Marie Crompton

What happens on the graduate programme and why was the programme the right choice for you?

At university I was given ample opportunity to practice people and project management skills, both through my degree and extra-curricular activities. I was keen to continue to develop these skills further hence the general leadership graduate scheme was ideal for me.

Alongside your day-to-day role, the graduate programme actively organise additional graduate activities, providing a great opportunity for you to catch up with the other grads and learn about other areas of the business. You are given plenty of support from the graduate programme coordinators which helps greatly with the transition from university to work.

How would you describe the training and mentoring you received so far?

Thames Water is a very supportive organisation that genuinely wants its employees to grow and develop. Thames Water has a healthy mentoring culture – this is something you are strongly advised to make the most of. For me, the greatest benefit of these mentor-type relationships is that it can challenge the way you think, encouraging you to explore different ideas and perspectives. In turn, this has helped to improve my confidence and enabled me to overcome a number of different obstacles.

What different roles have you had and what exciting projects have you been involved in?

For the first 6 months of the scheme I was based at a water treatment works in Oxford, working predominately within the technical team. This role involved liaising with contractors and facilitating the completion of work to our assets. In April, I moved to work in the above ground planning and scheduling team where I am working in the implementation of projects and new team initiatives. Alongside this, I have also been a part of a team working to organise a Health and Safety conference for our contractors. It has been really rewarding to be involved with this project as it will allow us to spread our health and safety message, helping to ensure everyone who works on our sites goes home safe and well.

What do you believe are the key skills you need to do your role?

• Resilience, patience, organisation, enthusiasm.

What is one thing you would tell yourself now if you were just starting as a graduate?

Don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions! Thames Water is a very supportive and inclusive organisation - the people who work here are genuinely happy to help.

Rough timeline of your roles and most important piece of work have completed so far

My work in the technical team at Farmoor is the most valuable piece of work I have completed so far as I facilitated the completion of work to assets that really needed it. From a personal development perspective, this experience also really helped to improve my understanding of the water production process.