wanderlustcareer

[wanderlustcareer]

So it’s now been about 3 months since I was successful for my cabin crew role and I finally received the golden email:

In the months between then and now I have been going through the pre-employment vetting. This is basically me accounting my whereabouts every day for the last 5 years (which is like 1000+ days). The process is a well know stress inducer , mine was ‘relatively’ straight forward compared to the experiences of others who seem to keep dating their dates changed. My date got changed just the once (they pushed me back by 2 weeks which is annoying but bearable I suppose) and that was only because the course was full. They cleared my for my new start date the next working day , so it’s just one of those things.

The first thing I had to do was supply my five year work history to a company called Carbon 60, they are third party and act on behalf of BA. Before I even went to my assessment day , I contacted all of my old employees to ensure which email address were the quickest and easiest to contact to supply the information I needed. I think is is a useful thing to do because it ensures a quick turnaround, I also contacted HMRC and requested my 5 year work history as it has the exact dates on the form.

I thought the worst part of the process would be obtaining criminal records checks from my time working in Turkey! It was only difficult because the information supplied by Carbon 60 is completely out of date and I went through a bit of trial and error with a embassy but did obtain what I needed relatively quickly. It was quite expensive though but, again, it is just one of those things I had to go along with.

Carbon 60 also noted a date from my HMRC form about 4 years ago when I had to sign on to obtain JSA for one month , so I had to get a letter from the job centre to confirm these dates with an official stamp on to prove it’s legit of course.

So most of my references quickly replied and that meant I was onto the second stage of referencing which was obtaining a UK criminal record check (aka a DBS) and a financial propriety check - that was another £30!! But all came back clear.

I also have some gaps in my employment history for various reasons so my friend supplied a gap reference for me, she went through the same security check as she works for an airline and they accepted this . Phew. The final price of info they needed was a reference from my current employer and that meant breaking the news that I was leaving !!

My current job were really really kind about it and excited for me, I was nervous to tell them but they were supportive. The only annoying thing about this process is that they don’t tell you whether you’ve been fully cleared until about a week before you’re due to start. I had to risk it and hand my notice in anyway, annoyingly I was told my date had been pushed back the day before I left !!! It was only two weeks so it is kinda bearable as I said before but still a bit annoying.

I also had to make a trip to the USA embassy and obtain my crew visa. This is a very simple procedure actually , it’s so quick that you wonder why you even need to go in the first place. A week later my passport returned with my visas inside.

I had to also go to the head office in London for my uniform fitting and medical, I was declared fit to fly and worked out my size for the uniform. After purchasing my shoes and suitcases I’m all ready to go :)

So the next stage is the skypeople training to gain our cabin crew attesation and the following week is when we join BA . Three months of waiting is nearly over - bring it on x

[wanderlustcareer]

It’s been a while ! Career 3.0

So I went to Portugal for my training and was placed in dalaman in turkey ! I wasn’t impressed when I was first told but it was the best summer of my life , yes it was hard work but I made it all the way through and honestly cried when I left it was a dream! I was very lucky to also receive winter work in Lanzarote but as this winter season came to an end I was SO READY to leave and couldn’t get in the plane quick enough. I had redeemed myself in terms of this job role and had come full circle in Lanzarote. My memories will be lifelong and forever fond but I had a place at uni to do a masters , something I had always wanted to do . It’s now 2018 and there’s two months of my masters course left and I’m missing the travel industry... I’ve closed my repping chapter and don’t want to be away for extended periods of time again so what’s the best solution for a traveller who wants to stay in the UK? CABIN CREW .... and not just European crew where you do not leave the aircraft... international cabin crew who go to China , Sydney, Canada, USA, South Africa, Argentina but Europe AS WELL ! This sounds like my perfect solution ....

I sent off my online application , it was fairly straightforward and once is made my profile I got this email :

I filled in the rest of the information , uploaded my CV etc and a few minutes later I received another email:

As you can see from the time stamp I was emailed immediately after submission to partake in an online assessment.

I pretty much did the assessment straight away , I made sure I was in a quiet room so I could concentrate. It was a personality / scenario test , maths and comprehension test. Took some concentration and time but I did my best and submitted it. Again they emailed the next day and much to my delight :

The assessment was held at the head office called Waterside- a few minutes drive from Heathrow terminal 5. I actually wasn’t able to attend straight away , I was invited in February and finally made it July !

