The Retail Academy News | ISSUE 10 | AUGUST 2013

Newsletter

The New Starter Induction (NSI) training was established last July to assist in ‘making every journey better’ for passengers.

The training involves new members of staff joining the Retail Heathrow concessions to attend a morning presentation at HAL’s Compass Centre. Staff are coached in Heathrow expectations, including customer service, security and our history.

In the afternoon staff receive a tour in their designated terminal with guides. Staff are shown everything that a passenger may request such as prayer rooms, play areas and the lounges. In fact, there’s nothing they don’t see!

New Starter Inductions have proved so popular that Retail concession managers requested a similar event for their established staff.

As a result, Induction for Existing Staff (IES) has been delivered since January 2013, with staff receiving a similar input without the tour.

To date, the Retail Academy Induction Team have trained over 1000 new starters and over 1100 existing staff. Feedback from delegates shows that 83% will implement everything they have learned in their duties and 81% would recommend the training to all retail staff.

Muriel Zingraff-Shariff, Heathrow Retail Concessions Director, says of the training “To support our concessionaires and their teams in helping fulfil Heathrow’s customer promise of making every journey better, Heathrow Retail’s Induction days provide a valuable insight into the wider airport environment, and create a new high benchmark in service that is set to become our Heathrow Retail standard.”

Indeed, staff comments include “I have worked at Heathrow before but have learnt new things” and “It was a great way to get old pass holders up to date with new things going on in Heathrow.” Our favourite comment was “Best day at work ever” – who could want a better accolade!

If your company is still to get involved in NSI or IES training, please contact the Retail Academy Induction Team: Rebecca.Walker@Retail-Academy.net or Navtej.Bhogal@Retail-Academy.net

The Retail Academy holds an annual graduation and award ceremony. This is a prestigious event involving all the learners graduating from their programmes, together with their mentors and employers. We’ll be celebrating those graduating from their Vocational Qualification or Apprenticeship and giving special awards for individuals, learners and mentors who have excelled. Finally there is an employer of the year award for the most proactive and supportive employer.

Don’t forget to put the date in your diary -

Thursday 17th October 2013 at the Marriott Hotel, Bath Road (evening event).

Invites are sent out late July to ops managers to arrange attendees and RSVPs.

This year, we are delighted to welcome the inspirational Katie Piper as our guest speaker.

Katie Piper is a former model turned TV presenter and founder of the Katie Piper Foundation. Katie’s own modelling and media career was horrifically cut short when a former boyfriend & another man threw acid in her face.

Katie will share her story of physical and emotional recovery from her appalling experiences, her own personal determination,and the work of health and charity professionals.

Retail Academy Annual Graduation and Award Ceremony 2013 Save the date

2013 Guest Speaker - Katie Piper

Training for the future

Our recruitment service

Stories of our success

Heathrow New Starter Induction Training

Travelex receiving an award at last years award ceremony for employer of the year.

Heathrow retail staff

Welcome to our worldguide

Heathrow.com© Heathrow Airport Limited 2013 CRH v3 0213

Information contained in this booklet is correct at time of going to print.

In an emergency call 222 (from a Heathrow phone) or 020 8759 1212

Airport carshare and staff travel 0208 745 2766or visit heathrow.com/commuter

Control Centres to report dangerous situation, accidents, unattended items and security concerns:-

Landside Central area 020 8745 7216 T1 020 8745 5726 T3 020 8745 5550 T4 020 8745 4545 T5 020 8757 2200 Airside Central area 020 8745 6026 Equality and Human Rights Commission 0845 604 6610

Faults 020 8745 7111 centralengineeringfaults@heathrow.com

Heathrow Consolidation Centre (HCC) 020 8606 3000

ID Centre 020 8745 5178 or heathrow.com/idcentre

Retail Academy retail_academy@heathrow.com

Staff Car Parking 020 8745 6655

Shop and Collect service 07920 806 888 or 07798 534780

Useful information

The information contained in this guide is supplementary to the training you will receive from your employer.

An accessible version can be found at heathrowairport.com/staffguide

Nadarajah Agilan, Retail Apprenticeship

CSA Transfers, progressed to be Service and Sales Specialist

“I learned a lot of new procedures which I have adapted within my role. I now also have a much better understanding around the commercial side of the business, which was learned through my projects on the Apprenticeship.

I now organise the teams and even mentor the new starters. I have gained confidence and been given the responsibility now to do many extra things. During my project I gained an understanding of flight changes over the years, and the effect the flight profiles have on the business, I would have never really thought too much about this before doing my Apprenticeship.

I am very grateful to have been given this opportunity.”

Gareth Holmes Retail Apprenticeship

Progressed from Liquor Service and Sales Specialist to a role in head office working on a new project.

