Case studies: Pub manager: David

David works as a pub manager in the Midlands. He started working for a local pub as a part-time barman whilst doing his politics degree and then went on to take the job of assistant manager, first at that pub and then at larger pubs in the area, until he secured a post as a manager last year.

I took the job as a barman simply because the pub was close to where I lived and the hours meant that the work would fit around my undergraduate studies. Although I didn’t think I was aiming for a career in pub management, working from the ‘grass-roots’ has really helped me as I’ve moved up the ladder. Pub managers need to be able to turn their hand to any aspect of the daily running of the establishment and starting on the pumps, dealing with customers, gave me a good grounding in how a pub actually works.

Getting the initial job was really easy as I just walked in and asked for an application form. Because my employer could spot my potential and saw that I was a dedicated employee, they asked if I would like to join the company permanently once my studies had finished. Although this meant that I didn’t really need to do any job hunting, I’ve been interviewed and went through the appropriate selection process at every step of my permanent employment.

I don’t feel that my politics degree played any part in building the skills needed for this job. I think the most important thing in pub management is hard work and that’s something you’re either prepared to do or you’re not.

The parts of the job that I enjoy least are the long and unsocial hours (I can start work taking stock deliveries at 6am and may do shifts that last until well after midnight) and the unfortunate threat of violence that can accompany excessive drinking.

I do find the job very interesting. My daily tasks can include anything from recruitment to training, customer service, stock management and marketing.

For me, the most enjoyable part, and something I think I’m good at, is hitting targets. I like to achieve the goals set for me by the parent company and usually I beat them, which gives me a real sense of satisfaction.

The expected route of progression is to become manager of a larger pub, followed by an even larger pub etc., and then area manager but, as this is something I got into more by accident than design, I’m not currently sure what direction I’ll take in the coming years.