Growing with Corteva: my Four Year Progression from Intern to Analyst
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When I joined Corteva Agriscience as an intern four years ago I had already completed three placements moving around the UK working with different companies in the food and agricultural industry. I had been selected for the Management Development Services graduate scheme in 2018 after graduating from the University of Warwick with a History and Politics degree. Logging into my laptop from my family home due to Covid-19 restrictions, I was apprehensive about how my final secondment would play out. Would remote work prevent me building connections with my team? Would I get opportunities to prove myself and develop my skills? Would I be able to secure a full-time role when my secondment finished?
Thankfully, Corteva provided a nurturing environment and I found myself embraced by a team of supportive colleagues. Despite the challenges of remote work, my secondment manager Clare ensured we had consistent communication, trained me on our Customer Relationship Management systems and took time to consider my professional development with me. As pandemic restrictions eased, I extended my secondment and transitioned from my initial role as Marcomms & CRM Assistant to Farm Engagement & CRM Coordinator. Corteva then offered me a full-time position, allowing me to delve deeper into Salesforce CRM to refine processes and train team members. I coordinated communications related to our Resilient & Ready project and gained confidence leading my areas of work.
In May 2022 a new opportunity arose as a CRM & Digital Marketing Specialist and I put myself forward for it. In this new role I expanded my CRM responsibilities whilst taking on management of our websites and email marketing initiatives. I was asked to lead the migration of our heritage Salesforce CRM systems in the UK and Ireland - a huge undertaking and big increase in responsibility. Although the Thunderbolt project was challenging at times, working with European and Global colleagues developed my leadership skills and extended my technical expertise, and I’m very grateful to have been trusted with this assignment.
By June 2023 I was promoted to the role of CRM & Commercial Effectiveness Analyst, assuming responsibility for analysing Commercial data whilst heading up CRM and workload for colleagues involved. Taking on the management of MDS trainee Jess Clark in October 2023 was a full circle moment for me five years after I had joined the programme myself. Guiding our CRM & Digital Assistant in navigating her workload, priorities and professional development was hugely rewarding and gave me the chance to pay back all the mentorship and guidance I had received from Corteva and MDS Ltd.
Corteva’s commitment to nurturing talent has been instrumental to my professional growth over the past four years. The opportunity to complete a foundation BASIS qualification in 2022 to learn more about agronomy and crop science was invaluable given my non-agricultural background. When transitioning into my analyst role, Corteva provided extensive training on PowerBI leading to me achieving my Microsoft PowerBI certification earlier this year.
My advice for others at the start of their career would be to make the most of every opportunity you’re given! I’ve always had an idea of where I’d like my career to go but I haven’t let a rigid plan for my progression restrict me from saying yes to new possibilities. Work hard, have confidence in your ability and make time to learn skills quickly so you hit the ground running with new responsibilities.
As I embark on mentoring our new MDS Trainee for the next six months I'm reminded of the solid foundation my MDS experience provided. Inspired by the guidance I received from my Corteva mentors Clare and Pheri, I’m dedicated to nurturing our future MDS Trainees. I’m so grateful to all my colleagues for their support throughout the past four years and for the incredible opportunities I’ve been given by the team at Corteva.
If you are looking for a role with a difference, Corteva is the right choice, providing valuable learning experiences. Find out more about our talented team here.
