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Committed to helping our colleagues develop professionally

Meet Our People: Neel Patel

Meet Neel

At HUC, we are committed to helping our colleagues continuously develop professionally and progress in their careers. A recent example of this is Neel Patel, a Data Analyst, from the Contracting team, which is part of the Commercial Directorate. Neel successfully completed and passed his Level 4 Data Analyst Apprenticeship with the highest grade of a Distinction.

Neel’s line manager, Cathy Allbrighton, Head of Contracts, says, “Neel has worked very hard to complete the Data Analyst apprenticeship over the past 18 months and thoroughly deserves his achievement.”

Data Analyst Neel Patel

A dynamic and fast-paced role

“There is always something new to look into or analyse – it continually keeps you thinking. The role also allows me to be involved in several areas of the organisation and not get lost in the detail which can sometimes happen as a Data Analyst. I have the opportunity to understand all the wider aspects of the organisation and get a breadth of understanding of all things HUC.”

Tell us about your journey at HUC

I joined HUC in 2020 as a Project Coordinator supporting the Transformation team with their projects back then and directly reported to Janice Greenhill, our Chief Operating Officer. I now work as a Data Analyst for Performance and Delivery, which involves collecting, cleansing, and interpreting shift performance from the various clinician roles. Data from our various systems can be combined to give a complete overview of shift performance of a given clinician for any location, contract, or period of time.

My role developed significantly from where I had begun, and it seems to be continually evolving, especially with new and interesting developments in the organisation, which is very exciting. There is always something new to look into or analyse – it continually keeps you thinking. The role also allows me to be involved in several areas of the organisation and not get lost in the detail which can sometimes happen as a Data Analyst. I have the opportunity to understand all the wider aspects of the organisation and get a breadth of understanding of all things HUC.

I came into HUC as a Project Coordinator/Admin supporting with setting up the Performance and Productivity project. I also began to support some of the initial data-related aspects as I had previous work experience in data processing. Over time, I became more involved with the data aspect of the project, and moved into a more data-driven role.

Creating New Opportunities

What did you hope to achieve from completing the apprenticeship?

I decided to pursue an apprenticeship to further boost my Data Analyst skills as at the time, I had very limited skills from previous experience and was predominantly learning on the job. I believed that if this was the direction my career path was going to develop in, I would benefit from getting some further learning and knowledge.

As a Data Analyst, the aim was to bring my current skills and knowledge in line with other Data Analyst colleagues in the Business Intelligence team in order to become more technically advanced in using a variety of programming systems such as SQL, PowerBI, Excel, R/RStudio and Python.

How do you feel the apprenticeship has benefitted your current role?

I am now able to carry out data analysis tasks much more efficiently, using the technical skills I have gained. I can access data on the SQL database, and carry out cleansing, manipulations, and aggregations to create dashboards and visuals. This now allows the operational teams to identify patterns and trends to understand areas in the organisation where performance is good or requires improvement.

How have HUC supported your learning and development?

HUC have given me the opportunity to undertake further education and learning, as well as allowed some time out of my day-to-day job to complete my coursework.

How did the apprenticeship contribute to your career goals or aspirations?

The apprenticeship has benefitted my skills portfolio, particularly leading me towards a career as a Data Analyst. This was a completely new role in which I had no prior experience, and I was teaching myself new skills. The apprenticeship allowed for professional education in a new career path and now allows me to take on work more in line with what a Data Analyst would be required to do

Would you recommend others to complete an apprenticeship and why?

I would highly recommend pursuing an apprenticeship, particularly if you’re either looking to change your career direction or to boost skills in a new role. An apprenticeship provides the perfect opportunity to learn and work and can really help open many more opportunities in the future.