Kieran Bay, 19, found his ideal apprenticeship with London-based business technology consultancy, Fabric Technologies. He enrolled with IT training provider Just IT which offers a package of training, IT certifications and hands-on work experience with a local IT company. His success earned him Just IT’s 2012 Apprentice of the Year award. Here he shares his experience and how he’s managed to break into IT, develop exciting career prospects and gain relevant qualifications along the way.

IT is something I’ve always enjoyed and been good at from a young age. It was initially a hobby of mine, but I was inspired by my father, who works in IT, to look into it as a career.

I wanted to apply because I had learned so much at home. I didn’t have any formal experience and my A Levels were in Product Design, Photography and Economics – I only took Computing as far as AS Level. My school qualifications didn’t really point to a specific career path and my part-time work experience was, similar to most of my friends, in hospitality and administration. But I knew that I really wanted to get into IT and I had to see how I could gain relevant work experience and stand out in the job market.

Through my research, I came across Just IT at a career fair and discovered their excellent apprenticeship programme, which I immediately applied for online. The 12-month paid apprenticeship provides hands-on experience with a local company whilst working toward industry-recognised certifications, such as CompTIA A+, the industry standard for computer support technicians. The programme is completely free as the fees are paid by the government.

Just IT placed me with Fabric Technologies. It is a great apprenticeship that has given me the opportunity to develop my computer skills for the workplace. I’ve spent some time across a variety of departments, working on backup tape management, visiting client sites and supporting the customer helpdesk. I have never had to worry about being bored or left to make the tea.

Through the apprenticeship, I have studied for and taken CompTIA A+. Not only is this a great source of personal pride, it gives me internationally recognised proof that I meet the standards expected by the IT industry. With A+ completed, I am now working toward taking the Windows 7 exam which will illustrate my ability to provide IT support for customers with Windows 7. The A+ exam was a fantastic place to start because it gave me the broad understanding that I needed before beginning to specialise.

Support at work has been excellent. There is great mentoring from other experienced staff members. The apprenticeship has helped me to gain confidence in the workplace. I’m definitely more comfortable in this environment now than I was when I first started. I’m communicating and working with our customers, our partners and other colleagues. There has been so much to learn. At first, I started with small IT changes for customers. Now, as my projects have got bigger, I have increased my skills particularly in business development and client communication. I have even been out to client sites and worked on a couple of special projects.

Alongside the work experience, one of the things that I have really picked up is commercial awareness. I am much more in tune with what’s going on in the IT industry and have a better understanding of why certain decisions are made at work. Working with people in so many different roles has helped me understand what’s happening in the customer environment, amongst our partners and our competitors.

Fabric Technologies has been a great place to start working. It was such a surprise to win the 2012 Just IT Apprentice of the Year. I am now part of the way through my apprenticeship and I’m hoping to gain a permanent position at the end of my contract.

For those who are interested in an exciting, hands-on career with great prospects and the chance to work with the latest technology, IT is a great way to go. Because it’s a practical subject, you can learn a huge amount through good work experience or apprenticeship programmes. Combine this with getting some industry certifications which validate that you’ve learned the skills the industry needs and you will be in the right place to get a well-paid job and start working your way up a lucrative and enjoyable career ladder.

If you put your mind to it and go at it whole-heartedly, all this can easily be achieved within a year, even if you don’t have any formal IT experience.

Just IT Training and Recruitment announce supported Charity for 2012.

Just IT Training and Recruitment are delighted to announce that Macmillan Cancer Support has been chosen by the employees of Just IT to be our supported charity for 2012. Everyone at Just IT is really looking forward to working closely with Macmillan to raise awareness and money for a great cause.

More news on fundraising activities to come…

Macmillan Cancer Support aims to reach and improve the lives of everyone living with cancer. As treatments improve, more and more people are living with cancer in their daily lives. This means they need more than medical help, they also need practical, emotional and financial support.

We are the nurses and therapists helping you through treatment. The experts on the end of the phone. The advisers telling you which benefits you’re entitled to. The volunteers giving you a hand with the everyday things. The campaigners improving cancer care. The community supporting you online, any time.

Find out more about Macmillan - www.macmillan.org.uk

The last 6months of 2011 saw Just IT partnered with Shelterbox, a Disaster Relief Charity focused on providing emergency shelter and lifesaving supplies for families around the world who are affected by disasters.

