Marco Ferrara
MSc International Business and Management
Company partner: ‘Bon Appétit’, Pordum Foods Ltd
My KTP was with Bon Appétit - a high quality hot food vending company - and my project aim was to develop suitable management capability and market/branding knowledge to enable penetration and diversification into a breadth of vending markets including relevant food quality and safety knowledge.
One of the first key deliverables was a marketing plan, which I developed after a thorough audit of internal and external data about the company business, its customers and stakeholders. In response to customer feedback, some of the food products were revised and the packaging format of paninis, baguettes, rolls and pastries was completely redeveloped.
Thanks to the new systems put in place, the company now has a structured approach to managing its customer base, and has successfully developed and expanded its markets.
I think a significant turning point for me was approximately 6 months before the end of the project, when we saw a very clear and visible return on the work invested. Following several careful iterations of redesigning the product and packaging, we began to see a notable increase in food sales, an overall pick up in service contracts and a significant improvement in customer satisfaction.
The personal development opportunities have been a key highlight for me. Access to so many resources through the university – people, the culinary arts studios, and libraries and access to varied training and development opportunities has been excellent. I successfully completed a Diploma in Management, and am about to finish my Chartered Institute of Marketing Postgraduate Diploma.
I have learned great deal about communication and negotiation during my project. Firstly through the experience of negotiating with suppliers, and also through learning to communicate effectively within the three-way partnership a KTP provides. An unexpected benefit was also developing graphic design expertise through the packaging redesign exercise. To have visual content expertise as a marketer will open new career opportunities for me, especially in working for small to medium sized companies.
I would recommend KTP because…
I think KTP offers a “non conventional” employment opportunity, where you are given many more opportunities in a short space of time than you would through a traditional role. You do not need to convince your boss that you are worth an investment in training it's all part of the KTP programme!