Today marks the start of National Apprenticeship Week – a celebration of the positive impact apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses and the wider UK economy. With that in mind, Insurance Business reached out to apprentices from a range of insurance firms to find out how they got started – and what has surprised them the most about being an apprentice in the insurance industry.
For Charlie Conway (pictured above, left), a legal apprentice in the Counter Fraud Department at HF, it was a journey that began when she joined the firm in 2023. “I discovered the apprenticeship opportunity through LinkedIn, and after learning more about the role, I was eager to pursue it as a way to combine my passion for law with hands-on experience.”
“I initially thought that balancing work and study would be particularly challenging, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how manageable it is,” she said. “The structure of having a dedicated study day each week has been incredibly beneficial. It allows me to focus fully on my studies without the distractions of my day-to-day work responsibilities, making the learning process more effective and rewarding.”
It was career progression and targeting a leadership role with Allianz in mind that Joe Higginbottom (pictured above, right) desktop support engineer, applied for the insurer’s CMI Leadership & Management Level 3 programme. “The course has provided me with a number of skills that have allowed me to take on extra responsibilities within my team and a toolset that I have been able to apply to real-life scenarios.”
Reflecting on his experience to date, Higginbottom noted that he had previously thought apprenticeships were only for young people and those starting out in their careers. “But I have now seen that they can be beneficial to people at any stage of their working life. It has also allowed me to take on tasks that have increased my network within the company.”
Amaash Lone (pictured directly above, right) , an apprentice at Hazleton Mountford, found his way into the role after attending a careers show at The Hive, Worcester, where he was recommended to look for apprenticeships on the government website. “I didn’t expect to learn so much so quickly,” he said, “and was very surprised in the trust the company puts in its youth prospects.”
Harry Atkinson (pictured directly above, left), another apprentice at Hazelton Mountford, also applied for the role via the government apprenticeship scheme. The speed of the course surprised him the most, he said, when you’re working while learning, the time just flies by.
Petra Spannenberger (pictured below, left) - customer care agent and a Leadership & Management Level 3 apprentice with Allianz - was encouraged to apply for the apprenticeship by her line manager, as she was trying to figure out the direction in which she wanted to develop. The opportunity has given her valuable skills, she said, which have proven useful in her current role, and will also be applicable in the future, as well as giving her greater insight into how the organisation works.
“From all the skills and knowledge the course has provided, the best thing for me was the amount of self-discovery that was part of the course,” she said. “Getting to know myself better, as well as seeing myself through others' eyes has been really valuable. It has helped me find, or at least narrow down, which direction I would like to go from now. I have been very positively surprised by how structured the course is and the amount of support I have received from my assigned tutor.”
Louise Hobbis (pictured directly above, centre), a foundation business analyst at Allianz pursuing a Business Analyst Apprenticeship Level 4, said she was initially interested in the opportunity as, being new to her role, she wanted to learn the best practices and build her confidence. “The apprenticeship is helping me with my career by showing me a vast toolkit of techniques that I otherwise may not have learnt,” she said. “It is helping me build confidence and gain experience in a variety of scenarios. The apprenticeship has created a clear progression pathway and has validated my business analyst career choice.”
As to what has surprised her most about being an apprentice, like Higginbottom, Hobbis soon found out that the route is open to more people than expected. “My perceptions of apprenticeships initially was that they were for younger students, people fresh out of school or college,” she said.
“This perception changed when the apprenticeship opportunity was offered to me by my manager at Allianz. The best thing about my course is the feeling of accomplishment when you have a proven understanding of what you are learning. This feels particularly great when passing an exam or putting my learnings into practice. It's great to see that my learning is adding value to my organisation on a daily basis.”
For Jake Bairstow (pictured directly above, right), senior customer claims handler at Allianz who has taken on the insurer’s Data Driven Professional Level 3 course, the route was a natural one given his interest in the data side of the business and how it can be used to drive change after partaking in a claims project. It is currently helping his career as it is bringing his team leader and claims manager further insight into what the team is doing and how it can support them by analysing data trends.
What has been especially rewarding, he said, is the level of support you get and the way the course is laid out is suited to different learning styles. “I liked the idea of learning a skill on the job and gaining not just a qualification but professional experience.”
Echoing this, Zoe Etheridge – underwriting manager and part of Allianz’s CMI Level 3 Leadership & Management programme - said she understood the opportunity because she wanted to start managing people, and was about to enter into a six-month secondment doing just that. “So, it was perfect timing.
“Some of the things I've learnt over the last 12 months have equipped me for challenges and helped my confidence enormously. I feel like I can manage stakeholders better and I'm not afraid to put myself out of my comfort zone now; so much so I am due to start a new role in a couple of months, something I previously would have found really daunting.
“[I previously] thought apprenticeships were for more manual jobs, but now I see them as for anyone - and the 'learning on the job' ethos has really helped to put what I'm learning each week into practice.”
