July Apprentice of the Month
Simon Lister
We are happy to announce the winner of the LDN Apprentice of the Month is Simon Lister, Digital Learning Designer Apprentice @ West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service.
Nominated by LDN Skills Coach Ivett, Simon has really hit the ground running and has already rolled out some fantastic projects to his team!
Simon doesn’t just go over and above in his professional role but is also an active member of his local community, sharing his knowledge to help others.
Check out all of the awesome nominations we received in July and Simon’s well-deserved winning nomination below.
Simon’s Skills Coach:
Simon demonstrates an unparalleled passion for creating meaningful digital learning experiences. His dedication to innovating processes and enhancing the impact of training is evident in every coaching session. Before joining the program, he had already familiarized himself with some of the most recommended literature in the industry to further his expertise. The apprenticeship, however, pushed him to experiment and implement even more new ideas. Since starting, Simon introduced a new video editing tool, rolled out fresh video content, and developed multiple checklists and job aids to enhance his team’s digital learning initiatives.
His enthusiasm for improving the learning experience is boundless.
Beyond his professional role, Simon's dedication extends to his community. He became a DLD class rep just 2 months after joining the apprenticeship, and he’s also an active member of his community, campaigning for political parties.
Simon’s Line Manager:
How have they improved/impacted the business and the team since they started their apprenticeship?
Simon has really embraced the apprenticeship and is thoroughly enjoying his learning which is evident through his work and commitment to everything.
An example of a piece of work that Simon has developed and shared his knowledge with the team is the creation of a Storyboard Template - UX Design.
In the field of user experience (UX) design, storyboarding plays a crucial role. Design teams utilise storyboards to gain a deeper understanding of users’ actions and effectively communicate those actions to others. Simon has created a Storyboard template that trainers and SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) can use to design training. The template Simon has created features:
Visualising User Interaction - Storyboards consist of a sequence of images or drawings that depict the steps a user takes while interacting with a product or service. These visual representations help designers see the user’s journey in a tangible way.
Descriptive Captions - Alongside each image, short descriptive captions are included. These captions provide essential context, explaining what’s happening in the scene. However, the primary emphasis remains on the visual content—the pictures themselves.
Effective Communication - By creating storyboards, design teams can share insights about user behaviour, pain points, and moments of delight. Whether it’s a website, app, or physical product, storyboards facilitate better communication among team members and stakeholders.
Another example to add to the list of learning and sharing that Simon has been doing over these past few months. Simon designed and developed a digital learning accessibility checklist to be applied when creating digital learning solutions ensuring training modules can be accessible for all internal and external learners.
Simon Chaired a team meeting and explained the concept of Learner personas and how they represent your real audience and help you to optimise your training programmes with human-centred design in mind. He provided blank templates and encouraged the team to complete a learning persona. He then collected the completed templates and amended them so that they represented a broad range of learners that we are likely to engage with on our digital learning programmes.
Simon has created an Instructional Design Thesaurus, a handy guide on an Excel document that explains and simplifies digital learning key terms of reference to support the team understanding and knowledge.
Abbreviations (such as cmi5) have their term (Computer Managed Instruction) and an explanation accompanying it (An instructional strategy whereby the computer is used to provide learning objectives, learning resources, and assessment of learner performance. Computer-managed instruction (CMI) aids the instructor in instructional management without actually doing the teaching.) The purpose of this is to aid communication between SME and Digital Learning Designer.
Simon created a Checklist on Excel for trainers so that they can apply the 12 Principles of multimedia design to guide the course development and get the most out of multimedia materials. This will enhance learner engagement, comprehension, and retention, leading to improved outcomes for your Prevention training programme.
All of these templates and checklists have been shared with the wider team and are the first of their kind within our training department. They are improving the quality and consistency of digital learning design.
What three words best describe them?
Enthusiastic – Simon is eager to learn new skills and knowledge.
Collaboration – Simon is keen to share his skills and knowledge with the team and others.
Delightful – Simon is a bag of energy, especially about learning. Once he got accepted onto the apprenticeship, he was very keen on discussing this with the team and looking at opportunities that we can take forward and develop. Every day he’s sharing something new or discussing new ideas or software that he’s learnt about.
An example of an outstanding piece of work, project or task they have worked on.
As a result of the learning Simon has been doing, he’s developed a ‘Training package review checklist’
This allows us as a team to monitor consent for the use of images and videos. It enables us to ensure that we are compliant with organisational policies and have a set process for reviewing/updating training content.
The checklist aims to:
• Keep a secure database of all individuals who have given consent, recording details of the date of consent, type of media and specific uses allowed.
• Regularly review consent forms to ensure that they are still valid, and the terms have not expired.
• Implement a tracking system to ensure that usage aligns with the consent provided (internal training / external training).
• Enable audit and compliance checks ensuring that all media usage complies with the consent given.
• Communicate with participants informing them of new uses of their images or videos that may be required.
