Northpoint recently celebrated the achievements of not one, but three, of our fantastic employees who graduated with business degrees from the University of Bolton. Ewelina Labno, Tracey Rawlinson and Dominika Dziedzic all completed the BSc (Hons) Business Management, Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship.
As integral parts of the business, we interviewed the ladies about their recent achievements and how they plan to utilise their new qualifications in the workplace.
Q – What motivated you to choose this subject?
Tracey: I have always wanted to obtain a degree. To graduate and wear a cap and gown has been a lifelong dream. Northpoint has been extremely supportive in my development over the years, and this felt like the next step in getting to where I want to be in the business. Over the years I have seen people step into more senior roles at Northpoint and that helped to motivate me to get to where I aim to be. As a woman in a very male orientated business this motivated me further to progress and succeed.
Dominika: The Business Management degree was a great way to develop many of my transferable skills needed for working in a business environment. The studies cover various subjects, including accounting, business law, HR, marketing, digital marketing and technologies, economics and management. The wide range of subjects allowed me to understand all the key elements needed to make a successful business. One of the biggest advantages was that I was able to work and gain valuable knowledge and experience at the same time.
Ewelina: I was motivated by a desire to become a solid and resilient manager through gaining in-depth leadership and management knowledge.
Q – How has Northpoint supported you in your studies?
Tracey: Northpoint has been fantastic in supporting me during my studies, especially Philip Dawson. He was always available if I needed to chat about a particular subject and proof-read my assignments. Alongside this he offered mentoring and leadership studies to help develop me further. Tony Holt (Director) has also been a big influence and support. Tony has been at Northpoint for a number of years and has a lot of knowledge and experience that I have been able to draw upon. Not forgetting Andrew Savill (HSEQ), for supporting me on the apprenticeship side of the learning and helping me put plans into action.
Dominika: Northpoint supported me throughout my three years of study. The company also helped me to balance my study commitment around my work schedule. I had allocated study time and support from my work mentor Philip Dawson. The methods used by Philip helped me to develop myself, enhance my skills, knowledge and performance. Philip has been always there for me if I needed his help with a subject which wasn’t familiar to me, such as Business Law. In addition, Simon our Financial Director helped me to understand some of the accounting problems which I faced during various assessments. All management and colleagues were very supportive.
Ewelina: Northpoint were flexible with my hours, allowing me to finish earlier to get to classes on time. I have also been supported by my mentor Philip Dawson and the Directors of Northpoint. They shared with me their professional knowledge if I needed help in a particular business area.
Q – How will you apply your recent qualification in your job role?
Tracey: I am hoping to put all of the learning into action. I want to develop myself and expand on my role. I am hoping that by obtaining my degree I can improve on my working practices and help to develop the pipe coating department. I feel like I have achieved so much from completing this degree, and I am focused on working hard in the business to achieve my goals. I am very grateful to Northpoint for allowing me this opportunity, it was a long hard three years but I did it, I am proud of myself, I now want to make the business proud by putting it all into practice.
Dominika: I have just finished the degree, but I can already see that the knowledge from this course will help me in my workplace. One example is in the financial and economic part of the business. Day-to-day I don’t work closely with the accounting department, but the subject helped me to better understand some of our internal processes. I have also found the HR module very useful as it helps me to deal with any difficult situations. We have maintained our coaching and mentoring session which is great. Finishing this degree helped me to look at problems which our organisation is facing from a different perspective.
Ewelina: The gained qualification has given me a broad understanding of the business environment and its processes. I can use this knowledge, e.g. for effective decision-making, problem-solving, developing relationships, managing self and others, and many other activities and processes that manager undertake. I firmly believe that the qualification will enable me to contribute to Northpoint’s long term success.
When asked about his pivotal role in mentoring the ladies throughout their studies, Philip Dawson commented:
“Going back to before the 3 women joined the Degree/Apprenticeship I handpicked them for the opportunity to learn more about how to manage. They are customer facing and facilitate to a large degree the customer experience, so you could say the success of Northpoint in keeping customers coming back for more is because of the work they do. In addition, the business at the time was about to become an Employee Owned Trust (EOT) and as Tony and Phil were to become Directors, I believed it was time the business invested in the people that make a difference.
I am extremely proud of what they have achieved and looking forward to seeing them utilise their new skills and knowledge, and growing in the workplace.”
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