New In The Job

…in Industry Training

What’s the appointment? John McGregor has begun his role as business development manager at Rapid Results Ltd. (NZQA accredited).

What’s the job he is leaving? Mr McGregor left his position at ETITO, an industry training organisation where he worked as a training manager for eight years developing qualifications and taking them to the company workplace.

What exactly does a business development manager do? Prospecting and sourcing meetings with potential clients for the company whilst maintaining relationships with existing clients in the industry and sectors the company is involved in. Networking is a major part of John’s new role, attending conferences and networking events in order to maintain the already existing relationships with clients while at the same time also building business relationships with potential clients.

Sounds like quite a busy average day then. “It has its ups and downs, but who’s job doesn’t? At the start of the year people are deciding what to do with their training and how they’re going to go about attaining their goals, which can potentially be quite busy.” Once the details are established further down the line there might be a bit of a dip, but this is short lived during mid-year when clients re-evaluate their training goals.

So what got him interested in the role? As opposed to the ETITO’s role of going out and offering qualifications, John jumped the fence instead in order to offer training solutions, which was the main reason for the change in direction. “I’ve been at ETITO for eight years so it seemed like a bit of a change.”

Where has he worked previously? Well, ETITO for around eight years, after working as a training manager at the ‘Fire Service Emergency 111’ call centre. Before that John spent around 20 years in the Army, “which is pretty much where it all started for me. I haven’t really hopped from job to job that often during my career.”

20 years in the Army is a long time! “It may have been 20 years but it did go by pretty quick at the end of the day. I mainly gravitated towards the training industry, because in the army, training is everything.”

So how did he move from the Army into the training industry? Retirement was the reason for John’s move from the Army into the business training industry. “They did offer me an extension with them but I thought it was time for me to get out into the big wide world. You have to leave eventually and I thought that that would be my 20 years up and finally time to jump out.” John left school at the age of 16 to join the Army, where he entered the electronics field of work at the beginning of his time there. He later moved into the field of military communications which he mainly specialised in during his time.

What qualifications has he attained? John left the Army to put all of his skills together and gain the National Certificate in Adult Education Level 5. “I thought I’d better put that [qualification] to good use somehow which is how I ended up within the training aspect of my career. I was going to work towards a University Degree in training of some sort, but I figures I could’ve spent my time more effectively elsewhere.”

John adds, “I look forward to meeting new clients down the line and assisting them in their training needs at my new role as business development manager at Rapid Results Ltd.”