My friend already works for the company and was driving down for a meeting, so he picked me up on the way, his meeting started at 9 and my assessment 12, we live up north which meant I had to get up at 3.30am... so I did have some time to kill when I arrived. The interview was at the head office at Waterside, but I spent most of the time before hand at terminal 5, I did my hair and makeup there and made some notes on the company and re-read some websites with tips etc... the few hours before hand allowed me to relax.

I was very very nervous before it commenced, but I arrived with loads of time to spare and did relax a little but on arrival. I sat with some of the other candidates and we had a nice chit chat beforehand.

As we starting filtering through to the waiting area , about 4/5 of us were called at a time to do a ‘height and reach’ test , whilst we were waiting to be called we were given a form to confirm any tattoos or piercings.

The height/reach test is reaching up and holding the handle of a suitcase with both feet flat on the floor, they then measured our height (I’m 5’4 and 1/2), then we had to hold a handle and bend down to reach a tab on the floor. Then finally we had to sit in a seat with the belt fastened and sit in the brace position (hands behind your head , elbows in). You had to remove your shoes for this , even if you came in flats.

We then sat with another recruiter who went through our tattoo and piercing forms to confirm them, I do not have any tattoos and only have the generic ladies ear piercings so this was quick for me.

This took a little while to get through , but they provide free teas and coffee and there is a vending machine to get snacks. We all sat and had a chat with each other.

Eventually , we were called into another room and sat down to listen to a presentation about the company. Typical rosters, the wages , the benefits etc. The two crew members who delivered it were really friendly, they weren’t the same recruiters who performed the height and reach though. I was soooooo tired by this point, it had already been a long day and the assessment had barely started.

After this presentation we went back into the waiting area for the first part of assessments which was role plays and group task. There didn’t seem to be any particular order to this, some were called into their role plays first whilst others were called in groups.

I was called in a group with four others, there were also four recruiters in the room with iPad's. Only one of them spoke to us, the others just tapped away and took notes. All very friendly, though !

The task at hand was deciding what top three items we needed for the opening of a new restaurant, there was a staffing issue so not all jobs could be completed... we had to decide from a list of 7 with a budget of £1000 (I don’t think the end result really mattered it was more how we worked as a group). There was one very loud and overpowering man in my group. It was difficult to get a word in edge ways, he was quite aggressive and spoke far too much. (He was went home at the half way stage)

Everyone else in the group was lovely , and we helped each other get involved. All the information is given on a laminated piece of paper, three were faced down , we were told to turn one of them over and the others were left so we couldn’t see. You are given one opportunity to ask questions at the very beginning (none of us asked whether we could use any of the other pieces of paper but it turns out you could!). We were then given 18 minutes to discuss , I made sure I kept my eye on the time.

Once this was done , we were taken to the waiting room again. There was another little bit of a wait whilst everyone got through their tasks , I was eventually called for my 1-1 role-play.

We were sat opposite the recruiter in a small room , every member of staff we came into contact with was so friendly and kind, they do but you at ease. For this task we were handed an iPad, we had two minutes to read the information on the page and the recruiter left the room whilst we did this.

We then had to stand up and read the information out loud. It turns out the first bit of information we read does relate to the second bit so I did try and retain some of that information.

The second part of the role play we had a couple of minutes to read some information on the page regarding a spa. I was playing the role of a receptionist at a hotel , we had to stand up and the role play began. The recruiter played a customer who wanted to complain, she wasn’t angry and shouting but it was basically a test to see what information you could gather and to see how you handled customers. At the end they ask you how you thought it went , I did kind of lose my way a little and acknowledged this. I also expressed how I do have good customer service and it’s easier to deal with difficult situations once you really know the product. I honestly did not feel that it went well, I thought they were gonna send me home afterwards.

Then that was it , I was escorted back to the holding area.

Again , there was a little bit of waiting here as everyone was seen to. After a little while the recruiters came back with a list , they asked everyone who’s name was called to stand up and form a queue against the wall. My name was called , along with 15 others , we were taken to a room and sat down. We were congratulated for getting this far, they apparently receive 15,000 applications for this role. I have never felt so nervous about anything , this was the part where they made the cut. Luckily , we were successful and were to move onto the next stage.... but there was about half the group who got sent home !

