November 18, 2019
Providing opportunities for career development is hugely important at Morrison Freight. Here, to mark National Career Development Month, director Darren Ryan explains why offering training and the chance to grow and progress is key to a happy workforce.
A study by Middlesex University revealed that out of the 4,300 employees surveyed, 74% felt that they were not reaching their full potential due to lack of development opportunities. Another report by global analytics and advice firm Gallup, revealed that 87% of millennials agree that having opportunities to progress is significant when choosing a new job.
This proves that career development is very important to employees.
Having started my career as an apprentice myself, I understand the importance of having the opportunities to be able to develop your career. I have always been keen to give my staff the opportunities that I was given, so this is why training and career progression is a main focus here at Morrison Freight.
Having a clear path for career progression is vital in keeping employees motivated. Many of our team members have been with the company for several years and most of them have worked in various departments and different roles within the business. This has enabled them to find their strengths and allowed us to form the departments based on who works best in which role. As a result, our teams are stronger and our employees are happier, which ultimately benefits our customers.
Training
Since taking over the business in 2015, we have always invested heavily in training our staff.
Preparing for Brexit has provided many learning opportunities for staff members. Over the last two years, all employees have had BIFA-led export and import training and 16 employees have competed Hazardous Cargo Awareness training.
Many of our employees have also completed NVQs or apprenticeships.
Jamie, our account manager joined the company as an apprentice six years ago at the age of 19. He has recently been named as a finalist in the Young Freight Forwarder of the Year category of the BIFA Awards 2019. Following the completion of his apprenticeship course, he has undertaken a wide range of training courses and gained several new qualifications which has enabled him to progress in his role. Now, after several promotions, he is an account manager and jointly manages the export department.
Jamie is a great example of an employee who has been keen to learn and progress in his career and as a result of his hard work, he has great potential within the industry.
Invest in your own career, as well as your staff
In addition to staff training, we also believe that our own training is just as important. Even though we have reached director level, we understand that there are still opportunities to progress and develop our skills. You can read more about the business development course we completed at Cranfield University on our website.
Career Development Month is a great opportunity to celebrate the achievements of your staff and reflect on how the business has grown. In the last year alone, two staff members have been promoted and Scott Maskall has celebrated his 14th year at the company. Thorsten Drennhaus has worked for Morrison Freight for 21 years.
We have also been named a finalist in the Staff Development category of the BIFA Awards 2019. The winners will be announced in January 2019.
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