Robert Beirne, Logistics Project Manager, Lidl Ireland

Degree subject BSc (Hons) in Technology Management (NCI)
Job title Logistics Project Manager
Employer Lidl

Why did the Lidl graduate programme
appeal to you?

I was first made aware of the Lidl
graduate programme through a careers
fair in my college. Lidl had a stand set up
in the atrium of the college and were
inviting students to speak to their current
graduates. This really appealed to me as it
gave me the opportunity to actually
speak to graduates who were currently
on the programme and not just someone
from the HR department. Throughout
college I had been working in a transport
company and it was something that I had
really enjoyed. when I read the
description for the Logistics stream on
the Lidl careers website, it was evident
that that was the one for me to apply for,
as a Lidl graduate, you really “learn from
the ground up.”

Can you tell us a bit about the selection
process?

The application form, although may
seem straight forward and easy to fill in,
was something which I really spent a bit
of time on when answering. I felt it was
important to fully expand on all answers
and to really sell myself for the potential
position. The next phase of the process
was the assessment centre. The Lidl
graduate assessment centre day was
not only a great experience but also
gave me a real insight into how exactly
a big multinational company like Lidl
actually works.

How tough is the programme and what
did it teach you about yourself?

I would describe the Lidl graduate
programme as “challenging” rather
than “tough”. Lidl graduates are given
high levels of responsibility; working to
tight deadlines and getting difficult
projects over the line are all in a day’s
work for a Lidl graduate. what I learned
from my time spent on the Lidl
graduate programme is that you will
face different types of challenges on a
daily basis and it’s how you deal with
and overcome these challenges which
is the key to success.

What does your daily job involve and
what’s exciting about it?

Currently I am responsible for all of
Lidl’s waste and recycling accounts. my
typical day is made up of managing
contractors to ensure all SLAs are
maintained and achieved. I am also
responsible for developing and
monitoring our KPI’s. A big part to my
role is project managing, what I find
most exciting about my job is that no
one day is the same, your time is key as
you will have numerous amounts of
different projects running at the same
time so being able to prioritise and
multi-task is extremely important.

Can you tell us a bit about how it felt to
win the gradireland Graduate
Employee of the Year Award?

Winning the gradireland Graduate
Employee of The Year Award was a truly
fantastic moment, and it was a great
night! I had put a great deal of time and
effort into the submission so that it
would include all aspects of my work
and what I had achieved while on the
Lidl Graduate Programme.

What are your plans for your future
career?

My plans for the future with Lidl are to
further develop and expand my skills
set within the company’s logistics
department. I have recently taken over
responsibility of an additional section
in logistics, focusing on the
maintenance, operational health &
safety and compliance. This Autumn I
will also be flying over to Germany to
spend some time training in the Lidl
International Head Office in
Neckarsulm. while there, my time will
be focused on business areas such as
Transport, waste & Recycling and
Operational Processes.