Daniel Tromans recently joined EAL as head of Service Delivery, having worked for Qualifications Wales – the Welsh qualifications regulator. A fan of the outdoors, Daniel has experience working across a variety of projects and functions such as leading on the commissioning and development of national qualifications and, more recently, on Qualifications Wales’s Qualified for the Future project.
We caught up with Daniel to find out how he is using his skills and experience to become the lead on the transition of service delivery at EAL, focussing on our new product and service offering including T Levels as they go live.
Tell us how you came to be in this role?
Before starting this role, I worked at Qualifications Wales and had been there since it was established in 2015. I worked in several roles, leading on the delivery of some of the organisation’s largest project. Before that I worked in international education.
The role at EAL really appealed to me as it was bringing together many of the skills I had developed in my previous roles, the organisation’s values resonated with me - the customer and learner is at the heart of everything the organisation does.
What’s your favourite part of the job?
Engagement. Engaging with my team, engaging with colleagues across the organisation, and engaging with our customers and stakeholders. I love working through challenges to find solutions and having the opportunity for everyone to go on that journey together.
What three skills do you think you need in your role?
I think the three most important skills are similar in many roles.
You need:
Integrity – always being honest and truthful.
To be a great relationship builder and active listener; and
To be a problem-solver – be solution focussed.
What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
Right now, it is ensuring I have all the information I need to do my job. There is a lot going on in Service Delivery so ‘learning the ropes’ in a new role as well as keeping up to speed with new things going on is my biggest challenge. Having said that, I have a great team and colleagues across the organisation who share their knowledge and experiences which makes this challenge that little bit easier.
What is the key to nurturing relationships with customers?
I think it is being available, being open and honest, and never taking a relationship for granted. Relationships never stop growing; you need to make sure you invest time into it.
What do you wish you’d known when you started out in your career, that you know now?
That what you think you want and need in terms of a career is never right – your aspirations and what makes you happy in a job changes and grows with each opportunity that is presented to you.
What’s your biggest achievement so far?
The biggest achievement in my role so far is the work I have done around our budget and resource forecasting for our EPA business. It is a business that is growing exponentially, which means we have to carefully judge what resources we will need moving forward. I feel the work that the team has been doing on this is going to provide us with a great opportunity to ensure the sustainability of the EPA business in the years to come.
Why would you recommend working at EAL?
The people – I have had a great induction into the business. Everyone has been so friendly and helpful and engaged with every activity.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
Outside of work I love travelling with my family and dog in our campervan, getting to the beach whenever I can and getting out on my paddleboard.
What was the last film you watched?
Being the parent of a five-year-old means I don’t always get to pick the film! The last one was Lightyear – my son enjoyed it and it took me back to watching Toy Story all those years ago.
If you could meet one famous person, who would it be?
Rosalind Franklin – she played a key role in discovering DNA and was a crystallographer. Crystallography was a big part of the research for my PhD studies.
If you could go back into any period of time, which year would you choose and why?
That’s a hard one – I like to think every moment or period in time has had its uniqueness. I think it’s what you make of any moment which is important.
