Going Yellow For Maddie Rose!

Today we have gone Yellow In Support of the Maddie Rose Campaign! 💛

The Maddie Rose Campaign has been set up in memory and celebration of the life of Maddie Rose, an inspirational young woman who was passionate about working within the construction industry.

The campaign aims to shine a spotlight on the incredible career opportunities in the supplier and merchanting sectors as well as inspiring young talent to join the industry and discover rewarding careers and achieve their full potential.

Working with the Construction Youth Trust, the Maddie Rose Campaign is driving awareness and inspiring the future.

In support of the campaign and to build awareness to inspire young people to join the industry we have put together a case study of Olivia Brooks who is herself passionate about working within the sector and building a career path forged by her self-development.

We asked Olivia a few questions about her role and passion for working in the industry :
 

• What is your current role and how long have you worked for Seddon Plant & Engineers Ltd?

My current role is an Apprentice Sales Advisor and I have worked for Seddon Plant & Engineers Ltd within the sales team, at their Head Office based in Bolton, for just under 12 months.
 

• What has your career journey looked like so far?

After leaving college I applied to university to study sports, with the intention to gain a degree and potentially become a teacher in the field of Physical Education. After some thought and consideration, I decided my future wasn’t in teaching and university wasn’t the best option for me. I saw that Seddon Plant & Engineers Ltd were advertising a position for a sales advisor and decided to apply. During my interview, I decided to ask if there was an option of an apprenticeship scheme in order to progress my learning whilst on the job. They then offered me the job along with the apprenticeship scheme.
 

• What do you like about your current role and the industry?

I like the fact that I am changing people’s perspectives on young women working in this industry. The environment I work in is very male-dominated, as is the case with many construction sectors and for this reason, I am unfortunately pre-judged regarding my knowledge and ability to answer technical enquiries. I like, as a female, to be able to prove that I am more than capable of dealing with anything that is thrown my way by customers and that my level of understanding about our range of products is as good as any of our sales team, regardless of gender. I feel empowered knowing that my personal development is breaking down barriers and showing you don’t have to be male to work in this industry.
 

• What are your future career aspirations?

After gaining further experience with Seddon Plant & Engineers Ltd in Small Plant and Spare Part Sales, I aim to complete my level 2 apprenticeship and develop new skills to help me with my future career aspirations which I feel lie in the Marketing sector within the industry.
 

• How do you feel you have developed in your current role?

The biggest development in my current role is self-confidence. The more I progress, the more knowledge I gain, the more confident I become. This is a challenging and technical role where a majority of our customer base is male. Due to the close link between the construction sector and it being a masculine environment, there is usually a similar expectation to also be served by a male. With my ongoing progression and development as a person, as well as within my role, I believe I am now able to overcome these stereotypes and obstacles put in front of me. I have the ability to build a great level of trust and form working relationships with customers whereby they are happy to be served by me knowing the professionalism they will receive.
 

• What would your advice or insight be to other young people looking at taking part in an apprenticeship?

My advice to young people is to go for an apprenticeship like myself if the opportunity presents itself, especially for those who feel as though college and university are not best suited to them.
 

• One Year On, How do you feel you have developed and grown both as a person and within your role at Seddons ?

I think since last year I have become alot more confident in my role, especially with assisting customers, whether that be over the phone or at the counter. I'm also more confident in my knowledge when it comes to identifying spare parts, products that are suitable for specific applications, and my overall role even when sometimes people challenge the decisions I have made.

I feel more comfortable to bring new ideas and suggest improvements to both the business and within the sales team as I feel my opinion is valued, and I am listened to. Over the past year I have built and developed on some fantastic working relationships with our customer base who are confident that I can fulfill any requirements they may have.

The thing I am most proud of is that I passed my level 2 apprenticeship with a distinction and I was placed in the top 3 percent in the country.
 

• This time next year, where would you like to see yourself or what would you have liked to have achieved?

I have started a level 3 business course which I feel will further develop my overall understanding of different areas within the company and allow to me to move forward in my career. As my understanding of the business grows I have now realised that I want to go into purchasing and procurement. I find it really interesting looking at new products that can be brought in and new potential markets we can supply to to as the business looks for new ideas for the future.

Its weird to think that this time last year I wanted to go into marketing but it shows that after looking at different areas of the business I have found new interests and new career paths that I would like to take,

To inspire more young people to join the industry like Olivia, to see the fantastic work of the Construction Youth Trust and the Maddie Rose Campaign or place a donation, Click Here : The Maddie Rose Campaign - JustGiving