This is something that we didn’t have before but with the learning that Simon is now undertaking and the way as a team our training materials will be moving forward, is key. Through this, we can ensure that an appropriate timetable is developed to allow us to manage and maintain our learning materials with the inclusion of images and videos. Ensuring compliance with policies and procedures and consent guidelines.
Our runner-up for this month is another Digital Learning Designer Apprentice, Jake! Jake was nominated by LDN Skills Coach, Nicola, with feedback provided by the team at iMerseyside.
Jake’s Skills Coach:
Jake already had some great technical skills and his design skills are also shining through. He has a creative and super-organised approach to his apprenticeship, developing flexible ways of completing his studies alongside his demanding work activities. He has great ideas for his portfolio and is busy implementing them in iMerseyside. Jake actively contributes to our DLD learning community and also helps newer apprentices with guidance and tips.
It’s been especially inspirational to follow Jake’s adventures into neurodiversity networks across his region and the wider NHS, so early on in his apprenticeship. He has presented at regional meetings on behalf of his team and then acted on really helpful feedback from diverse members. He is now pioneering a collaboration to design and deliver inclusive, engaging digital learning which will be available throughout the region.
Jake’s line manager:
Jake has utilised the content transformation skills he has learnt to update an eLearning project for a Cancer Safety Netting template that is used across Cheshire and Merseyside, as well as being shared with other NHS organisations nationally. It is used to train clinical and admin staff to meet the new cancer diagnosis targets helps to prevent patients from being forgotten about and ensures that referrals and test results are followed up. He has incorporated new design features which ensure that it is fully accessible to meet the WCAG AA standards such as screen reader compliance, captions, audio, animation elements and readable text to replace images. The overall project is much more user-friendly and engaging.
Here’s what was said about the other brilliant nominees:
Finley Hart @ Fashionizer:
Since Fin started his apprenticeship, he has had a great impact on Fashionizer, his technical skills and ability to adapt to different tasks have allowed him to instantly get stuck in. He also has a refreshing new perspective, seeing our marketing practices in differently most prominently has been his focus on video content which has largely boosted our account reach across social platforms. Video is a marketing aspect that we had not previously explored but Fin’s proficiency has led to some great new content across our social channels.
Ogri Krasniqi @ Mace Limited:
Ogri’s dedication and hard work have been instrumental for the Environment and Sustainability Team in recent months. He has streamlined the Environmental Contractors League Table and Non-Road Mobile Machinery Register, enhancing supply chain engagement and data collection by assuming responsibility for the contractors’ monthly meetings. Ogri’s readiness to assist with team tasks is commendable. Moreover, his invaluable contributions to the social value team, such as attending youth events and delivering presentations for the project Work Experience, have been noteworthy.
Billy Ross @ Sage Publishing Limited:
In the 12 months that Billy has been with us, he has become an invaluable, integral member of the International Sales team and the wider business. He has embraced his role, made it his own and taken our sales support provision, both internally and externally, into a new phase, offering unwavering support to both his colleagues and our customers. His positive, can-do attitude, ability to develop strong working relationships, willingness to take on additional tasks and eagerness to learn have improved team cohesion, streamlined processes, and increased productivity across the team and other departments. It is a genuine pleasure to work with Billy and it has been great to see, as his confidence and knowledge hves grown, how happy he is to share his ideas and offer input into our strategic direction.
Ryan Leet @ Tesco Bank:
Ryan joined my team as a Digital Developer with very little experience, though was keen to develop his L&D career. With two Digital Developers in the team, he was able to pull on this expertise and like a sponge, has soaked up all their tips and experience to build his skillset.
Ryan has learned to use various design software and to work effectively with stakeholders within our regulated environment. He has supported specialist areas like the Helpdesk in India. During our monthly Learning catch-ups, Ryan acts as a great role model, demonstrating how to build personal development and career plans by accessing relevant learning resources.
Bradley O'Connor @ Cavendish Nuclear:
Since starting at Cavendish Bradley has really found his feet with the social impact work on our project. He is a great support to me, freeing up my time to be able to tackle other things.
Bradley is conscientious and works to produce a high standard of work. I have seen real growth in Bradley, and seen his work and behaviours improve following feedback. I have seen Bradley’s confidence in his knowledge of social impact and the knowledge of the business grow.
Lashawnna Morgan @ Walk-in media:
Lashawnna has made astronomical progress since joining Walk-In Media and also her apprenticeship. Watching her growth both as a digital marketeer and as a person has truly been a treat to see. She has solidified herself as a key planning team member, growing in confidence and becoming comfortable in learning the ropes for all thing’s meia. She has taken part in already 2 pitches for WIM, which is huge aa sk for anyone, let alone an apprentice! She has taken it in her stride and of course del,ivered to the highest level. She has become very comfortable in handling her clients, bringing warmth and trust after just a few months of working together.