Meet Audi s 2018 Shining Stars Read about this year s Audi Shining Stars experiences on the Outward Bound Course All second-year apprentices attend a week-long course in the Lake District. They go to hone business skills such as teamwork, leadership, customer service and handling finances. The apprentices learn through mountaineering, caving, completing team activities and making presentations on what they have achieved. Shining Stars are a select group of apprentices who have been identified by the instructors and Audi UK representatives during the challenging Outward Bound course as part of the Audi Apprenticeship Programme (AAP). These individuals represent and demonstrate true Audi Spirit, showing passion, drive and potential. This year s Shining Stars have written a blog about their experiences on Outward Bound course. Read about their experiences on the Audi Apprenticeship Programme website, social media pages and Hub. Our Shining Stars are Lewis Knox, Joe Keane, Daniel Cooper, Thomas Galloway, Sam Wood, Sarbpreet Daudhar, Josh Addison, Jake Avery, Tyler Cliff, Alex Brown and Tom Badell. Lewis Knox The week before I attended my outward bounds experience I was quite nervous because of the stories that I heard from other apprentices at my work. However, I laughed it off and pretended that it wasn t true. But when I was driving down to the Lake district I was passing many signs on the motorway advising about the amber warning for the weather. This really put me off because usually by this time I would be at my desk in a nice warm plush showroom filled with beautiful cars. I then arrived at this beautiful building that I was going to be staying in for the next four nights. I was welcomed by the outward bounds staff who showed me to my room. When I stepped into the room I met apprentices from other dealerships around the UK. There was six of us in total in the room, so as you can image It was hard to get to sleep at night. We then started our first activity, which included crawling through a very tight and muddy pipe underground. This wasn t the easiest thing for me to do as I am about 6 3. Nonetheless, I made it through to then be told that I had to jump into the freezing cold lake. I was the first person in my group to jump in not realising that you didn t have to go head under. I really regretted doing that as I have never felt pain like that in my life. Yet after doing it I felt like I accomplished something that I would never really do. One of my favourite tasks during the week was the rafting and orienteering challenge. This included the team splitting in two, one to build the raft and the other to do the orienteering. When it came to building the raft, I had two girls in my team from London who would not normally do these kinds of things. However, I was pleasantly surprised at how determined they were and how they managed to construct a raft out of heavy planks and barrels without breaking a nail. We soon finished and met up with the rest of the team. My favourite part of the task was when we crossed over the lake. At first I thought it was going to end up like the Titanic but we worked together very well that we managed to reach the other side in record time. We beat the other team s time by quite a bit. Our strength and determination in that task showed that if you work together well in a team you will achieve you overall goal. This was reiterated many times by our trainer, Martin. The final challenge of the week, in my opinion, was the hardest. We had to do a presentation in front of an audience of apprentices and Volkswagen Group representatives. This was my worst fear as I would consider myself as a reserved person. It didn t help that I was Scottish as most people probably couldn t understand me. However, I spoke up and overcame my fear which, along with the rest of my team helped to deliver a good quality presentation. All in all, I really enjoyed my time at Outward Bounds despite the positively medieval accommodation. You learn a lot of key skills that you will definitely take back to work. I learned that preparation is key, especially being a service advisor which is something that I do every day at work. I feel that I am more prepared when I m at work since coming back from Outward bounds. This has helped me improve my performance massively. For anybody that is still do there Outward bounds I would definitely recommend taking part in every activity even if it is a challenge. The result is more rewarding than anything else. I would definitely recommend taking part in every activity even if it is a challenge.