The recruiters asked if we had any questions in general and after those were answered , they kept us in that room for a while so we didn't mix with those who were sent home. After a few minutes, we went back into the waiting area.

It was here we were asked to present the documents we were requested to bring. They took them in to be verified. I wasn’t able to hand mine in immediately as I was called in for my 2-1 interview immediately !

The two staff members who interviewed me were so lovely, so kind and really put me at ease. They introduced themselves, one took notes and one asked the questions, they alternated this half way through.

The questions were regarding the company , why we want to work for them. Then competency based questions with specific examples. They really pushed for the specific examples part, not just general ones. It lasted about 20 minutes or so and then I was taken back to the waiting area.

Once our documents had been verified, we were free to leave !

It was a long day , about five hours , I found it quite nerve wracking and felt anxious all day. However, I tried my best and nothing less. The day finished about 5 pm. I was walking to the car the next morning when I got yet another email :

I’d made it all the way, I relied immediately accepting the offer and now we began my security background checks, I will keep you posted with my progress .... or I’ll try atleast :)

[wanderlustcareer]

01/02/2016 Today I received an invitation to a Facebook group with all the other newbies who will be on the same induction : It's a place for us all to connect before we get to our induction and is motioned by the recruitment team who can answer our questions directly ! It's exciting meeting all the other new starters . 04/02/2016 So today I revived an email about gaining a visa to work in turkey ! The email says how we shouldn't share this information so I feel a little bit like a spy 🙄. I had to send my passport away to Thomas cook in the post and there's been a nerve wracking wait for it to be safely returned to me . They say they do this to be proactive 'just in case' but maybe my destination shall be turkey. We shall see . I also obtained an international driving permit just in case , as my contracts states you 'may' need one . This seems to be a theme , you just don't know where in the world you're gonna be , so you just prepare for anywhere ! Hopefully I'll find the destination out 17/02/2016 Today , when I finished work my phone was full of notifications from the induction Facebook group ! We had been notified of our destination for induction . In two and a half weeks I shall be flying to .... PORTUGAL 🇵🇹. I didn't expect this at all but I am so pleased and very excited to get going . The count down is on .

[wanderlustcareer]

Career 2.0

Okay , so my journey began with an application form ! It was very straight forward , the generic name and address questions, checking boxes about experience and attaching my cv and other supporting documents like my passport and driving licence. After perfectly tweaking my CV I pressed 'send' and off it went. Unlike most other jobs I've applied for before , I didn't receive an email to recognise that my application had been received, but I just lay in wait for a response and hoped for the best! About a week later I received an email :

 It was inviting me to compete an offline video interview , not only did this mean that they had actually received my application , they were progressing it to the next stage ! I was pretty busy with work when I received this email , but really wanted to do well at the interview, so I waited a few days until I had the whole day to prepare ! A few days later , on my day off , I got up nice and early to get ready . I had to complete this as if it were a real , face to face interview, so I neatly presented myself and read up a bit more about the company . I took advantage of the practice questions they had provided , these help you come to terms with how the online system works. I had about five competency based questions which I used my knowledge and experience to answer. You only get a certain time frame to answer and only once chance - so my first answer had to be spot on ! There was also two minutes at the end to add anything extra , this was basically where you could sell yourself and tell them why they should hire you . When I finished , I pressed 'interview compete' and off it went . I then had to play the waiting game . 

 The next day whilst on my break at work , I checked my inbox and found :

 I nearly screamed , I was so over the moon ! This meant I was one step closer to my dream job . A week and a half passed and I was busy with work as usual and , again on my lunch break , checked my email to find this Invitation:

 HURRAY. I was glad it didn't take too long to be invited to an assessment. It must have been fate because I already had this day off work , even though it was one of the busiest of the year ! I wasn't going to waste this chance . I replied straight away to confirm my place, then I had about two weeks to prepare myself . 

