Employee Story

Rachael Meikle, Team Leader, tells us about her career so far at Castle Water

My role at Castle Water is Team Leader for one of the Customer Service front office teams. Day-to-day, I work on a variety of different tasks, ranging from resourcing and interviews to one-to-ones with team colleagues and answering team queries. Prior to this, I worked in the refund team at Castle Water for well over a year, where I was given the support to develop my skills and knowledge. I found, through my managers support, that being a Team Leader was what I wanted to progress to.

When I first joined the company, I had no previous knowledge of the water industry. A huge bonus to working at Castle Water is that there are so many different departments. I decided I wanted to stay in the utilities industry as I found it covered such a broad spectrum of interesting roles. This in turn, creates such a diverse workforce.

Training

The company induction was incredibly useful as it gave me my first real insight into what my day-to-day activities would look like. I then went on to complete a range of training courses, including Excel and team management. With full financial support from Castle Water, I am now working through my Master of Business Administration Essentials qualification.

Opportunity to progress

Progression opportunities are great at Castle Water. Initially, as part of the refund team, I got to explore customers complex resolutions and complaints. I then had the opportunity to apply for a Team Leader position, which I was delighted to move into. As a company, I find Castle Water are great at investing in its employees and supporting them with progression choices.

Team dynamic

Within the team I look after, we are very close-knit, and we all work hard to support each other. I have a great support network from my own manager and colleagues in other teams and departments. We all work well together to ensure the day-to-day running of tasks goes as smoothly as possible, and we help each other out and support each other as much as we can.

Hybrid working

Having joined the company two weeks prior to the lockdown announcement, I spent the start of my Castle Water career working from home. During this time, I participated in a video which supported customers by letting them know we were still here for them during the lockdown period. I was apprehensive about returning to the office again, however, the transition was smooth and very well planned out.

With government restrictions no longer in place, Castle Water now offer a blend of office and home working to their employees. I currently work two days in the office, and three at home. Now that I don’t have the commute to work, I have more free time in the mornings to make early appointments and get housework done.