Joe Keane Between the 2nd & 6th of February this year I attended the VW outward bound apprentice training and was immediately thrown out of my comfort zone, however on reflection I thoroughly enjoyed it and took a lot away from the week. I believe overall I personally and professionally benefitted from the week. On the first day we did a mountain trek where we climbed two mountains, the night before we carried out the activity where we planned our route which prepared us for the challenging day ahead. When we were nearing the tops of the mountains the temperature was -1C with snow on the floor and the rain pouring down on us however as a group we bonded as we sang songs and walked up the mountain to motivate each other to reach the top as a team together. Physically it was the hardest day however it set the tone for the week and allowed everyone to become accustomed to the tone of the week. My highlight of the week was on Thursday crossing the lake on our self-made raft with every member making it to the other side with the raft in one piece. We all celebrated as group together by jumping into the lake. This moment showed how much we had bonded as a group and signified our success. As well as enjoyable moments there was also many challenging moments throughout the week, I personally felt like tiredness & fatigue had a big impact on me during the week as we were expected to work long days with frequent physical activity. This would usually entail waking up at 6:30am, completing an activity in the day (e.g. mountain trek, rafting, caving) going back to the centre and entering The Pod to plan for the next day till around 9pm. It was also hard to adjust to being in a rural area and the unusual surroundings this meant we had to change our approach to certain situations. If I were to change anything about the week I would change the approach I took at the beginning, I drove to outward bound through rain and snow and arrived when Ulswater was suffering cold temperatures, this drastically changed my attitude as I made a friend on the course aware that I would not jump into the lake on the first day. I think this attitude affected my experience on the first day as I was slightly subdued until I began to come round to the idea of giving 100% all week. I would also have loved to have taken more pictures, which seems less significant than changing my approach, but I think it s just as important because it can give you great memories of a beautiful picturesque area which we all take for granted when at home. Outward Bound gives you a week away from your usual surroundings to take in the Lake District & all its beauty. I have learnt that I have leadership skills that are compatible with a group of people who I have never met before and also that if I push myself and focus on the task at hand I can do things in which I initially doubt myself. I also learnt different ways of communicating with my colleagues and customers which will benefit my centre. I believe that my personal development shall enhance through the skills learnt at outward bound in terms of my communication, patience and also by recognising when a colleague needs help and providing the assistance they need to complete the task which they are carrying out. In terms of my Outward Bound progress I plan to utilise the skills I honed at the training centre as well as participate in more outdoor activity. In terms of my career I want to excel in every area of my job role and begin to explore further career opportunity within the brand, hopefully progressing to the highest level possible. I would I believe that my personal development shall enhance through the skills learnt at outward bound. Daniel Cooper Level 2 Apprentice Service Technician Halesowen Audi Having completed the outwards program I can honestly say that although I was completely unprepared for what I faced, the week as a whole was a great experience. We had to battle gruelling weather conditions from day one, which made all of our activities a real challenge. On the first day I met my team and we were all apprehensive, and un-introduced but faced with our first challenge of jumping in the lake in the snow, we grew closer as a team. By the end of the week I had made new friends and left with a massive sense of pride in what we had achieved. Overall, I think the program was a great experience and I feel I have taken a lot from it. I think the program was a great experience and I feel I have taken a lot from it.
Thomas Galloway Hi my names Thomas and i m an apprentice from Audi Aylesbury with a big passion for cars from as long as I can remember, I love taking on challenges at work and at home, pushing myself out of comfort zones to improve my personal and work attitude. I am very grateful to have been given the opportunity to work for a high end car brand such as Audi and I plan to keep pushing myself to make sure I exceed the Audi expectations. Before going to outward bounds When I had first started the apprenticeship and heard that there was a mandatory course in which I had to do team activities in the Lake District I was very confused at what that had to do with working on cars and struggled to relate the two, I had also heard lots of stories from work colleagues and people from the Volkswagen NLC which were mostly negative about walking into a freezing lake, climbing mountains and doing a presentation at the end of the week about everything we had learnt in front of everyone at the outward bounds course. So it s safe to say I wasn t looking forward to going on this course, but the course is mandatory so it had to be done. Monday When I had arrived at the outward bounds centre we were shown to our rooms and told to get changed into shorts and that we would be jumping into the icy cold lake and carrying out other team building exercises which included passing an object from one team to the next and then repeating it whilst the gap got getting further and further away each time. We also had to work as a team to climb over a wall. Once the day had finished we then meet in our planning room to carry out the next challenge the following day, which was climbing a mountain. Tuesday The mountain climb for me was the toughest challenge out of the whole week as I dislike heights and it s very physically tiring as you have to keep moving due to time and the cold weather but the sense of achievement once you have done something you thought you couldn t do is something special and the views were amazing on the way up, which was an added bonus. It was very important that the planning was right to make sure that we were heading in a safe direction and pick out safe places for us to stop and have a break which had to be taken into consideration. Once the activity had been complete there wasn t time to rest because we had to do planning for the next day, which was orienteering and building a raft which you d have to cross the lake with. Wednesday The orienteering wasn t as difficult as the mountain climb but combined with the rafting it was a challenge and we also had very limited time in which to collect stamps to gain money for the raft. So a plan had to be made to decide what routes to take and also the estimated cost in building the raft. I put myself forward as the accountant to work out the estimated cost of the raft and the money that we would get back from collecting stamps but the real challenge was paddling across the lake which tested all of our team work skills in working together to stay in time with each other rowing and also encouragement to keep people s moral up and get there faster than the other group. Once the activity was over we went back to the planning room and planned for the next day which was caving. Thursday Caving for me didn t sound great as i m claustrophobic but I wanted a challenge so I put myself forward as the manager of the group for the day which meant I had to make sure all the safety equipment that we needed was packed and the routes we were going to take was planned out. Even though I wasn t confident I had to push on, the team kept me focused and helped me push through which made me do some of the extra activities within the cave where there was tight squeezes in which you d have to crawl through this changed my views on things as I worked myself up for no reason by thinking there was a bigger problem than there was. Once the activity was done, it was off to plan for the final day, the presentation. Friday The presentation was an overview of the week, what you had done and the things that you have learnt while doing all the different activities and sharing them with the other groups that were there, the instructors and managers from the Audi brand. I came out of the week with more practical knowledge and knowing that once a job or task is presented to you that you need to plan and workout what is needed to carry the task out. Helping and asking for help to get jobs done at a high standard, while also being efficient. Some of the simplest jobs makeup the big jobs and at a higher standard makes all the different in the eyes of the customer and the business. One thing I also took away from the week was to take on challenges, as these push you out of your comfort zones and make you want to keep pushing to further your knowledge and career. My advice to anybody about to go on the outward bounds course is to push yourself while you are out there and to go there with a positive willing attitude which will make the week much more enjoyable and you will get so get more from the week. I came out of the week with more practical knowledge and knowing that once a job or task is presented to you that you need to plan and workout what is needed to carry the task out.
