Trainee to Executive at Manchester United FC

Sports fanatic Alex Pietrus felt like he scored the winning goal after being approached by Manchester United Football Club to join their team as Hospitality and Sales Executive and he owes it to his AFL SportsReady traineeship.

After a successful run in the AFL industry, Alex was approached by the world-renowned football club in February this year.

“My traineeship really set me up for a career in the sporting industry,” said Alex.

“After working for the Adelaide Crows for four years I took the opportunity to work for Manchester United and moved to the UK. In this role I am responsible for selling corporate hospitality to businesses and United fans from around the world.”

Alex’s inspiring journey started in 2006 when he decided to take on a traineeship at the AFL Store while completing a Certificate III in Retail Management.

“My parents saw an ad in the paper about traineeships and how you could acquire practical skills and a VET qualification. It was an opportunity to take a gap year and set me up on a professional path, which it did.”

Through his experience Alex learned basic retail and business skills that would later come in handy in his career endeavours.

“I learned everything from selling to customers, stocking shelves to helping manage inventory levels and merchandising the store.”

 “The VET qualification also helped a lot as it allowed me to apply the theory I was learning in the classroom in a practical sense. Had I just been working as retail assistant I would not have the broad range of skills and knowledge I have today.”

Upon completing his traineeship Alex continued to work for the AFL Store for another 3 years eventually becoming the Manager. He then applied for the Merchandise Manager role at the Adelaide Crows and was successful.

“I moved up at the Crows and climbed my way to a business development role where I was responsible for driving commercial sales. This all led me to what I am doing now, working at Manchester United FC.”

For Alex, like many other sports fans, this new opportunity was a dream come true and an inspirational accomplishment.

“If I had chosen to go to Uni without really knowing what I wanted to do I would have wasted 3-4 years and potentially ended up with a degree that I would not use.

 The certification study and practical skills I picked up from my traineeship gave me a great platform to build my career and get me where I am today.”

 To find out more about the diverse range of rewarding careers available through vocational education and training, and watch the real skills for real careers video, visit www.myskills.gov.au

#realskillsforrealcareers

Date: 24th of January 2018

Author: Marissa Pagliarello

Image: Alex Pietrus