Mitchell Diggs

What's your job about?

I work for The Warehouse Group (TWG), New Zealand’s largest retail group. I work at the Support Office supporting the Print & Copy centres throughout New Zealand. I am also leading a key sustainability project intending to improve the recyclability of our products.

With 68 print & copy centres throughout New Zealand, I’m kept busy on a daily basis with a wide range of responsibilities. Here are a few key ones:

• Customer Product Requests: When a customer makes a custom order at one of our print & copy centres, I ensure that the details go to the right suppliers.
• Print Website UX Project Lead – wsprint.co.nz is a key online channel for sales for our print & copy centres. We are currently undertaking a website review to improve the site layout to make it more customer friendly.
• Print Product Sustainability Project Lead – Laminate has been a go-to for a long time to create a more durable document, but it isn’t recyclable and wears quickly. Sustainability has become a key pillar at The Warehouse Group which is why I have been investigating the potential benefits of Duraprint as an alternative to lamination, including investigating how to set up a recycling process via our stores for Duraprint in New Zealand. 

What's your background?

I have been raised in Auckland, in a single parent household with my Mum. My mum has worked my whole life, which is where I think I get my hard work ethic from. I’ve been fortunate to have travelled to countries such as Singapore, Japan and Vietnam during my high school years which I also think fostered my curiosity about the world & people. I’ve been studying a double major in International Business & Strategy and Finance at AUT.  I got this internship as a part of my co-operative education for AUT as a final requirement of my degree. 

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Definitely Yes. For all The Warehouse in-house systems you will receive training. What is key is being able to manage your time, recognise priorities and utilise critical thinking. While having studied business has made some aspects of this job easier, you can definitely pick up the core skills on the job and don’t need any business theory knowledge. However, being flexible & adaptable to support the wider team is crucial as this is a fast-paced environment.

What's the coolest thing about your job?

The coolest thing about my job is the autonomy I have. Even as an intern I have control over my daily schedule. I can choose if I’m working at the office or from home. I can choose what tasks I prioritise and control the flow of my work. I am trusted as a full team member despite only having been here for 8 weeks.

What are the limitations of your job?

Initially I felt uncomfortable about the level of responsibility I was allowed to have, but I have adjusted to that as it suits my working style. There are meetings you need to attend in a big organisation that you wonder if you can add value, or do you even need to attend. And it can be unsettling presenting to 70+ people when you are scrum master.

3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...

• Lean into continuous improvement - the learning never stops especially once you start your career so always strive to improve yourself, be open to feedback, and recognise that life is a journey not a race.
• There are bound to be times that you will feel overwhelmed that things aren’t working out in the timeframes you want so be patient with yourself.
• It is good to know what you want and why but remember to enjoy the whole experience as you can’t avoid the highs and lows.