UNIVERSITY OF LINCOLN: CASE STUDY

Kyle Constable

OAL GROUP - UNIVERSITY OF LINCOLN

Kyle Constable is studying for a degree apprenticeship in Food and Drink Manufacturing Operations Management at OAL, a business that operates in partnership with the University of Lincoln and its National Centre for Food Manufacturing. He was named as the 2019 Apprentice of the Year at the Food & Drink Federation awards, and was 2018’s Apprentice of the Year at the Processing & Packaging Machinery Trade Association Awards.

I’m responsible for growing the sales of our patented food processing technology, Steam Infusion. This includes everything from lead generation to closing the deal as well as offering training to ensure our customers make the most of the technology and achieve the best possible results, whatever their end products. I got the job by following my passion for personal development and continuous improvement. Before joining OAL, I had been an apprentice with Nestlé, where I obtained my Level 3 apprenticeship. Not only did this position fire up my passion for food manufacturing, it also fuelled my desire to obtain a degree. I contacted the National Centre for Food Manufacturing to find out more about their degree apprenticeship opportunities and was made aware of the position at OAL. I arrive approximately an hour early every day and eat my breakfast whilst learning French online. We’re currently growing our export business and so I want to be able to get by with customers in one of our key markets. At 8:30am I will read through my emails and draw up a to-do list for the day ahead. This helps me to plan in customer calls as many are in different time zones - the morning tends to be the best time to catch people. In the afternoons, if I’m not contacting customers, I spend time conducting market research and lead generation. This is usually helped by my headphones with some good music and a black tea! Sometimes however, my normal day is turned on its head by customer trials. This is my favourite element of the job, where I get to meet new people and amaze them with the technologies that OAL offers. These days will typically start at 7am to prepare for the trials and consist of a non-stop day preparing for the trial, showcasing our innovations and expertise and of course clearing up at the end of the day. It’s also a bonus that we get to try a sample of the delicious products made on our test system using our customers’ recipes once we’ve completed the trial. Initially I was wary of joining an engineering company, as I thought I might be diverted away from pursuing my goals in food manufacturing. However, once I investigated what OAL does, I was impressed to find out the company leads really innovative projects in the food industry and mirrors my values; they too are passionate about personal development and process improvement. Luckily the results of the psychometric test and the interview sealed it - we were a match! I have now been with OAL for around two years and my role has advanced from Process