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"Learning never exhausts the mind", Leonardo da Vinci

One of the main attractions for joining Morgan McKinley was the offering of structured training that encourages progression and industry knowledge. I had been sold the benefits of the seven week ‘Boot camp’ in my interview, and I had high expectations. As a Global Company which prides itself on ‘Going Beyond’ and ‘Always Communicating’, Morgan McKinley should have a good training scheme to reflect the size and reputation of the brand, and Boot camp did not disappoint.

For me, the best things about the training process were the Directors and Managers involvement, the mix within the delegate group (we ranged from people who had never done recruitment, to colleagues who had years of experience), and the content of the course which has been evolved over a number of years.

The modules ran over the course of seven weeks, covering aspects of an associate consultant and consultant’s role. The overall structure of the modules is well practised and constantly refined and adapted reflecting the changing nature of the role and also the feedback from the delegates from previous courses.

What struck me about the training from the start was the drive and enthusiasm from the course leaders, and their ability to constantly inspire, lead and impart their knowledge from years of experience. Rachel Halliday and Carly Bellringer showed us from the outset that the following seven weeks would be a massive learning curve, but also very interactive, and a forum where we could make mistakes, comment on each other’s performances and have the opportunity for open discussion.

Entering Boot camp, it was clear that the open-forum approach to training allows for everyone to be themselves and learn in a way that complements their own qualities. Furthermore, the in-house role-plays are a fantastic opportunity to see how you could be perceived by clients and candidates, and demonstrate scenarios you may face in the future. The managers who participate are successful at what they do, and their feedback is invaluable.

I have learnt a great deal from this training, leaving each session inspired and with a desire to be better. I have looked forward to Wednesdays knowing that I had a day of training ahead, and actually miss it now that it is over! Fortunately, there is ongoing training offered at MMK so I will not have to wait too long before I am back in the saddle again.

A secondary benefit of the training would have to be the relationships and connections I have made with other people within the company. This helps on a personal and a professional basis; I know more about the wider business and specialist sectors.

It would be hard to say which day I enjoyed the most as they were all fantastic, but I could not write a blog about the wonders of bootcamp without mentioning Jo Stone, Associate Director. Jo was particularly inspiring and showed us the way forward with verve, dynamism and a fair few years of being in the field to boot!