this industry to recruit, train and bring on the right staff so we are increasing the number of trainees this year”.

Davies Turner will take on a round dozen young people, both graduates and ‘A’ level school leavers this autumn. They are starting work this month with a three-day induction course at the Group’s Coleshill headquarters.

Mr Stephenson says: “The trainees are based at our main hubs in Heathrow, Bristol, Manchester, Dartford and Coleshill. They will benefit from a full multimodal training including logistics as well as having an overview of our accounts, IT and sales departments.”

The successful applicants are between 18 and 24 and are recruited from appropriate job websites, as well as direct from schools and universities. The full programme includes Bifa-accredited training courses, and participants spend time working in all operating divisions where they will be entrusted with an increasing degree of responsibility for running the company’s international freight services.

Straightforward entry requirements

Mr Stephenson says: We deliberately made entry requirements for candidates straightforward: good A Levels or a relevant degree is a useful starting point, plus commercial flair and an ability to work well with colleagues as well as with customers and overseas partners. It is equally important that we then work closely with them - both in planning their career path and matching it with the requirements imposed by the very competitive business we are in. They will have the benefit of mentors at management level and we monitor progress through regular feedback reports. Should these trainees show real flair and determination, we can easily see them in supervisory and leadership positions at quite an early stage in their careers.”

Davies Turner has offered apprenticeships in the past but Mr Stephenson believes that their relevance to young people has never been higher and the company’s programme is now firmly entrenched, with an annual intake of a dozen candidates going forward.

He says: “we will continue to recruit both school leavers with good ‘A’ levels or equivalent qualifications, and university graduates for what is both on-job and more formal training. It will be interesting to see from next year whether the increase in university fees changes the balance of our intake.

“We are pleased that most of the apprentices seem keen to stay with us after their training is successfully completed. Despite present uncertainties in the wider economy, our business continues to expand and we have real jobs and career opportunities ready for successful candidates.”

Demonstrating its parallel commitment to staff already with the company, Davies Turner has increased training at all levels of experience and seniority. Customer service quality depends on the expertise and professionalism of all personnel in the Group.

The forwarder has organised the BIFA (British International Freight Association) BTEC Intermediate Award in Multi Modal Freight Forwarding to be taken in-house early next year, and will expect all trainees to undertake through distance learning the 'Understanding the BIFA Standard Trading Conditions’ course. This formal training is in addition to self-development training, which takes place every three months within the Group.