Building an award-winning Early Careers programme: Q&A with Alice Price

After PentenAmio's Early Careers & Apprenticeship C2S award win, we hear from Alice Price, Head of Systems Engineering and Early Careers, about what the win means, what makes the programme stand out, and why people choose PentenAmio.

Congratulations on the win! How does it feel to head up an award-winning early careers programme?

We’re incredibly proud to have won the Circle 2 Success Early Careers and Apprenticeship Award. After being a finalist for three years running, it’s amazing to achieve this recognition.

The team is thrilled.

Why do you think PentenAmio was recognised with this award?

For a company of our size, we punch well above our weight when it comes to early careers and STEM outreach.

We’ve invested heavily in our early careers talent over the last four years, growing from a few candidates back in 2021 to where we are now. Today, our current and previous early careers cohorts make up 25% of our engineering capability in the UK.

We’ve also brought 100% of our early careers talent into full-time roles as soon as their programmes have finished.

What sets our graduate and apprenticeship programmes apart?

I think we offer more opportunities than other companies do.

The level of support and the breadth of opportunity to explore we provide is a big factor. Our programmes are built around rotations, allowing people to try multiple things rather than locking them into one skill set.

We’ve also had people try out entirely different areas of the business altogether. They love that freedom.

That variation offers the chance to build responsibility, drive new passions and stay engaged.

What makes PentenAmio such a welcoming environment for people starting their careers?

It comes down to our culture.

People are what we care about most, and that shows up in how our early careers talent is looked after from day one. Not just through line management, but also mentoring, buddy systems, and previous cohorts looking after one another and networking with others. That benefits our wider team too.

Looking back over the years, what are some stand-out moments, and where are PentenAmio’s Early Careers alumni now?

There are so many! I am proud of everyone who has come through our programme.

As a team, the C2S win is a stand-out moment. It reflects the year-on-year growth since 2021 across our programme, our business and our people.

In terms of our alumni, some have moved between engineering disciplines, others have stayed in engineering while also branching into product management or business development.

We have a lot of great people moving across the business, and the networks they’ve built as part of the early careers programme has meant they can do that with ease.

Why is it so important for businesses to invest in early careers talent?

They’re the future.

Recruiting people with the right capability is already difficult. One of the biggest benefits of investing in early careers is that you can provide opportunities to bring in new talent and build those capabilities from the ground up.

What would you say to someone considering joining PentenAmio’s Early Careers Programme?

You’ll experience genuine care between managers and teams, an environment where no question is a silly question, and real support at every level to build your career.

As part of our programme you’ll also be supported to explore beyond your job title and go after the things that truly interest you.

It comes back to culture and opportunity. That’s a huge part of why so many of us love working here.

Alice’s reflections demonstrate that success happens when people show up, ask questions, and take the opportunities in front of them. The C2S win is a reflection of them as much as the programme itself.

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