Five minutes with our Climate Centre of Excellence team
Social responsibility
Meet Mandeep Singh, a Customer Service & Operations Analyst in the NatWest Digital X team. Find out how he became a part of the NatWest TRANSpire programme, aimed at helping colleagues from the LGBT+ community find jobs.
Embracing uncertainty
Mandeep hails from Punjab in North India, and destiny had more than he anticipated planned for him. From accepting and owning his identity to leaving a known world and stepping out to look for career prospects outside Punjab, Mandeep went through his journey of transitions.
“I had to move out of Punjab to find a job, I had graduated in Arts, and I had heard about an agency called PeriFerry that helped people from the LGBTQ community to find jobs after first providing them skill related trainings like professional English communication, digital literacy, soft skills, interview preparation and more. So, I moved to Bengaluru.”
From isolation to inclusion
Mandeep spent about three months with PeriFerry equipping himself with all requisite skills for a corporate career. That’s when his resume was sent to NatWest, and he was selected for a six-month internship under the TRANSpire programme.
“TRANSpire is a six month fully paid on-the-job training programme that provides an opportunity to members from the transgender community to gain training for corporate ready careers and be employed with NatWest. People have different capabilities and training needs, and the programme offers customised trainings that range from English language skills to MS Office, Python and Java programming. The training starts with foundational training on MS office suite, followed by participating in business projects with manager mentors. At the end of the six-month programme, candidates are job ready for careers in financial services and IT/ITes organisations.”
“To be honest, I was apprehensive when I stepped into the NatWest world, not having had great experiences with some organisations I had worked for before. To my delight, the moment I stepped into NatWest, I felt accepted. There was a team at the gate to receive us, the entire onboarding process was seamless and the vibe that I felt was like homecoming”, narrates Mandeep.
Finding belonging
“I’ve spent more than a year and a half at NatWest, with the first six months as an intern. Subsequently I was absorbed within the business as an Anti-Tax Evasion Customer Services Analyst because of my stellar performance”, says Mandeep beaming with pride.
“I’ve picked up many skills here, I was given three months process training for which I’ve received accreditation, and I’ve felt completely supported here. NatWest is not only an inclusive organisation, it’s an aware organisation as well. People are sensitised here through awareness modules, leader speak, mails, communications about the transgender community, and I’ve never faced any awkward moments here while interacting with anyone. People are very respectful and value the skills that one brings, so for me NatWest is my safe zone.”
A promising horizon
Seeming happy and content with the newfound confidence in his abilities he says, “At NatWest I’m able to focus on my job, my role without worrying about people, their opinion or being ridiculed for my orientation. Of course, I’ll have to leave my comfort zone someday, but first I want to make use of and learn from all the trainings I’ve been provided. I consider myself lucky that I found NatWest or perhaps NatWest found me.”
He urges more people from the LGBTQ community to come forward, “Don’t hide your identity, walk with pride, tell your stories to normalise your life, then only others’ lives will change.”
Find out about the different ways in which we support inclusion.
Go to Supporting you