 The fateful day had arrived . I woke up bright and early and pristinely applied my make-up , I kept my hair naturally curly as I thought it might make me stand out (or at least be remembered 😝). I wore a black, midi skirt , a stripy black and white blouse with a black, light jacket over it , and my smart maroon coat and black shoe boots . The email requested business attire , this was the best I could do , I thought I looked pretty dapper. I had a big breakfast and left with plenty of time , I bought a lunch with me as the email said they'd be breaks in the day to eat and drink , it also said it'd be from 9.30-5 so I was prepared for a long one . Other than that , the email didn't give us much information about the day , so I was very anxious on my way there . I found the hotel and found lots of other smartly dressed individuals in the reception area, I asked one of them if they were here for the assessment say and they all said yes ! So I perched on the couch next to them and we all had a little chit chat . Soon enough , we were called into the room where the assessment would be held . This took a while as we had to be checked in individually . On the way in we were asked our names and the job role we had applied for (mine was admin, others were there for destination reps and transfer reps) I was asked if I was a driver and over 21 (which I am) and was given a sticker with my name on !

 Once we were all sat down and registered the day began . There were five recruiters and to break the ice , they each introduced themselves to the group and spoke about their favourite destination ! In this introduction we watched a couple of videos and learnt of the running order for the day . First was a group exercise , presentation, numeracy skills test , role play and finally the one on one interview (a very meaty day). 

When the word 'presentation' was muttered the whole room seemed to tense , although there were about 30+ people there , we were then split into smaller groups of about 8 to do the group task and presentation. As they were assessing for a couple of different roles, all the admins were put into one group , then the transfer reps and so on and so forth.

 In our group we were given some cards with a selection of tasks on them and , as a group , we had to decide the order of importance i.e.. Which one should be competed first and which ones can wait until later . The assessors pointed out that we shouldn't sit in silence here as we would be hard to mark , so it was important to try and get your voice heard , to expand upon other people's ideas and make good suggestions . I tried my best here to say things that could be helpful , there were quite a few people in the group but luckily they were a lovely bunch and everyone bounced of each other really well and got along great .

 The task took us about twenty minutes and then we were asked to feedback about how we thought it went . We seemed to come to a decision quite comfortably and no one seemed to disagree too much , I thought there was just enough people for the task to work well - anymore and think It could have become difficult . 

 Next task was the dreaded presentation , here we had 10 minutes to prepare a talk about our home town and had to talk for two minutes . I was nervous about this but it was something I was comfortable talking about (I had lived there all my life), I wrote what I was going to say in huge letters on my sheet of paper so I could glance down to prompt me without losing my way . I was the third person in the group to go and it went very well I think , I just felt it ran smoothly , got a few laughs and filled the time perfectly ! 

I was happy with how it went but glad to be back in my seat . It wasn't pleasant to watch a few people as you could tell they were experiencing sheer terror, a few shaky hands and voices . The group was lovely though and everyone supported each other which helped everyone to relax . 

 After all of our group had completed our talks , the whole room rejoined . We were then split in half , some of us went to lunch for an hour and the rest carried on and would break later . I was lucky enough to get to eat first (I was happy about this as I was starving by this point ). 

 After break we were called back into the room to begin our numeracy skills test , I was a bit nervous here as I hadn't done maths since school . When it came to it though, it was very straight forward, basic maths and we could use a calculator for it . The pass mark was just over half and they didn't need you to be a mathematical genius , just be able to get your head around basic numeracy . This lasted about 15-20 minutes , they were then collected and taken to be marked. 

 Next was the customer service role play . Here the assessor would play the role of an angry customer and we had to deal with them the best we could . We were all sent to wait outside and called one by one into our role play , it began as soon as we entered the room so it felt very realistic . I must say , my assessor was a very convincing angry person . I used my best customer service skills to try and resolve the situation and calm her down but was also as sympathetic as possible. They give nothing away though , so it's hard to tell what they actually thought ! 

We left the room as soon as it was over . Once everyone was done , we were called into the room again . Here we were given a talk about the company and what they could offer us , we also had to fill a little form our about availability and uniform size and preferences for destinations if we were successful . Then we were given time slots for our one on one interview , luckily mine was first , so I didn't have to wait very long . 

My interviewer asked me general , competency based questions . She also said I did very well in my presentation , and asked why I hadn't applied for the role of destination rep instead of admin , I don't think I gave the most convincing answer to be honest . As I had been a holiday advisor before , I used this experience in one of my answers and she asked me why I left the job role , I explained my reasons behind it and hoped she understood . Even though the slots were 15 minutes , we were talking for much longer and everyone else doing theirs at the same time had long gone ! 

That was it . There was nothing more I could do , other than play the waiting game . I said my goodbyes and off I went . I honestly felt quite drained after the whole day , I had to keep up appearances all day , so it was a relief to get to relax ! Although I was very eager to hear from them . 

