EDUCATION CASE STUDY

Degree title: Hospitality Business Management BA (Hons)
Educational institution: University College Birmingham (UCB)

Charlee is currently undertaking a degree in Hospitality Business Management at University College Birmingham (UCB) which she is hoping to complete in May this year. She spent her placement year – a requirement of the degree – working for Amadeus, first as a multi-skilled operative before working her way up to a team leader position.

Since finishing her placement year in 2017, Charlee decided to stay on with Amadeus, working four days a week and spending her remaining three days a week studying.

At just 22, she is today a permanent Catering Manager for Amadeus responsible for catering operations within Hall 5 of the National Exhibition Centre (NEC). As part of this role, Charlee looks after a team of 10 people which includes a number of apprentices and current placement students from UCB. One of these people is Joseph Freeman who also did his placement year with Charlee and is now a senior team leader in her team.

Charlee fully understands the stresses and strains on those both working and studying and believes this allows her to be a better manager.

She is an ambassador for Amadeus’ apprenticeship and education programmes, understanding the importance of targeting talent at a young age. She said: “Apprenticeships or work placements like I did are a fantastic way to get your foot in the door, with many companies providing fantastic development and progression opportunities. At Amadeus, we are constantly training the new recruits up to become tomorrow’s managers and we invest in our staff.

“I absolutely love working for Amadeus because of how much the business has invested in me personally. Every question I have ever had has been answered and explained with time and attention. I feel that I have had exceptional training from a very supportive team, meaning that I feel really confident in my role and when I’m out on the floor talking to customers.

“Amadeus is also ideal for me as it’s so flexible – I can study and work at the same time as Amadeus has flexible shift options that work around me. After finishing University I want to stay on with Amadeus and see a real future for myself here – I love the fact that every day is different and get a real buzz every time I come into work.”