Another important addition to our expanding team…

The people we employ are the crucial element towards the success of any organisation, and this holds especially true for MCP Technical Training.

Through a series of recent blogs, we have showcased some of the exceptional individuals within our team, providing them the opportunity to share their extensive expertise in mechanical and electrical training, in their own words, so you, our customer, can see where the true added value is in working with us.

We are delighted to introduce you to a new member of our team - Sarah Matthews. Sarah comes with years of experience and joins us as our Technical Sales Manager, to help us continue to build relationships with our clients, old and new. Read her story here to find out how she came to join us…

Sarah Matthews, Technical Sales Manager

Work Life Balance

Speaking to Sarah recently, you can tell immediately the passion and drive she has, not just for work but for her home life also. Sarah has had a varied career, predominantly in sales, so understands the pressures of a fast paced environment. She also believes that sometimes you may need to take a pause, to be able to focus and re-set your priorities.

Earlier Career

Before joining us, Sarah historically held a number of sales roles within training, recruitment and contract management, in retail, hospitably and other customer facing environments. She has spent the best part of the last 16 years working with government funded training programmes, such as apprenticeships, adult learners, NVQ and 16-19 year old learners. She worked her way up from skills broker to contract manager, group operations, and finally to CEO of the organisation.

A People Person

The area she has always loved the most is working with her customers. She always receives a ‘buzz’ from meeting new clients, learning and understanding their individual requirements, providing suitable training options, organising and providing support. This element of her work was restricted while she held the position of CEO. As a conscientious person who genuinely cares, she found delegation difficult. Particularly, as some of the relationships with her customers, she had built up over the last 16 years.

Challenging Times

While there, the organisation won Investors in People - Gold, something that she is very proud of. She was a firm but fair boss, wanting to build confidence within her team. However, she also admits that managing people can be challenging! When Covid struck, Sarah was very aware of the added pressures this brought, particularly with mental health. She was an instigator in ensuring that a healthcare package, to access dental and doctors’ support, was made available, as well as a 24/7 helpline for people who simply needed someone to talk to.

When a training organisation is reliant on the Government and current policies, any changes will have a direct affect on the whole landscape, not always for the better. With these constant changes in direction, her staff responsibilities and some health issues of her own, something had to give. Sarah decided to break ties and seek something new, giving her time to take that pause and re-set her work-life balance.

The One for the Job!

Through a training consultant she knew previously, Sarah heard that John Saysell, Director of MCP Technical Training, was looking to expand his team. Intrigued, Sarah met John to discuss the opportunity further. John could see immediately that with her extensive experience in sales and training, together with her bubbly personality, she was the one for the job!

Luckily for us, Sarah accepted this new challenge with excitement, on a part-time basis. Although technical training is a new, more specialist industry for her, at the end of the day, it is still all about people and their skills, and how to support, train and nurture, to get the best out of them.

Looking Forward

Sarah Night Sledging in Finland — Sarah night-sledging in Finland.

Sarah has been with us just 3 months so far (although she feels it is a lot longer!) and is really enjoying her new role. She is extremely motivated and driven, not only for her own success but for the company as a whole. We asked her what she was looking forward to most…

“I am really looking forward to building on existing relationships and forming new ones. MCP offer a whole range of consultancy and training services and I am keen to ensure that our customers are aware and able to benefit from all that MCP offer.

“We also have an Open Day coming up in February where we will be conducting some discussions around the current skills shortage and how the gaps can be filled, with our support. We will also have a long-standing, valued customer joining us with some of their team to explain, how in the real world, this has benefitted them hugely.”

We also asked how she found working for MCP generally, Sarah said:

“MCP are a great team to work with and we do have a laugh. Everyone has been so welcoming, helpful and supportive. I already feel like part of the family and really excited about learning more and making my mark in 2024.”

Home-Life

In her home life, Sarah is a keen traveller, having recently visited Thailand, Bali, Costa Rica and Borneo. She also has, Zanzibar, Philippines and Sri Lanka on her bucket list. In the meantime, she is off again next week as well! This time skiing in Japan over the festive holidays with New Year in Tokyo. She loves the cold and is looking forward to wrapping up warm and making new friends.

During previous holidays, Sarah has never really been able to completely switch off, this time with her new work-life balance she can do just that - ready to greet 2024 head on!