Jeff Marsh
Training Manager
Midlands, West and Wales region
Before I worked at FTA, I worked as a freelance transport consultant, a further education lecturer and I've also been a mechanic. This gave me a really good understanding of the transport industry. The kudos of working for FTA was a real draw - they're held in such high regard in the transport industry.
I don't really have a typical day, but I'm on the road a lot. FTA offers a variety of training courses, some off-the-shelf but also some bespoke training programmes, to meet our members' specific needs. Depending on the training, a course can last anything from half a day to a week. You definitely need to be confident in giving presentations to a large group. You also need to make sure you're knowledgeable about the industry, as you don't want to be asked a question you don't know the answer to.
What I enjoy most about my role is the job satisfaction that I get at the end of a course, when a group clearly feel they've benefited. We also know we're doing a good job through the number of requests for extra training programmes we get from companies, once we've held our first course. Members know our training courses are the best - they certainly carry a lot of clout and as trainers we get a lot of respect from the companies we visit.
FTA is a friendly organisation and the training team are a really good bunch. They're committed, customer focused and everyone gives the job 100 per cent - which makes it more like a way of life. This is definitely the case for me - my car is my office and sometimes I'm away from home for four weeks at a time. I'm still here after five years, though, which is testament to how FTA treats its staff and the satisfaction I get from my role.