Community at Kubus.
With our commitment to making a positive impact on our community, both business and social, this page is dedicated to highlighting some of our key focuses and the work we are doing to support them.
Our Charity Partner – Young Gloucestershire
Young Gloucestershire (YG) have been supporting young people since 1941. Their mission, to support young people to have the confidence, motivation, and skills to improve their lives. YG believes in helping young people to address all the influencing factors in their lives. They work together with young people to help them figure out what it is they want, what’s holding them back and how they can move forward.
“A youth work approach is at the heart of everything we do. By building relationships with young people and understanding their individual needs we can begin to empower them to change their futures.”
Young Gloucestershire
How we have supported Young Gloucestershire
We have had the privilege of working alongside Young Gloucestershire for a few years now, and within that time we have undertaken a very active role in assisting the charity. We have held a number of fundraising ventures from bake sales to skydiving, and to date we have raised over £17,000 to support their incredible work with our local community. Fundraising is a vital part of the support we provide; however, we do also try to take a more hands-on approach where we can, having helped with various ad-hoc tasks such as CV workshops and mock interviews.
On one such occasion, Jordan Selby, Head of Finance here at Kubus, joined the rest of the senior leadership team in conducting mock interviews for members of Young Gloucestershire. Mock interviews are not only a great way to introduce young people to the practices of industry, but they are also a good way to build confidence.
“Young people may be comfortable talking to their peers and their families, but it must be quite daunting for them to meet a stranger. Providing them with some experience of answering difficult questions, especially when they receive positive feedback at the end, is a great way to remind them how capable they are.”
Being able to cope in an unfamiliar scenario can serve as a reminder of both courage and strength, especially to those who are vulnerable. Third party validation is also a key driver of the success of these interactions, as positive encouragement is likely to feel more authentic coming from a stranger.
“I like working with Young Gloucestershire because you can see an immediate result from the support you’re providing. It’s really inspiring to see the effect that giving just a small amount of your time can have on the life of a young person. 20 minutes of my time to engage with and motivate an individual who is struggling is a very small price to pay for the positive outcomes these interactions have.”
Apprenticeships and Work Experience
We are committed to providing opportunities for local individuals starting out on their career paths. Supporting young people from our local area with work experience placements is a key part of our desire to support our community, and we try to take on as many work experience placements as we can.
We have had a few students visit us so far this year, most recently a young person from a local school. With a keen interest in learning more about computers and networking, they spent four days under the wing of our IT team to learn more about the intricacies of computers and systems. With the chance to explore the wonderful world of network monitoring within our in-house Network Operations Centre, as well as introductions to tech-ops and managed security services, they left us with a much better understanding of the technology world.
Ben Gardener, IT Manager at Kubus has had a large role in teaching and mentoring a number of our work experience placements. Feedback to date has been overwhelmingly positive, with comments that the experience has been a huge driver for building both knowledge and confidence.
“I enjoy teaching others and helping them progress, and I try to tailor people’s experiences according to their interests, so I can teach them both practical and theoretical knowledge about the technologies they are really excited about. I think students gain valuable insights into the working environment when they do work experience here, and I enjoy the opportunity to maintain and revisit my teaching skills to help younger generations learn and understand whether a career in IT is right for them.”
If you are interested in securing a work experience position with us here at Kubus, please get in touch below. Whilst we cannot guarantee anything, we do try to accommodate as many people as possible throughout the year, so please don’t hesitate to inquire for more information.
Kubus Apprenticeship Success Stories
George Newton-Shaw
George started here at Kubus in 2021 as an IT apprentice and has since been promoted to the role of Systems Administrator. Having joined the company as we were undergoing our re-brand, he immediately had exposure to a wide array of technical challenges. From changing the email addresses for the entire staff across the business, to the implementation of an entirely new domain, learning began on day one for George.
“Kubus has had a massive impact on my career trajectory. It’s because of my roles here that I know for definite that I want to be in the technical world. The travel to different data centres across the world has been amazing, and I can now confidently perform a variety of different installs for our clients. Joining during the re-brand was really beneficial, as it was a unique event to experience from an IT standpoint, with my exposure to network migration beginning straight away. I’m unsure at this stage where I want to go in the future, but I know that the diversity in skills and knowledge within the technical team at Kubus means I am spoilt for choice when it comes to progression. I’m really excited to see where the next few years take me.”
Amy Twinning
Amy also started at Kubus in 2021, as an IT Technical Sales Apprentice. Having graduated from her apprenticeship with a distinction, she has since been promoted a few times, and is now an Account Manager within the sales team.