“Taking part in, and completing the Retail Apprenticeship qualification was not only an enjoyable experience, but also a career benefiting achievement.

As a Service and Sales Specialist, taking the course gave me greater knowledge about the retail environment as well as helping to refine my current customer service skills in a way which benefited myself and the company. My completion of the course was recognised by managers with the business, who saw potential in me as an employee and offered the opportunity to join the Manpower Planning team within the Head Office, on an upcoming project which will later be used in all terminals across the country.

By entering back into education, it re-sparked my ambition to improve my qualifications, as after the completion of the Apprenticeship, I enrolled into a Business Management and Accounting Degree in which I hope to use to further progress within the company.

All of these life changing events are the result of being given the opportunity to take part in the Retail Apprenticeship.”

A shining success

Nathalie Reynolds, Business Administration Apprenticeship

Promoted from Service and Sales Specialist to National Voice Partner

“I was given the opportunity at work to enrol in the Retail Academy and do a Business Admin Qualification. At first I was a bit sceptical and thought I would not be able to do this. However, on my first interview with the Retail Academy Assessor I soon realised by working step by step this could be achieved.

I had around 14 units to do and 4 exams which took a lot of hard work but one by one they were done and I use the knowledge at my current position with our company. The beauty of this qualification is that rather than sitting in a class and a teacher is teaching you, you go out there and research yourself all the information that you need. By doing so you actually learn more and it stays with you as you seem to absorb the information better.

I tend to practise what I have learnt from my modules, knowing that it is the correct way of doing things. For example, when sending out an e-mail I now take great care in the format and follow tips that I have learnt from my modules. When I write a letter I also use all the tools that I have learnt and compose the letter according to the needs of the audience.

I now find myself taking better care of what I write and this has all been a great learning curve which now I practise on a daily basis.

I am now a mentor myself and when our learners ask me for advice I always say, take your own pace, do not rush and do this step by step. The Retail Academy Assessors do give you plenty of support every step of the way.”

Reinaldo Barbosa Retail Apprenticeship

Promoted from Luxury Service and Sales Specialist to Customer Service Leader

“The Apprenticeship course has given me the opportunity to understand and learn more about the retailing environment. The set tasks within the workshops allowed me to explore other categories and to gain a better understanding of the business at all levels.

Completing the course has built up my confidence and given me self-belief in my abilities which has led me to develop my skills further and became a Voice Representative and thereafter progressed to a Customer Service Leader.

Also to add to my development, I am full fledged Retail Academy Mentor and mentoring new learners also sharing and promoting my successful progression and inspiring others to partake in the Apprenticeship programme.”

Feays Nouri, Sales Associate

Feays heard about the Retail Academy from a friend that went through the Retail Academy and secured a job in Heathrow.

“I contacted the Retail Academy in April 2012 and was booked on the pre employment training course. The course was of great benefit as it gave a better understanding of the environment and the high level of customer service required at Heathrow Airport. After the course I had a 1-2-1 with my advisor, she conducted a mock interview with me gave me constructive feedback and areas in which to focus on.

A vacancy came up that my advisor thought I would be suitable for. She prepped me for the interview, asked me to research the company and arranged the interview with Mappin & Webb.

It was the first interview I had through the Retail Academy and I was successful. If it wasn’t for the Retail Academy and their support I don’t think I would have secured a job at Heathrow so quickly. I love working at Mappin and Webb, it’s been nearly a year now and hope to make a career within the company and progress through the ranks.

I still keep in regular contact with my advisor and have made several referrals to the Retail Academy. I cannot praise the “Retail Academy Recruitment Team enough they are caring, professional and passionate about their job.”

Ash Pankhania, Mappin & Webb

“Having worked with the Retail Academy Recruitment team over the past few year’s, first and foremost I must praise the team for their Dedication and Excellence to their roles.

Having listened to the needs of our business, the team have matched their candidates skills with our requirements and provided quality candidates that meet the criteria.

Open, two way communication is key to our working relationship and the team will always endeavor to see it ‘from our perspective’.

They are a great support to Mappin & Webb and Watches of Switzerland stores at Heathrow and I will continue to make them my first point of call for further recruitment.”

Communicating with our international customersFollowing the success of last year’s course in Chinese culture and Mandarin language, the Retail Academy is now running regular programmes for retailers at Heathrow. Our Mandarin courses are designed to improve the welcome and shopping experience of the growing number of Chinese passengers who spend time in our many modern and exciting shopping areas. Each course lasts for a total of nine hours spread over three consecutive weeks. Apart from learning a number of useful phrases, staff learn about the interesting shopping habits and customs of our Chinese visitors.

Our Retail Academy language training courses are short, enjoyable, and increasingly, employ the use of new technology. Delegates do not need any prior knowledge of foreign languages, but need to attend all the 3 hour sessions, with some self study in between.  At the end of the course they gain a certificate, and are given a set of ‘Phrase Cards’ containing suitable phrases and customs which can be clipped to their Heathrow lanyard, so the information is always with them!

