Case studies: Purchasing support analyst: Omar

Omar completed a degree in mathematics and computer science at King’s College London in 2009 and now works at Aramark Limited - a tailor-made food service and refreshment solutions service - as a purchasing support analyst.

After university I worked for six months in a web design based role on a Future Jobs Fund contract arranged through Springboard UK. I then started my time at Aramark in a web design based role where I worked on the company’s e-trading site by displaying various promotions and news stories. As time passed I gradually began to gain more responsibilities in areas such as data analysis and statistics which I carried out in addition to my web design work.

I was then successful in securing a support and analysis position with Ararmark. This role still contains the work I did previously but also involves a number of additional responsibilities such as analysing various types of data and using this to produce reports for my senior colleagues. I also help to maintain our department’s query mailbox where I am required to answer queries posted to us from our units and suppliers.

I am able to use a number of the skills I learned during my time at university in my current role, such as web programming and spreadsheet work.

A normal day consists of responding to mailbox queries as they come in throughout the day as well as publishing new information on our trading website. Other tasks, such as data collection for our buyers and liaising with suppliers for product images and promotions, also contribute to the normal working day.

I thoroughly enjoy all parts of my role, from the web design based part to the support side. It can be challenging when a number of queries enter the mailbox at one time but I find helping solve these queries gives me a great sense of satisfaction.

My personal experience has been very positive and I am lucky to work with great colleagues and management and to have had very useful support from Springboard UK, who are still in touch with me now.

I am really enjoying working in the hospitality industry and being part of a team that provides support to a number of catering establishments. This is an interesting job sector to work in and I would definitely recommend new graduates consider working in this field.