The next day was Sunday and I had a full shift at work which took my mind off things . 

Although , the next day on Monday when I was getting ready for work my phone rang ! It was them ..... I answered and spoke to the lovely lady who interviewed me . We had a nice bit of chit chat and she said ' I'm gonna cut to the chase , we are going to offer you a position with us '.

 Although I applied and was assessed for admin , they thought id be best suited in the role of destination representative for numerous reasons . Number one , they said my presentation skills were very strong and I could stand up in front of a group and confidently talk , she told me my customer service role play was excellent and I handled the situation very well , I apparently have very good maths skills (according to my score on the test, this surprised me as I thought I was bang average ) and having a driving licence is advantageous for a destination rep . Basically , they didn't want to put me in an office and they felt my skills would fit best 'on the front line ' , face to face with customers ! Because of my experience , I had an incline they this would happen, and I'm was over the moon to be offered the position . Shortly after they sent me a confirmation email :

 it's official, I'm going to be working for Thomas cook as a destination rep for summer 2016. I'm just waiting to hear of the next steps in my recruitment , I should receive and contract and then details about induction and start dates. I joined a Facebook group with other successful candidates and we are sharing our journey together . As soon as I hear news I shall report here , hopefully I won't be waiting much longer . 

 So about two weeks after my initial job offer , my contract came through It welcomed me to the company and asked for some documents for me to fill in and send back ! I filled them in immediately , as I'm very keen to move along with recruitment . I think it'll be about two more weeks before I hear about the next steps (which will hopefully be news about the induction and dates ).

 Very excited . So about two weeks after I sent off my contract I received an email with the induction dates one . Finally , a time frame ! in less then six weeks I'd be on my way

 .... Who know where though !

[wanderlustcareer]

okay, to put it briefly...

As much as I loved and enjoyed my season abroad, I know now that I didn't go for the right reasons. I got too wrapped up in the ‘office politics’ and let it all get to me a little bit too much. I knew I had to leave and that I couldn't stay with the same company. I flew back to the UK on quite iffy terms with most people but I equally made some amazing, life long friends. 

I went back to work with the company I worked for before I left, and they offered my full time hours there. I decided to use the money I earned wisely and put it towards something useful, so I booked my first driving lesson. I liked having a goal to work towards, the job itself wasn't my ideal career choice but for what I was trying to achieve at that time, I did the trick. It look me the best part of the year but I did eventually get my licence.

After I had achieved this, I began pining to travel again.... and so I sent of an application form.

[wanderlustcareer]

Almost two months into my season

So, here I am in lanzarote , costa teguise to be precise . I am in a team In a very busy hotel, which I love . I am honestly loving it so far , the people are amazing and we have an awesome time on our days off. It is hard work, forty hours a week, which can be tiring but you are always so busy that time flies .... The weeks fly by ! It's been almost two months already which feels unbelievable . My jobs consists of helping customers out , welcome meetings and transfers to the airport , delivering welcome packs and notes and liaising with the hotel and contractors regarding issues . It also helps being in such a beautiful surrounding, it's always BOILING hot and we see right by the beach and the sea, a lot of people say how jealous they are of my job and the fact I actually live here . The only downside is the wages, which is what I expected , they are so so poor I can barely get by on it , it works out at about 10'pounds a day ! Although all our rent and bills and food are paid,mew get a works phone an iPad and all of the excursions are free for us to go on as well... I've done done amazing trips so far. I have been up to the too of a live volcano, sunbathed on a catamaran , been on a glass bottom boat party , been to a comedy drag show and soon I'm going supcuba diving !! On thing that I love is the team, everyone is one big family. I must admit that I was most worried about what my team mates would be like , whether I would get on with them all.... And I really really do. I feel like such a part of Group now already and I am really settled. Thought of leaving them makes me sad :( There is one girl who started the same time as me who is really not fitting in well, the group and everyone on the island (in all honestly ) do not like her or want to talk to her. They also don't include her in all their activities like movie night and stuff . She just isn't right for this career and is making it very difficult for everyone ,. I'm glad I'm not her . Anyway, yeah . Things here are good, I shall be sure to update you at the end of the season . I hope to soon move into another area of the field and world as cabin crew , but we shall see what winter brings . Until then

[wanderlustcareer]

LANZAROTE !