Find out more about Shelterbox - www.shelterbox.org

From August to December 2011 Just IT raised over £950 for Shelterbox. This was a great effort from all concerned; our employees took part in a range of internal and external fundraising activities including:

- The Barcelona Triathlon (Olympic Size!!) -

Robin Booth, Natasha Downes and Leo Fischer completed a 1 mile swim (in the SEA!!), 33k cycle ride and after all that a 10k run!!

Men’s Health – “Survival of the Fittest” –

The fit (and not-so-fit!) volunteers completed a 10k obstacle course through London!

Sharing our profit:

Just IT donated money based on individual’s performance within the business. This inspired our employees to work that little bit harder to raise some cash for Shelter box.

Here at Just IT we are proud to be involved with such great charities, and we are grateful to all those who have donated money.

Although you may be seeking a role in IT, neglecting your soft skills could prove disastrous to your chances of securing your first job and even progressing within your career. Soft skills include things like communication, interpersonal/people, problem solving and team working skills. In a survey by Microsoft it was found that Business leaders rate soft skills above academic qualifications.

So what does that mean to the people seeking technical roles?

Hard or technical skills may get employers or recruitment consultants interested enough in you to give a call, but that’s where your soft skills start to impact your chances. You will immediately start to be judged on your communications skills as you speak as well as how positive and focussed you come across which is assessed as you sell yourself over the phone.

If you have been successful over the phone, next will come the face to face interview and there your soft skills will be keenly tested. Starting from your time keeping and planning which will affect you arriving on time to the interview. But how early is too early? Will you seem over eager and end up putting undue pressure on your interviewer. Being nice to the Receptionist and your initial handshake and smile with the interviewer are all impacted by how developed your soft skills are and all this is before you have even sat down to be interviewed.

“We make judgments about people instantly and almost unconsciously” a Managing Director was quoted in The Guardian saying “Somebody who looks smart and confident has the halo effect because people add on intelligence, wit and ability without any further evidence, whereas a tiny detail like scruffy shoes or lack of eye contact can have the horns effect and make people conclude the opposite.”

The good news is, like most skills, soft skills can be learnt and developed. Make sure you are developing yours especially if you are a Technical person.

Please click here for more information on our Career support classes

Please click here for more information for information on the courses available from Just IT Training

Now we are moving into December, Christmas is on the horizon and traditionally Recruitment starts to wind down here at Just IT things are building nicely for a successful 2012 – Even if all we read in the media is double dip and the eurozone crashing!

Just IT Recruitment are continually building long lasting, mutually beneficial relationships with clients across London and the South East who all want to utilise our unique perspective on recruitment and of course training. Just recently I have placed 7 students from the NPP into jobs ranging from 1st line support in a legal firm through to Junior Network Engineers for Networking organisations all with a range of skills.

There has also been an uptake in more senior level recruitment with a lot of clients looking to ensure they have everything in order ready for the New Year when companies will start with a fresh recruitment budget and look to fill that ’problem’ role!

For companies who are looking to add talent to their technical teams but are unsure on the economic outlook Just IT can really reduce the risk in recruiting by allowing our customers to use the free work placement scheme. Also, by bundling a companies recruitment spend and training spend there are massive amounts of savings to be had, even if we do enter a double dip. By partnering up with major training partners and Just IT holding Microsoft Gold Partnership status we are able to really add value to any process moving forward. For example, a international media firm really struggled to find Support engineers with cross platform skills within budget. By utilising the candidates from the course and buying the official Mac OSx 10.6 training course Just IT were able to provide trained and focussed support engineers within budget.

Forming relationships like this are a key part to any recruitment business and sit at the heart of Just IT’s business model.

For any client looking to recruit either a hungry and focussed junior or a more experienced safe pair of hands, Just IT can deliver, just ask our clients!!

Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) certified professionals have the knowledge and skills to make connections to remote sites via a WAN, mitigate basic security threats, securing access to routers and switches and understanding how internet works.

Recruiters look at related experience validated by the certification. Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician (CCENT) Certification could be your first step toward CCNA certification. It validates the skills required for entry-level network support positions, a starting point for careers in networking.

The CCNP certification is appropriate for those with at least one year of networking experience ready to advance their skills and work independently on complex network solutions. CCNP demonstrates the skills required in enterprise roles such as network technician, support engineer, systems engineer or network engineer.

To find out more about the Just IT CCNA course click here