Arabic & Russian courses are also available.

For more information or if you would like to make a booking please email: retail_academy@heathrow.com

Cost of course is £75 per delegate and includes 3 sessions & all course materials/handouts.

All courses are held at the Heathrow Academy building

With less than a year to go until the opening of Terminal 2, it’s a great time to get the most out of the Retail Academy training in getting your employees prepared. Here are some stories of our success from World Duty Free.

If you, or your employees could benefit from one of the wide ranges of courses available, please get in touch to find out more.

retail_academy@heathrow.com

heathrow.com/retailacademy

Upcoming course datesSeptember:

Arabic - 12th, 19th & 26th - 9.30am – 12.30pm

October:

Mandarin - 10th, 17th & 24th - 9.30am – 12.30pm or 1:30pm – 4.30pm Russian - Dates to be confirmed

November:

Russian - 14th , 21st & 28th - 1:30pm – 4.30pm

Since January 2012, Michael Page have been working with the Retail Academy to support retailers with specialist and management roles.

They have a dedicated Account Manager and specialist team that deal with vacancies. Look out for them out and about in the terminals introducing themselves to you. For any support in the interim please contact the Retail Academy retail_academy@heathrow.com with “Michael Page” in your subject header.

Recruitment serviceThe Retail Academy recruitment team works with the local community to support local people back into work through a one week pre-employment ‘Routes to Work’ programme. This ensures that potential candidates already have the appropriate skills to qualify for positions at the airport.

Training for the future

General enquiries contact: Email: retail_academy@heathrow.com

© Heathrow Airport Limited. 2013 CRH v1 8.13

heathrow.com/retailacademy

We are delighted to announce that London Heathrow Airport has been named as winner of the Best Airport Shopping in the World Award for a fourth successive year, during The SKYTRAX Airport Awards 2013.

The award recognises the continued improvement over the last twelve months in the selection and quality of Heathrow shopping facilities, delivering one of the most extensive ranges of world-class brands in the retail arena. In doing so, Heathrow beat off fierce competition from Singapore Changi

and Dubai Airports, by proving more competitive not only in terms of choice but also in overall pricing when compared against other major airports.

The World Airport Awards™ are based on the annual SKYTRAX airport customer survey, covering 388 airports.

The survey evaluates traveller’s experiences across airport products and services; from check in, arrivals and transfer, through to departure at the gate.

Heathrow wins Best Airport Shopping Award

Is nurturing in your natureFor those who have taken up the opportunity of becoming a mentor, support is available from our Mentoring Workshops, which are delivered from the Heathrow Academy building. Workshop dates for the rest of 2013 are: 13th August, 8th October, 10th December

The three-hour workshop provides mentors with a greater understanding of Vocational Qualifications and how they are delivered on site at Heathrow, while exploring the skills and competencies required for mentoring to the best of their ability.

Following your attendance on the mentor workshop your Retail Academy Vocational Assessor will work with you over the following 12 weeks to support you in your role as a mentor and ensure your learners get the best possible support. Once you can demonstrate your skills successfully a certificate of mentor accreditation will be issued to you for your achievement.

If you are interested in becoming a mentor you can speak to your manager to discuss this opportunity. If you are already a Retail Academy accredited mentor but haven’t attended a Mentor Workshop in the past 12 months, please contact the Retail Academy for more details at retail_academy@heathrow.com quoting ‘Mentor Workshops’ in your subject header.

The workshops are an opportunity for existing and new mentors to gain an insight into the apprenticeship programme and expectations. As a mentor you will take part in a variety of exercises to gain an understanding of the importance of your role. You will be given information and guidance on how you can support your learners on the programme to assist them in gaining a valuable qualification.

New mentors and mentors that went on the course over two years ago will be invited to attend.

The chance to shop and eat at the airport can be a great part of working at Heathrow. And with a Heathrow Rewards card, you can enjoy exclusive offers from shops and restaurants, as well as collect points on almost every purchase you make at the airport.

You can then enjoy rewards including airport shopping vouchers and frequent flyer miles.

Make sure you tell us your Airport ID number when you register to get access to the exclusive staff area of our website where you’ll find details of exclusive staff offers and competitions which you can take advantage of in addition to all the regular member benefits. You’ll also receive a monthly email with all the latest Heathrow Rewards offers and promotions.

Make sure you enter promotion code STAFF1 to get your bonus 250 points* when you first spend £25 in single day.

* Points will be credited to your account when you spend a total of £25 in a calendar day, offer

applies only to the first £25 spend. Excludes certain products and outlets, see Terms & conditions for full

details. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion.

Heathrow Rewards Loyalty Card