[wanderlustcareer]

20th June

So , today I received a call from a +34 … It was Spain calling !
Apparently there’s been a few problems with my original placement , and although my resort was set with my flights booked I am now unable to travel there . Apparently , the person who I was meant to replace , has really improved and had a change of heart and has decided to stay ! They were really umming and arring about the job but eventually decided to stay . A lovely welsh women rang me and we had a lovely chat with her explaining the situation ! So now I have to wait until Monday where she is going to bring me some more potential resorts based on my preferences , I don’t really have any preferences to be honest because I am going into this with an open mind and a blank note book and so I am willing to go anywhere and do anything . I am very excited to find out where I am now going to be placed . Apparently this happens a lot on this job , the nature of it means last minute changes happen all the time … But that is what excites me . I am always some who lives on the edge , you take up too much room if not … Right ?! So I’ll be back to check in with my new destination . I can’t wait to find out . Until then x

[wanderlustcareer]

30th May

I FINALLY knew where I was going to be this summer, a beautiful island off the coast of spain.

I know so many people apply for this job and are unsuccessful, I feel so lucky that such a large company believes in me and would put so much time and effort and money into me. Only two of us at the assessment day were offered the position, I felt so bad on the other two as I knew how badly they wanted this job. They pay for insurance, flights, accommodation, bills, uniform as well as a wage and this is such a lot for a company to put into a person. They have to be SURE that this person is worth it. 

I am a little nervous now, as I don’t know what to expect, although if the recruiter didn’t think I was good enough, he wouldn’t have hired me. If they have faith in me, I guess I should have a little in myself.

As soon as I find out my resort and exact dates, I will document it here :)

Until then x

[wanderlustcareer]

April 10th - Golden Call

So, the day after my assessment day, I was sat in my pyjamas watching TV (Classy hey?) when my phone rang, I didn’t recognise the number but answered anyway. It was the recruitment team in luton telling me I GOT THE JOB. The lady on the phone told me that I ‘did really well’ and ‘the recruiter was very impressed’ I was so pleased I could barely speak. She was telling me all sorts of information but I was too excited to listen, luckily she said she would email me all of the info. After the phone conversation I checked my emails to find :

I opened it :

What an AMAZING feeling, I had GOT THE JOB. I signed straight onto my applicant page to find : 

This was really happening wasn’t it? How amazing. I accepted my contract straight away:

Printed out all the documents and got them ready to send almost immediately.  

All of this had happened so quickly, it almost didn’t feel real. You can get an idea of the turnover here : 

I had to fill out referencing information, send a deposit cheque, signed my contract and send off my tax forms and then…. there was another waiting game to find out where I would be placed.

HERE WE GO AGAIN. 

[wanderlustcareer]

April 9th- The Assessment Day

I got up bright and early to get ready for the big day, did my hair and makeup nicely, and dressed in business attire as requested.

I arrived at the assessment centre about 25 minutes early, where the rest of the other applicants were already waiting. I’m glad I arrived so early because the assessor started registering everybody very shortly after I arrived.

The other candidates were all so lovely and chatty, the fact that we could all have a bit of a natter before the assessment began made me feel a little bit more relaxed about the whole day. We weren’t in competition against each other, the recruiter was just looking for the best candidates for the job, this made it less of a competition and a more relaxed atmosphere between us.

I was called in last to register, this was my first direct contact with the recruiter, Wayne ! I tried to be as friendly and talkative as possible, and give a good first impression. All my documents were present and correct (phew) and I was given a name badge.

Then we were all called through and the assessment began. The recruiter introduced himself properly, described a bit about his time in the company, and spoke about the company as a whole - what services they offered , their history and all that - this lasted about half and hour and that’s when we moved onto the activities.

First off was the dreaded presentation, they put this first to get it out of the way because they know people hate doing it! We were given a booklet about a certain destination and had ten minutes to prepare a three minute presentation selling excursions for this destination, I got the Greek island of Rhodes. The ten minutes flew by so quickly, it’s the quickest ten minutes of my life, I tried to include as much information as possible and wrote what I was going to say in massive letters in my notebook so I only had to quickly glance down at my page to read what to say next. This meant I could keep eye contact, project my voice and not lose my flow. Of course, I was really nervous, but did my best to not show it.  I also went first out of the group, which was good to get it out of the way, but nerve wracking to be the first one up. The three minutes flew by in an instant and I was back in my seat before I knew it, I took a deep breath and relaxed as that was the bit I was least looking forward to. Then I had to watch the rest of the group as they delivered theirs, one girl was absolutely fabulous and didn’t seem nervous at all, another froze half way through which was really uncomfortable to watch and another lady was well under the three minutes and just abruptly stopped.

