Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2021 – Adam Fisher

It’s Scottish Apprenticeship Week and we are celebrating our amazing apprentices past and present and the impact they make at Quorum.

Our first employee is Adam Fisher. Adam started working at Quorum in October 2019 and has recently completed his Level-8 ‘IT Systems & Networking’ Apprenticeship within the Managed Services team in Quorum’s head office.

Adam quickly adapted to the wide variety of clients and technologies we support through our Managed Services team and really enjoys putting what he learned via QA Apprenticeships into practice in the workplace.

We have really seen Adam thrive since he joined Quorum, he is a very strong team player who is always willing to help out clients and colleagues alike.

Pre-Covid, we were delighted Adam wanted to represent Quorum by attending a careers event at Knox Academy with our Director of Managed Services, Aileen Clark, where he shared his apprenticeship journey to S3-S5 students potentially looking at IT as a career.

What was the best part about doing an apprenticeship?

“The growth opportunities are great. Working within the managed services team gives you exposure to lots of different environment and clients. This gives a good base understanding of lots of different technologies and processes. It also allows you to apply any knowledge gained from courses during formal learning during the apprenticeship in a real-world environment.

The best part for me was being able to work within a fast-paced environment which allowed me to upskill quickly with amazing support from the team.”

What is next for you?

“After finishing my apprenticeship in March 2020, I moved into an IT support analyst role within the managed services team. This role allows me to continue my learning and development whilst supporting our clients and getting involved in projects. I hope to continue to improve my technical knowledge which will allow me to become an even bigger asset to the team and to Quorum.”

How did you find juggling working full time and doing your apprenticeship?

“Working full time alongside my apprenticeship did require hard work and some work after hours. Quorum were great in allowing me to balance my schedule between work and coursework especially allowing time to go on courses.”

Did you get enough support from your team?

“The managed services team were very supportive throughout my apprenticeship. There was time spent ensuring I was upskilling and gaining confidence in the areas I needed to. This was done by showing me different tasks and types of work as it was completed then allowing me to try it for myself. This was also done by pointing me in the right direction of training materials, allowing me to increase my knowledge and achieve certifications.”

What are the pros and cons from your apprenticeship? 

“There were many pros to my apprenticeship which included learning on the job whilst doing formal qualifications and earning a wage.

The “con” that many people see in apprenticeship is the lack of a university degree. As this is the more traditional method of getting into work. I am glad I went down the route of an apprenticeship as it has allowed me to gain experience and valuable soft and technical skills a lot earlier in my career.”

What would you say to anyone thinking of starting an Apprenticeship?

“An Apprenticeship is a great way to get into work whilst earning a formal qualification alongside on the job learning. You can gain vital experience working within a team that can support you with your development by getting you involved in real-life situations with clients. This sort of learning enables you to improve soft skills such as communication and problem solving along with technical knowledge.”

Adam is a great example of the value that apprentices can bring to your business!  Since competing his level 8 Apprenticeship, Adam has really embraced our culture of continual training and development and has since become accredited in Azure Fundamentals, M365 Fundamentals, Modern Desktop Administrator Associate, and Security Administrator Associate.