The Young Professional Development Days (YPDD) is an annual three-day programme for young professionals at Mabanaft that combines knowledge of Mabanaft's business with sightseeing and team building. This year, 17 Mabanaft students, trainees, dual students and graduates from Germany, the UK and Hungary took part in the programme.
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 premises in Bristol's business centre. The young professionals had the opportunity to learn from experienced colleagues in different areas and to understand Mabanaft from different perspectives. Exciting presentations provided answers to many questions, making it easier to understand the business and processes at Silvey Fleet.
The warm welcome and great support from the Silvey Fleet team was also evident during lunch in the office, which provided ample opportunity for informal dialogue. The young professionals rounded off the evening in a cosy Bristol restaurant - followed by a game of darts in a real British pub.
Day 2: Exciting insights at Mabanaft in London
How was that? The early bird gets the worm? That's exactly why the young professionals travelled by train to London at 9 a.m. on the second day, where they were able to take a look at Mabanaft's UK offices. A generous lunch in the office set the scene for a relaxed afternoon programme. Energised for the rest of the day, the participants listened to lively presentations on Mabanaft's various business areas. The focus was on Mabanaft's ammonia and LPG business, the aviation and operations business, as well as Mabanaft's wholesale and biofuels business. Finally, the assistant and good soul of the office gave a tour of the premises, giving the young professionals a really good insight into the working world of Mabanaft in the UK.
The rest of the evening was dedicated to team building: in the world-famous Crystal Maze, the young professionals faced tricky tasks and sporting challenges such as a laser obstacle course, tricky puzzles and, last but not least, catching as many golden tickets as possible in the Crystal Dome. After a joint dinner and prize-giving ceremony, the young professionals had the opportunity to explore London on their own.
Day 3: Saying goodbye to London
On the last day of the Young Professional Development Days, there was still time to explore London as a group. Places of interest included Buckingham Palace and Big Ben, with background information on their history. Around midday, the group travelled to London's largest airport, Heathrow, before arriving back in Hamburg in the early evening.
While the YPDD programme was initially a digital-only event due to the coronavirus pandemic, the YPDDs have been taking place at our various locations for the past three years. The advantage? A much more intense dialogue. This year, the 17 young professionals came closer together as a group and got to know and understand the world of Mabanaft with all its faces, tasks and opportunities. The next YPDD is expected to take place in the summer of 2025 and we are already looking forward to it. Where does it go then? That's a surprise 😉