The Young Professional Development Days (YPDD) have established a programme for Mabanaft’s young talent, which takes place annually over around three days and combines learning about Mabanaft’s business with sightseeing and team-building. This year, 17 working students, apprentices, dual-study students and graduates from Mabanaft in Germany, the UK and Hungary took part.
Day 1: How Mabanaft’s fuel card business works at Silvey Fleet in Bristol
The first day began with a visit to Silvey’s bright and modern offices in Bristol’s business centre. The young professionals had the opportunity to learn from experienced colleagues across a wide range of departments and to gain an understanding of Mabanaft from different perspectives. Engaging presentations provided answers to numerous questions, helping to clarify the business and processes at Silvey Fleet.
The warm welcome and excellent support from the Silvey Fleet team were also evident during the group lunch at the office, which provided ample opportunity for informal discussion. The Young Professionals rounded off the evening at a cosy pub in Bristol – followed by a game of darts in a proper British pub.
Day 2: Fascinating insights at Mabanaft in London
How does the saying go? The early bird catches the worm? That’s exactly why, on the second day, we set off early at 9 am by train to London, where the Young Professionals were able to take a look around Mabanaft’s UK offices. A generous lunch at the office set the tone for the afternoon’s programme in a relaxed atmosphere. Re-energised for the rest of the day, the group then attended informative presentations on Mabanaft’s various business areas. The focus was on Mabanaft’s ammonia and LPG businesses, its aviation and operations divisions, and its wholesale and biofuels businesses, all of which were explained in detail. To round off the day, the assistant – the office’s right-hand woman – gave a tour of the premises, ensuring that by the evening the young professionals had gained a really good insight into Mabanaft’s working environment in the UK.
The rest of the evening was then devoted entirely to team-building: In the world-famous Crystal Maze, the young professionals tackled tricky tasks and physical challenges, such as a laser obstacle course, brain-teasing puzzles and, last but not least, catching as many golden tickets as possible in the Crystal Dome. After a group dinner followed by the awards ceremony, there was then the chance to explore the metropolis of London at their leisure.
Day 3: Farewell to London
On the final day of the Young Professional Development Days, there was still time to explore London as a group. The itinerary included sights such as Buckingham Palace and Big Ben, complete with background information on their respective histories. Around midday, the group headed to London’s largest airport, Heathrow, before landing back in Hamburg in the early evening.
Although the YPDD programme was initially held entirely online due to the coronavirus pandemic, the YPDDs have now been taking place at our various locations for the past three years. The advantage? A much more in-depth exchange amongst participants. This year, too, the 17 Young Professionals have grown closer as a group and have got to know and understand the Mabanaft world – with all its different facets, roles and opportunities – even better. The next YPDD is expected to take place in summer 2025, and we’re already looking forward to it. Where will we be heading then? That’s a surprise ?
