How colleagues like Josh are helping lead the way to our new energy world

We’re proud that Josh, aged 21, has recently been named ‘Outstanding Apprentice of the Year: Financial, Legal & Business Services’ at the Nottingham Trent University (NTU) Apprentice Awards. Not only that, but we were named ‘Apprentice Employer of the Year: Large Enterprise’ too.

We spoke to Josh, who is undertaking his Digital and Technology Solutions Professional (Software Engineering) Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship at NTU about how he’s finding learning while earning, and how he’s getting on in his new role as Technical Expert in our Digital Technology team.

Here’s what he had to say:

“I chose to work at E.ON because I didn’t want to take the traditional route of full time university study. I wanted to be able to gain experience while working and applying my learnings. 

I’ve had eight different placements during my apprenticeship, from Digital Technology and Information Security to People Analytics and the ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) team. 

I chose the Digital Technology scheme because I’ve always loved technology and wanted to develop my skills further in the workplace while also continuing my love for learning. 

I’ve secured a role as a Technical Expert in the Tiny Digital Things team. The team focuses on creating value through creating automates, dashboards and simple applications. I value both creating value in areas that might not have lots of technical background or help and creating technology pieces that help people with their jobs.” 

When asked what he enjoys most about working at E.ON, his main challenges, and what’s gained from the experience, Josh told us: “The people that I work with and the interactions that I have. Everyone is always happy to help when I need it making me feel good about the work that I complete. 

The main challenges are balancing the workload with all the university work that we get. Not being able to focus all your time on one thing and knowing that there is university work to complete after work can be hard sometimes. But this only happens because I want to do the work to a high standard and do a good job too.  

I’m currently completing my final project for university where there’s a lot to get done. But my team are amazing in giving me enough time and support to complete my work to a good quality. 

Working at E.ON has been my first full time job, and I’ve learnt so much about how businesses run, how teams work together, the challenges businesses face in the energy sector and much more.”  

And when we asked about his advice for others, Josh responded: “I’d say just to give it a go and apply to places that interest you. It’s not about who can get the highest grades, it’s about showing your passion for the subject and your ability to learn and grow.” 

Josh went on to talk about the importance of green jobs as we work to achieve net zero: “Green jobs and green skills are essential components of a sustainable future, and they’re becoming increasingly important in today’s economy. Being in the energy sector, it’s important we get things right – like renewable energy as this is the starting point for most businesses and people to become greener. 

E.ON is helping to create a new energy world by innovating in the energy sector with new solutions and projects that push the industry forward. With innovation comes change and this is needed to create better and different products that work for more people in the world. 

If I had to describe my time at E.ON so far in three words, I’d say innovative, sustainable and collaborative.” 

Josh is one of 31 degree apprentices and around 280 apprentices working at E.ON in the UK right now, and we’re delighted that through people like Josh, we’re helping to create the green skills workforce needed to deliver the energy transition.  

To find out more about careers at E.ON, visit our Careers website – eon-uk-careers.com