23 years not quite the 70 of the Queen
As the Queen prepares for her Platinum Jubilee I am reflecting on my 23 years at Dorset Council which started on 7 June 1999 as an Advanced Modern Apprentice.
Making career choices at 16 was so difficult as it is for many young people. How do you really know what you want to do? Work experience in an admin role during school prompted me to apply for the Dorset County Council admin apprenticeship in 1997. Unfortunately I wasn’t successful the first time round on the tests so I went to college to do my A levels and a Secretarial course.
1999 I applied again this time passing the test and the 2 days of interviews! It very much felt like the Apprentice on TV where they started with 12 of us and whittled us down to 6. The apprenticeship was supposed to start in September for us all but I got called up early in June to help backfill in the Legal Services Team. The skills on my secretarial course paid off and I hit the ground running.
What came next?
The six of us had 2 years to secure a permanent job. I was lucky to join the Environment ICT Team. I found I had a passion for helping people and website creation. I stayed in the team for a couple of years before I got a secondment in Communications where I specialised in web content and training. I loved training which took me to the ICT Training team in 2004. From there I became the manager of the team. Following the restructure to Dorset Council I am now the User Adoption Lead for the Transformation, Innovation and Digital Service.
What is a User Adoption Lead?
My role is to support Workplace Digital Champions and staff to increase skills and their productivity levels specifically using Microsoft 365 tools. I love showing colleagues new tips which save them time and stress. Little things like pinning chats in Teams, replying to a specific message in chat, using PowerPoint Live to share slides in a meeting are all quick wins that will increase your productivity levels.
I also love Microsoft Viva Insights so I can track how I am feeling, plan my day using focus time and To Do, give praise 👍 to others, take mindful breaks and finish the day with a virtual commute. If you would like to learn more at Dorset Council why not attend my Top Tops for Wellbeing session on 28 June 11.00 to 12.00 advertised on the events page of our Intranet. For my other readers check out this page with resources to get you started.
I wonder what the next 17 years will bring? hopefully the return of more face to face collaboration, recruitment of more Workplace Digital Champions and for Dorset Council to continue to make Dorset a great place to live and work. Feeling inspired then check out the video on our jobs pages.
Enjoy your jubilee celebrations and a well earnt break 🍰🍷🎉
