The training programme was very comprehensive, the people very friendly and willing to try their best to ensure the highest standard of training was delivered. Any suggestions I had for additions/changes to the programme were listened to and accommodated.

The working environment is very intense, there is normally so much going on that you are put to the test regularly which really helped me to learn to multi-task.

"I can now happily have a number of key tasks on the go at one time and successfully manage them all."

A real strength of the programme is that the senior managers are prepared to take a risk with the graduates and give them real responsibility. I found this helped me learn the business very quickly and as I succeeded my confidence grew a great deal.There are always plenty of people with bags of experience close by, who are more than willing to help.

"You need to get your hands dirty and make the most of the experience."

Arriva will give you opportunities to learn however you have to be willing to get in there, get your hands dirty and make the most of the experience. You also need a number of key skills, such as good awareness and control of budgets, good people skills, an ability to multi-task and the ability to work under pressure.

I still find the early mornings hard to deal with. Being at work for 6am is essential in this business. If there is an engineering problem you need to be on site to deal with it before the last bus runs out of the garage so you have the best chance of making a full service and avoiding lost mileage.

"The programme has given me a good foundation."

After I completed the programme I was offered the role as Assistant Engineering Manager. To start with my objective was just to keep the vehicles available for service, do the daily paperwork and keep up with the servicing. However my responsibilities expanded to include managing budgets, managing stock control, changing working practices, and people management. I was soon enough considered ready to run the whole department.

"I grabbed the chance of secondment in Europe. Arriva can provide such a wealth of experience in different places."

My grounding in engineering in the UK stood me in good stead for interesting secondment roles elsewhere in the business.

I took a Project Management role, working in the Czech Republic for two months helping one of our European businesses to improve its engineering standards. The training in my early days was immensely useful and helped me do a good job there.

When that secondment ended, I returned to the UK to manage a UK project involving the installation of an innovative fuel saving device to all of our fleet. It's a challenging role as I am responsible for ensuring 2500 fitments this year and there are some very demanding deadlines. To add to that, I am also responsible for ensuring that all drivers are trained in economical driving techniques.

In this project I've come across many complex technical challenges, requiring me to work with third party developers to find solutions.

In this wide and varied role I could be delivering an update presentation to the Leadership team one day, and be underneath a bus the next. This experience has furthered my understanding of the transport business, improved my management and problem solving skills, and has given me the chance to meet countless people across the business. I feel certain that foundations laid by the Arriva Graduate Training Programme have been central to my continuing progress with the group.