New talent inbound

Bapcor’s Graduate program is bringing exciting new talent to Australia’s automotive aftermarket industry

The Asia Pacific’s largest automotive aftermarket specialised company, Bapcor Limited, has established a successful graduate vocational program that has introduced ten young and talented individuals to a professional career in the ever-growing Australian automotive aftermarket industry. This program provides Bapcor, owners of a number of the country’s best known and most trusted automotive aftermarket trade and retail brands, the opportunity to invest in the automotive aftermarket industry’s future along with the company’s own future, by attracting, supporting, and developing new talent across all of its business divisions. The two-year Bapcor Graduate Program provides each of the ten candidates with hands-on experience across four business division rotations, providing each graduate with broad company exposure and experience. This also builds on their university training with real-life industry experience, coupled with senior management guidance and support. The university graduates selected to join Bapcor have come from a variety of degree specialisations including design, finance, engineering, digital media, human resources, and psychology, bringing a diverse level of skill sets to each of their Bapcor business division placements. The Bapcor 2022 Graduate Program cohort of ten candidates represents an encouraging level of automotive aftermarket industry interest and is made up of six female and four male graduates. Bapcor Talent and Capability Manager, Glenn McDermott, is the person responsible for the successful introduction and actioning of this inaugural Bapcor Graduate Program. It generated a strong level of interest from national university graduates, despite the number of other companies and industries that were also vying to attract these talented newcomers to their industries. “The Bapcor Graduate Program is an opportunity for us to give back to the Australian automotive aftermarket industry, while also building our company’s skills and talent pool,” Glenn said. “This program also provides long term career opportunities for talented and driven young people with a company that has outstanding career ascension opportunities given our size and constant business growth. “We are very fluid and adaptive in our approach to our graduate program, ensuring that our candidates are working within their fields of business interest, which has proven to be very successful. “The relatively small number of our graduate program cohort compared to the size of the company ensures that we can provide a strong level of personal and emotional support that our graduates may also need along the journey. “This links in strongly with the core Bapcor Value of ‘We give a Damn…’ which of course includes caring for our people. We aspire to ensure that each graduate feels valued and supported in each of their roles.” The graduates themselves report that the Bapcor Graduate Program is exceeding their expectations, even for those who weren’t aware of the automotive aftermarket industry as a potential long term career path. “My first design job placement was with a tyre dealer, so I was aware of the industry more from a performance accessories perspective as opposed to general automotive parts. The thing about this program is that you are not just doing a job, you are experiencing personal and professional growth,” graduate Cindy said. “This is my first professional job, and I am learning more about myself as well as developing my skills as it progresses. The program structure has made the transition from university to full time work relatively easy because we are supported by so many peers.” “I worked at an Opposite Lock store, so I was able to go from the retail side of the Bapcor business while pursuing my university degree, to now find myself working with the people who run the company. This enables me to bring my automotive aftermarket shop floor experience and university training to Bapcor managerial and support roles,” graduate Will said. “The scale of the Bapcor business just floored me, I started my rotations with Burson Auto Parts in Purchasing and the volume of parts we were buying was just extraordinary. Even after half a year I am still in awe of the size and efficiency of the business. Now when friends ask about the company I work with, I list the companies that make up Bapcor and this always surprises them,” graduate James said. “I was so surprised at the number of smaller companies that Bapcor owns. While I had heard of the larger companies like Autobarn, Midas and Burson Auto Parts, the sheer number of businesses in the group truly surprised me, along with how they all complement each other so well,” graduate Ella said. “I first came across this program on Grad-Connect and I had never heard of Bapcor before. What appealed to me was the true flexibility that the company offered with its graduate program and its support. Bapcor has designed the program to suit the graduate, which is different to how many other companies do it. Once I started working there, I was very surprised with the size of the company and the fact that I had never heard of it before,” graduate Aish said. “The best parts of the program so far have been meeting like-minded people and being on this journey with this same group of people since day one, while also being under the guidance of caring supervisors and mentors. It is also a great privilege to work with and learn from some of the most experienced and knowledgeable people in the industry,” graduate Sonny said. The Bapcor Graduate Program is currently recruiting new graduates to join the country’s largest automotive aftermarket specialised company in February 2023. To find out more, visit www.bapcor.com.au/graduates

2022 Bapcor Graduate Program members with CEO Noel Meehan