“Kubus have really kick started my career within IT Sales and introduced me to a great industry. From starting from the bottom, with grit and determination (and a bit of luck) alongside great Sales Manager mentoring I have managed to get myself to where I am now, with continuous growth both within Kubus and personally. Recently, I was asked to represent Kubus at a Local Government Event in Manchester, where I had to present on the main stage to a room of over 300+ people. This was a huge career highlight for me, and it’s exciting to think there may be further opportunities for this in the future. Hopefully the next step in my Career at Kubus would be promotion into the Client Director Team, and beyond that would be looking into Team Leader Roles. I know my progression will always be supported and encouraged here.”
Our Charity Events
We try to arrange as many charity fundraisers as we can throughout the year, and our team are fantastic at taking part in events. Here you can catch up on the latest fundraising efforts our team have been involved in. Follow us on our socials to see more:
2024 Events
The Great Kubus Bake Off
In July, in support of Young Gloucestershire, Marketing Assistant Ellie Crane organised a “Great Kubus Bake Off”. Fourteen of our fantastic team members volunteered to bake, resulting in a delicious selection of cakes and treats to be enjoyed.
There were prizes to be won, with each baker in with a chance of winning the Kubus Star Baker Apron! After some all-important taste testing, the results were in, with our Chief Financial Officer Duncan Imrie being crowned star baker! Marketing Manager Duncan Muir and Management Accountant Lydia Burton followed closely behind him, both receiving edible prizes for their wonderful efforts.
It was a very tasty day, and we managed to raise over £300 to support the incredible work Young Gloucestershire are doing within our local community.
Mock Interviews
Our Senior Leadership team have visited Young Gloucestershire on three or four occasions so far this year, to deliver a series of CV workshops and Mock interviews. We arrange these visits as often as possible, and the team love being able to provide a more hands-on form of support to the charity.
Investing time and energy into the young people of Gloucestershire who need community and support is one of our favourite ways to give something back, and we hope to continue this for as long as possible.
Skydiving for Charity
In April, six of our incredibly brave team took part in a charity sky dive to raise money for Young Gloucestershire. In true James Bond fashion, our intrepid adventurers launched themselves into the sky at 15,000 feet, all to raise money for this worthy cause.
Matt Bland, Charlie Dudbridge, George Newton-Shaw, Jordan Selby, Rhys Thompson, and Kerry Wright undertook this challenge with ironclad courage and style, with their unshaking determination earning nearly £10,000 in donations. Thanks to the team at GoSkyDive, our team returned safely to the ground, to reminisce on their experience, and vow to never let their feet leave the ground again.
It was a whirlwind of an adventure for our fearless team, and we are all incredibly proud of their courageous efforts. Go team!
2023 Events
Brecon 10 Peaks – October 2023
This October, 12 intrepid explorers from Kubus set out to complete the 32km Brekon 10 Peaks Challenge, all to raise money for Young Gloucestershire. Matt Berry, Ben Carter, Archie Doyle, Jimmy Evans, Josie Fothergill, Alex Hicks, Duncan Imrie, Jess Jenvey, Adam Ranford, Scott Reynolds, Jordan Selby, Amy Twinning, all undertook this brave challenge with gusto, and despite some horrendous weather conditions, they smashed their challenge.
To read more about this adventure, please visit our Insights page for a first-hand account, written by our Operations Director, Ben Carter.
2022 Events
Our 2022 Charity Partner – Mind
For 2022, we chose to work with mental health charity, Mind. Our employees had the option to donate their cashback earned on our benefits platform to support this charity, and we hosted fundraisers throughout the year.
“We believe no one should have to face a mental health problem alone. We’ll listen, give you support and advice, and fight your corner.
We provide advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem. We campaign to improve services, raise awareness, and promote understanding.
We won’t give up until everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets support and respect.”
Three Peaks Challenge – October 2022
In October, in support of Mind, Kubus pulled together a dedicated team of 8 to take part in one of the toughest charity fundraisers available! The team tackled The National Three Peaks challenge; the best-known mountain challenge in the UK!
Amy Piatek, Archie Doyle, Adam Ranford, Ben Carter, Jess Bryan, James Banbrook, Michael Smith and Stephen Smith (top-left to bottom-right above) all took on Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon – the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales – all in under 24hrs!
Despite not getting to the peak of Scafell Pike due to unsafe wind conditions, the team did complete Ben Nevis and Snowdon, and raised thousands of pounds for Mind. Everyone at Kubus was very proud of them.
Sustainability
We work closely with our partners to ensure that the supply chain is as sustainable and ethical as it can be. This include initiatives that allow us to reuse and recycle equipment.
We are also currently exploring our impact on the environment, and in conjunction with Net Zero International have prepared a carbon reduction plan.
For more information about our sustainability plans and goals, visit our sustainability page.
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