Sam Wood My five days at Outward Bounds surpassed my expectations. If I m honest, in the time leading up to leaving for the trip I thought to myself that it would be awful. Why would I want to spend a week in the cold, with strangers and completing tasks that I thought would have no relevance to my professional development? When I arrived and settled at the Ullswater Centre we were put into our groups for the week. The groups were mixed, so that you didn t spend the week with just people from your college group at the NLC. For each activity my group and I would have to prepare for it the night before and each member of the group was assigned a different role for each task. I found this beneficial as I was able to experience the different challenges that other departments face in the dealership. Each task had a theme relating to the workplace, for example the caving activity we had to guide a member of staff through the cave and we had to use maps of the cave to make sure we were using the correct route. This related to customer satisfaction and also using the B-Alert process as we used fault finding to navigate throughout the caves. All of these skills learnt from outward bounds I have taken back and applied in the workplace, by ensuring that I complete first time fixes so that the customer does not need to return for the same issue. Also by adding small touches during servicing such as replacing rusty number plate screws or fitting missing dust caps to tyre valves to help exceed customer satisfaction. During my time on Outward bounds my favourite role was workshop controller. The task that I experienced as workshop controller was rafting. My group were taken to the other side of Lake Windermere via speed boat, where we were tasked with orienteering around the side of the mountain to find stamps. Each stamp equated to money which we used to buy materials for the raft, before building it and sailing back across the lake. As workshop controller I oversaw the planning of the task the previous evening. My responsibilities included ensuring that everybody knew what they were doing and were communicating effectively, delegating tasks to members of the group and motivating the group. It was my favourite role as I liked the responsibility and challenge of creating a happy, safe and successful group morale. Overall the task went well as we all worked well as a team. The biggest challenge of the task was time management. We overcame this by working to schedules that we had planned. I feel that following being workshop controller it has motivated me further to aim towards a managerial role later on in my career. Overall I really enjoyed my time at Outward Bounds. It was great to spend time with people from other dealerships and experience the satisfaction in completing tasks that I never imagined myself doing. Reaching the top of Place Fell mountain was something that I was particularly not looking forward to, as I felt very out of my comfort zone. The views at the top were definitely worth the hard work climbing up. The task highlighted the importance of team work as I am not sure if I would of made it to the top without the encouragement of my group. I have continued to push myself to do things out of my comfort zone within the workplace, having more confidence in myself when taking on a new challenge. My advice to those attending Outwards Bounds is to go with an open mind as it s a chance to experience things the you ll probably never get the chance to do again. What you put in is what you get out of it. I feel that following being workshop controller it has motivated me further to aim towards a managerial role later on in my career.
Sarbpreet Daudhar Oxford Audi Hi I m Sarbpreet, I m a city guy, so that means I m used to my surroundings, I like the fact that everything I need is within walking distance or just a click away from me. I enjoy having my creature comforts such as the internet, video games, home cooked meal etc. If you was to tell me that I would be in the lake district scaling up a mountain or working my way through a cave, I would tell you that Your Lost as this is not a normal thing for me, the craziest thing that I have ever done in my life is ride a bike down a hill, so mountains and cave are foreign territory for me. I found myself asking other apprentices what is was like when they had the chance to go, and of course I was told how there wouldn t be good phone signals and how there is hardly anything to do in our free time, to me this was off putting as I m not the most athletic person so I knew the physical activities were going to be hard and now I find out I m going to have anything to do in my free time. Before leaving for the lake district I had a meeting with my VLA, so I asked him what it was like when he went up with the apprentices, and he told me to make the most of it, as this is a good opportunity for a person like me to get out in a different setting and challenge myself, he also told me that most apprentices go out there with a bad attitude and get nothing out of the week. So I made it my goal to try everything and make it an unforgettable experience. During my time at the Lake District I learnt a lot about myself and how a dealership functions, the tasks that I carried out in the Lake District may not exactly portray what it is like daily at work, but the way that we all depended on each other to carry out our jobs did in some way relate to the different departments at work. When carrying out the activities, I received a lot of support from my peers, even when I didn t think I could do a job, my peer were there to help me finish and complete tasks, so I do thank them for helping me receive this award. I have also achieved the unthinkable and it has given me the confidence to try everything at least once, from this experience I did gain new friends, built better relationships with the friends I had and appreciate the work done by others. I would to thank my mentors Sean Summersbee and Tom Meeson, my VLA Jonathan Lewis and my Aftersales Manager David Bailiss for the advice they share with me and also for directing me in the correct path to achieving this award. So I made it my goal to try everything and make it an unforgettable experience.