Pathways 2 Procurement: Meet Kristie Gill
At NHS North of England Commercial Procurement Collaborative (NOE CPC) we are proud to be part of the Procurement 2 Pathways Graduate Training Scheme which gives graduates the opportunity to develop a career in NHS procurement. In September 2023, we were delighted to welcome two procurement graduates to the organisation – Riley Gibson and Kristie Gill – to provide them the chance to work at the heart of the NHS and advance their careers and skills in the procurement sphere. To discover more about their experiences with the scheme, we spoke to Kristie about her procurement journey so far.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to work in a few very interesting sectors before starting the scheme. I started my career in broadcast operations straight out of school and stayed in the media industry until I was twenty-three. It was at this point however that I felt like I wanted a change and that I wanted to give my skills, experience, and desire to make a difference to a different industry. So, I decided to go to university to give myself a little bit of time to figure out exactly what that next move would be. Whilst studying I worked as an assistant manager of a HMV store, which I loved because I love films, music, and people – things you find in abundance in that shop!
“I decided to apply for the scheme because all the most important women in my life have dedicated their entire working lives to the NHS and so I knew following (somewhat) in their footsteps would be something I wanted to do. However, with no clinical experience, I knew I needed to investigate roles that supported the NHS in a different way. When I came across the scheme it just stood out to me. The learning and growth opportunities, the potential to immerse myself in an entirely new industry, and the obvious support system that came along with it are what really cemented my decision to apply for this scheme. It sounded so multi-faceted and to study and learn alongside the job also really appealed to me.
“I’m currently assisting the Medical Healthcare Furniture Framework and honestly, no day is the same! I assist with day-to-day admin tasks that ensure the Framework is running as it should be, as well as involving myself in customer service, Supplier relationship management and Framework management.
“So far during my rotations across the different teams, I have assisted with the Sustainability and Social Value team (which I loved, I’m a bit of an earth child!) and the Supplier Relationship Manager (SRM) team where in which we honed in on the growth and savings potential of Value-based Procurement. Working now with the Medical Healthcare Furniture team has opened my eyes and been a real learning curve into what it takes to retender and how much work goes into managing a framework as big as this one. I’ll be moving over to cleaning at some point this year and just look forward to expanding my knowledge even more.
“Throughout the scheme, there have been various highlights, but if I had to name one it would probably be finding out I got a distinction in my first CIPs exam.
“I’m really enjoying my time on the scheme, and it has exceeded my expectations. Thankfully I’m good with time management which is a good thing because the role is fast-paced, and jam-packed with ever-changing scenarios and deadlines that need to be met. I feel like I’m growing week on week and my understanding of the procurement industry is growing alongside it. It is varied and interesting and the support systems are flawless.
“My advice to someone who is thinking about applying to the Pathways 2 Procurement graduate scheme would be to not be scared to approach an industry that is brand new to you. A lot of people who start haven’t heard of procurement before but the scheme and teams you will work with are extremely passionate and great teachers that you’ll be up and running in no time.”
Read about Riley's experience with the Pathways 2 Procurement graduate scheme.