Eleanor Cartwright is a Marketing Manager at Sussex. She has recently completed a Level 5 Coaching Apprenticeship with KnowledgeBrief - find out more about apprenticeship opportunities for staff. Lisette Whittaker met with Eleanor to find out about her experience as an apprentice.

What made you choose this apprenticeship programme?
I was a mentor at Sussex and I was approached to consider an apprenticeship to build on that role. An apprenticeship actually felt like a natural fit for what I had already been doing as a mentor and could also help me further develop my skills around people and getting the most out of them. In turn, this helped me feel more motivated in my current role and better equipped to support staff.

But this was also a fantastic opportunity to apply what I was already doing in the workplace. It’s great that this framework sits within University’s structure because it really felt like a privilege to be to be able to do it at work and for it to be paid for. I would not be able to afford to do this out of my own time and pocket otherwise, so it really was a fantastic opportunity for me.

What have you learned so far from your apprenticeship?
I have learnt the difference between coaching and mentoring. Coaching is a powerful tool to help people understand their motivation and the way they operate in the world and it has transformed my coachees’ lives.

I have honed my active listening skills and this has helped me manage team members better and also support my peers at work.

How did you balance your work and study commitments?
Balancing the study with working part time is complicated but I had a supportive line manager who saw the value in my development, and this in turn motivated me at work. Studying at work would also benefit the wider team. I ensured I ringfenced time, I used some work time at times when wasn’t busy but I also devoted some personal time. I didn’t resent that, however, because I enjoyed what I was learning about. It’s important to remain boundaried though and I would highlight that to anyone considering an apprenticeship. I had to bring my full self to it but I wanted to do that as I got so much out of it.

What are some of the benefits of doing an apprenticeship?
The coaching cohort wasn’t just from higher education. I met a range of people and our shared experiences in different environments and was offered networking opportunities I would otherwise not have had. There is a lot to learn from the way other businesses operate in a way you can’t normally in HE.

Coaching staff from other teams meant I widened my network at the University too and learnt about different areas of the University from them.

What are your goals and aspirations for the future?
I am passionate about helping Sussex embed a coaching culture in the workforce and encouraging others to take up an apprenticeship or continuing to coach staff members. Workplace development and growth retains talent at Sussex.

What’s your greatest achievement?
Without a doubt it has been seeing my coachees grow and develop and go for opportunities they wouldn’t have taken, for lots of different reasons. One coachee said that she wouldn’t have applied for a promotion had she not been coached by me, which was an overwhelmingly good result!

Overall, this opportunity has been really valuable to my career but it’s not just about promotion. It’s also helped in my personal life, which I wasn’t expecting. I think I am now a better partner and friend on many levels.

If you could only keep five possessions, what would they be?
Number one would be my dog if that counts as a possession, my bike as it has a sentimental as well as a practical place in my life, my headphones (for using on my bike), my wedding ring and a vase from the 1920s which was a wedding present to my late Nan, to whom I was very close.

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