Sales Executive Apprentice Review
at Sage (UK) Ltd
Higher Level Apprenticeship
Marketing
Newcastle upon Tyne
Review Submitted: April 2023
Overall Rating
2.1 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
2/5
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Overview of Role
2/5
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Skills Development
1.8/5
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Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
2/5
My role is in an inbound loyalty and retentions team, I answer calls and webchats from customers with billing and invoicing queries and have to try and retain customers who may wish to cancel their subscriptions to our software.
This is the same each day, although the volume of customers I speak to can change.
This is the same each day, although the volume of customers I speak to can change.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
2/5
My programme is not what I expected it to be - the daily role was described as being a sales role which may have been misinterpreted or miscommunicated as we are more of a customer service team.
I enjoy working with my team and everyone in the office is friendly but I was not aware of the nature of the role until I started.
I do however enjoy the theory behind the apprenticeship course I am doing although it is proving difficult to apply to my role.
I enjoy working with my team and everyone in the office is friendly but I was not aware of the nature of the role until I started.
I do however enjoy the theory behind the apprenticeship course I am doing although it is proving difficult to apply to my role.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
2/5
I have learned a bit about what it is like to work in accountancy and payroll as this is not something I had ever been exposed to before.
I have also learned about the psychology of sales through my apprenticeship provider and how you can interact efficiently with customers to build a rapport.
I have also learned about the psychology of sales through my apprenticeship provider and how you can interact efficiently with customers to build a rapport.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
3/5
My apprenticeship programme is well structured, we have a monthly lecture/meeting with our apprenticeship provider to introduce us into the next module we are due to complete.
The tutor is enthusiastic and this shows through his effective teaching.
However, the structure becomes less clear when the tasks must be applied to our job as we do not necessarily have to ability to make it relevant.
The tutor is enthusiastic and this shows through his effective teaching.
However, the structure becomes less clear when the tasks must be applied to our job as we do not necessarily have to ability to make it relevant.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
2/5
My employer is supportive, there is a lovely team that look out for apprentices and check in on us when needed.
My team is small and very busy at the moment so we have struggled to find time for further training and time for exposure to other teams in the sales department.
My team is small and very busy at the moment so we have struggled to find time for further training and time for exposure to other teams in the sales department.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
2/5
My training provider so far has been supportive. There are monthly meetings with everyone on the course where we have time to reflect on the previous module and discuss what we have learned. We then are introduced to the module we will be starting that day.
I have however tried to reach out for some help and have struggled getting a response which has lead to my manager chasing my progress but in order to progress I need feedback.
I have however tried to reach out for some help and have struggled getting a response which has lead to my manager chasing my progress but in order to progress I need feedback.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
1/5
I do not think my qualification is relevant to the specific role I am in. Although the qualification is in sales and I have learned a lot, my role is not direct sales. The course talks a lot about outbound dialling, cold calling, direct sales and sales planning. None of this is something I am exposed to so most of my work is written hypothetically, as advised by the training providers.
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
1/5
Yes, there are many extra curricular activities for apprentices at Sage to get involved with - many apprentices enjoy taking part in these and networking.
However, due to the nature of my role and the lack of resourcing, our team is made up of three apprentices and without us it would be short staffed, so we are very restricted to what we can get involved in.
However, due to the nature of my role and the lack of resourcing, our team is made up of three apprentices and without us it would be short staffed, so we are very restricted to what we can get involved in.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend Sage (UK) Ltd to a friend?
Yes
Why?
I would recommend Sage to a friend - this is because the company looks after their colleagues and offers progression opportunities as well as a lovely working environment.
However, I would advise anyone who wanted to join Sage to make sure they are fully aware of what the role they are offered entails and to ask as many questions as possible, as I was not and it has not been what I expected to be doing.
However, I would advise anyone who wanted to join Sage to make sure they are fully aware of what the role they are offered entails and to ask as many questions as possible, as I was not and it has not been what I expected to be doing.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Sage (UK) Ltd?
To ask questions during the application, make sure you know exactly what your role entails and what it is you will be doing each day - the job title isn't as accurate as I had hoped.
I would also advise anyone to just be themselves and go in with a smile on their face and enjoy meeting lovely new people.
I would also advise anyone to just be themselves and go in with a smile on their face and enjoy meeting lovely new people.