Next activity was the group activity, we were given a hypothetical scenario about a hotel that had received bad reviews and had to collectively create a seven step plan on how to improve it. Here, I had to try and get my point across without being too forceful or domineering and totally taking control ! The recruiter sat next to us and was scribbling down notes the entire time (I wish I knew what he was writing ).

Final task of the morning was a ‘week in the life’ exercise in which we had to work alone, we were given a sheet to fill in what we thought the week entailed. Here, I just tried to include as much of my customer service experience as possible and the sort of activities I thought I’d be doing on the job. This lasted about 15 minutes.

Then we had a break . This was the second most nervewracking thing about the day (after the presentation) because this is where the recruiter decides if we’re going through to the second part of the day or if we were going home. After what felt like hours but was probably only about 15/20 minutes, one lady was called into the room by a recruiter. A few minutes later she stuck her head back around the door, waved and said ‘good bye’ she hadn’t made it through to the afternoon and therefore hadn’t got the job :( . Another girl was called through and eventually came back to join us, apparently she had only just made it through to the second stage and the recruiter said she needed to try and be more confident and expand upon other people’s ideas more. 

Then me and another girl were called into the room, my heart was thumping through my chest. We sat down, and the first thing the recruiter said was ‘Well Done’ ! PHEW, we had made it through the first stage. He said our presentations were really good and that we were the strongest characters in the group work, he said there was no need for any less generic feedback because we both did well! I really tried my best so this was a big BIG relief.

We then had a little break for lunch and then went on to the second lot of activities. First the recruiter told us, in more detail, about the job itself and all the benefits and potential locations and resorts. Then we had to do a ‘sales role play’, here we had to sell the excursions we discussed in the presentations one on one to the recruiter. The recruiter was a very good actor and really convincing in his role, I basically just made general chit chat and went on to discuss the excursions. He said he’d come back to me about it, not necessarily a sale but not the worst outcome, hey ? I was also first to go at this so didn’t have the luxury of discussing what happened with the others before I went.

I was then given a card with a hypothetical angry customer, the recruiter played the customer and I had to play the role of the rep. Again, the recruiter was such a good actor he seemed genuinely ANGRY ha. I basically let him say what he wanted to say with NO interruptions, I just nodded and nodded and said ‘yes’ ‘okay’ and then went on to apologise and offer lots of alternatives and free stuff in order to make up for the mishap. I don’t actually think I did too well here as I didn’t offer a refund. Luckily in the next activity, the one on one interview, I was given the opportunity to explain why I said and did what I did in the roleplay and the recruiter really understood where I was coming from. This interview included questions about what had happened throughout the day and then competency based questions about my past experience .

Again, I tried to keep eye contact and tried to stay as calm as possible, I tried to give examples that showed the recruiter how suitable I believe I am for the role. 

And that was that ! I was told I’d hear from the recruitment team in five working days with the outcome of the day, I got the names of the other candidates and we added each other on facebook to keep in touch. Then I went home. It was such an intense day, I felt totally and utterly scrutinized from head to toe and was so relieved when It was over. Now we play the waiting game !

[wanderlustcareer]

April 2014- Application

This is the day my journey began, I spent ages working on my application and making sure that is was the best that it could be. I also really worked on my CV in order to make it really show off the skills that I have acquired over my working life.

The application form was pretty straight forward; I was asked about my basic details, qualifications, education, work history, languages, any courses I have taken and additional competency based questions... these are the ones that took the longest!

When I submitted my application, I got this email :

Phew. Now to play the waiting game. Thankfully, the wait wasn't even half as long as I thought it would be, SIX days later I got this email :

I booked my assessment day for TWO days later (eek) at the assessment centre at Manchester airport, the email requested that a bring proof of looooads of documents like my passport, p60, national insurance and bank account etc. I then read up about what this day would entail, it included a presentation, roleplays, group and individual work. I spent the next day learning about the company and cramming as much information as possible. 

Full details of the assessment day will be in the post to follow.