The human apprentices behind robotic automation

Meet some of the first group of apprentices

Naeim Cragwell-Chaudhry

Prior to starting his apprenticeship with Voyager in March, 19-year-old Naeim Cragwell-Chaudhry, from West London, was working in a warehouse as his first job after finishing A-levels in physics and maths and an AS in chemistry.

He was not interested in going to university due to its lecture-based structure and the risk of building up debts. “I didn’t want to go to university as it just wasn’t my thing. I don’t like the environment where you are lectured. I prefer to be doing something, and thought an apprentice scheme was right up my alley,” he said.

Cragwell-Chaudhry was already interested in IT, so an IT apprenticeship seemed the natural choice for him. For example, he taught himself how to program. “That’s how I found my way to this apprentice programme,” he said.

On completion of the one-year programme, Cragwell-Chaudhry will get an IT qualification, which is the equivalent of an A-level, and will have 12 months’ work experience under his belt. He is working on automating a set of processes at a global healthcare provider.

Once he finishes the course, Cragwell-Chaudhry hopes to remain at Voyager and work his way up the ranks.

In terms of technology, he said he enjoys working with RPA as it is still cutting edge.

Had he gone to university, Cragwell-Chaudhry said he would have ended up with large debts. Instead, he is earning money while he studies and gains experience, which he finds “very appealing”.

Ricky Sangalli Korletey

Ricky Sangalli Korletey, 21, was born in Finland, but has lived in the UK since he was a young child.

He gained a BTEC in IT at college, but did not want to go to university because of the fear of debt. “It would be silly for me to go to university considering how much debt I would get into. I also think it is a waste of time as I would rather go into work and progress rather than having to start later on in life,” he said.

Before taking on the apprenticeship with Voyager, Sangalli Korletey had just completed national service in the Finnish army, an opportunity he felt would add to his CV, and was seeking a job in IT having previously been working on a service desk.

He is currently working with a global supply chain service provider on the first phase of RPA implementation.

“The main skills I have learnt so far are logic based, which is almost like programming in a sense. This has helped me better understand what software can do, as well as some of the flaws,” said Sangalli Korletey. “In the past I have worked with hardware, but really wanted to increase my knowledge of software as I knew this was a weakness.”

His BTEC qualification in IT meant he was exempt from some of the academic programme due to overlap.

When he completes the apprenticeship he wants to remain at Voyager and progress to a technical lead role.

Esther Animashaun

Before embarking on her apprenticeship with Voyager, 19-year-old Esther Animashaun, from Hackney in East London, was working in retail while looking for work in IT.

After finishing school she went to college to study IT, business and law, but soon decided she did not want continue with the business and law studies. “I was experimenting a bit,” she said.

Animashaun continued with the IT and had her eye on an IT apprenticeship. “I always knew I wanted to go into an apprenticeship,” she said. She found the Voyager programme through an apprenticeship provider.

She is the only female in the current batch of apprentices, which reflects a lack of girls entering IT across the UK.

Animashaun said there was a lack of girls doing IT and suggested stereotypes could be deterring them from entering IT. “Since high school I have often been the only girl doing IT, and even here I am with four guys,” she added.