Nmcn : Leaders of Distinction

Congratulations to Nazen Smith, Project Manager in Water; Michaela Skodova, Environment and Sustainability Manager and Ruth Hartley, Health and Wellbeing Manager who have all recently completed their Level 5 Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) Apprenticeship - with the trio achieving the fantastic result of a distinction across the board!

Leadership and Management apprenticeships are proven to be an effective way for organisations to develop the skills of managers and leaders. The Level 5 ILM programme is an 18-month course, with over 500+ learning hours and is the equivalent to an undergraduate degree.

Within the programme, delegates cover skill areas that are critical to becoming an effective leader and satisfy the 'on programme' element of an apprenticeship, provided through the ILM. The qualification is designed for practising managers helping them to develop their skills and experience, improve performance and prepare for senior management responsibilities.

Beyond the programme, delegates broaden their network, access new opportunities, lead and implement projects and build a portfolio of evidence which enables them to showcase their knowledge, skills and behaviours as a leader.

The course was led by Pam Whitehead from the provider, Aspire Development UK Ltd - an online and face-to-face development organisation that takes pride in developing people to deliver business performance. Nazen, Michaela and Ruth who all took part in the programme remotely due to Covid-19 constraints, commented on their learning journey:

Nazen said: 'As an engineer, being able to manage people or a project, and creating reports to achieve successful results, is not something you automatically know - you have to learn. Being a practical person, the apprenticeship helped me understand the importance of emotional intelligence, and carry on working with the performing team which I ended up managing.

'I have learnt a lot about myself and would definitely recommend any newly appointed manager to go through this learning journey! Sometimes reflection on how to best approach a problem can help build better relationships and achieve the desired outcome in an organised manner.'

Michaela said: 'For me, this structured programme is the first fully accredited leadership programme I participated in as part of any employment. I'm grateful that under Pam Whitehead (course Lead), we were able to develop, grow and empower ourselves as leaders. For me personally, I was glad that all the learning gained was easy to apply back to the business immediately.

'As leaders, we must demonstrate the behaviour that encompasses our values, as well as understanding that we lead by example and should therefore be the best examples we can be, day-to-day.'

Ruth said: 'The course encourages the application of skills and personal reflection, both of which I found very beneficial. I have really enjoyed practicing my leadership and management skills within my team and on the projects I have led for the business.

'I have learnt a lot about myself and can see that it has had a positive impact in terms of my personal performance - but more importantly, by embracing a coaching style of management, I have had the pleasure of watching colleagues around me grow their abilities too.'

Congratulations to Nazen, Michaela and Ruth, we look forward to seeing how you apply the range of practical management knowledge and skills from the apprenticeship to develop further on your management journey with nmcn.