Darius Freeman

What started out as a secondment opportunity during the Covid-19 pandemic has become a new lease of life for Darius, who has been at IMechE for over 11 years and is currently undertaking an apprenticeship within the Digital and Technology Services department.

Having started his IMechE career as an AV (Audio Visual) assistant in 2012, Darius took the opportunity to take up a secondment as an AV and Digital Support Engineer. As he progressed successfully in this role, it became a permanent position, and he put himself forward to study an apprenticeship to start from scratch and get a clear, fresh perspective of the role and what was expected of him.

Darius’s information communications technician apprenticeship covers a wide range of different topics, scenarios and solutions that people may come across once venturing into the world of IT, which he finds extremely interesting, and has the benefit of some great teachers to help him along the way. Alongside his apprenticeship studies he has built great relationships with his colleagues in Digital and Technology Services who he classes as his good friends. As a team they proudly help each other every day to be the best they can be so that IMechE members and employees have a great experience. Darius’s typical day at work involves solving helpdesk queries or providing IT support to anyone on site who needs it. There are always new challenges and every day is different which enables Darius to learn new skills all the time.

Employing an apprentice has many benefits for both the employee and employer. The employee gets to learn practical skills and useful work experience alongside experienced colleagues, so it’s less theory-based and more real-world skills. They also get professional certifications without the burden of student debt, and there are many different areas of professional industry to study in. For the employer, they are investing in someone who will develop skills relevant to their organisation and can tailor the training according to business needs.

When you have an employee who is looking to upskill or re-train like Darius, it’s the perfect way for them to hone their skills for life, while enjoying a development opportunity with their employer. The IMechE is proud to support Darius and our other apprentices to develop their careers with us, enabling us to continue to cultivate an open, collaborative, and inclusive culture where our employees and members know they belong, feel valued and can thrive.