Richard Atkinson

In the cohort welcome, the programme is described as a lifelong leadership journey and as 'so much more than a degree' because it develops supply chain leadership and advanced networking skills for life. New learners are asked to bring energy, enterprise and enthusiasm, setting an expectation of active participation from day one.

The September 2026 welcome post tells more than 50 incoming colleagues where to meet on campus for their first three days, describes the programme as interactive, and names the earlier year groups and graduates they are joining.

The same framing appears across intake posts, which present the programme as more than academic study.

Read original · Original 2

The posts name people, describe their responsibilities and connect those roles to the apprenticeship, turning programme claims into inspectable examples of work.

Thomas Longland at CEVA Logistics is described as responsible for governance and compliance supporting an aerospace client, with an interest in leadership and ESG/CSR, while completing the academic phase of the apprenticeship. At Aldi UK, the post names incoming learners, apprentices in years two and three, and alumni working as 3PL key account leads.

Read original · Original 2 · Original 3

They connect employer operations to food security, household supply and essential services, presenting the apprenticeship as serving that larger purpose: resilient, effective supply chains matter to national and everyday life.

The Aldi UK post notes that more than two-thirds of UK households shop there and describes the partnership as helping to feed the nation from farm to fork, before saying food supply chain resilience has rarely been more important. The CEVA post repeats the phrase about supply chains helping the world go round.

Read original · Original 2 · Original 3

Site visits feature named hosts, learners and alumni, and partner companies receive credit for their role in the programme. The argument is that proximity to employers keeps the programme grounded in live operational problems.

The Aldi visit was hosted by Supply Chain Director Simon Webb, described as a champion of learning and development and a regular visitor to Aston. The CEVA post describes CEVA as one of the programme's first partner companies.

Both visit posts repeat the claim that the apprenticeship has grown ten-fold in five years. Ask for the baseline date and independent data behind the figure.

Read original · Original 2

The posts present alumni outcomes and sector breadth as evidence that the apprenticeship prepares people for senior supply chain roles across multiple industries. The pitch is network, knowledge and know-how carried across a career.

One post says alumni include vice presidents, chief executives, managing directors and senior general managers, and lists the sectors the network spans: supply chain, aerospace, pharmaceuticals, automotive, FMCG, engineering, supermarkets and healthcare. It also calls the programme probably the finest supply chain degree apprenticeship in the world.

The alumni and sector list is broad, and the post makes an emphatic superlative claim about the programme.

Read original

Richard Atkinson uses a short notice and a booking link to convene supply chain professionals in Birmingham and beyond, extending the public-facing role to events as well as programme updates. The network stays active beyond graduation and intake.

The post advertises an afternoon session on 15 October for supply chain professionals in Birmingham and beyond, with a booking link and a personal invitation to attend.

Read original

Richard Atkinson describes a day at Aldi UK's Atherstone head office, presenting Aston University as an established higher education partner in supply chain leadership.

• The post names learners joining that year, apprentices in years two and three, and Aston alumni now at Aldi as 3PL key account leads, alongside a customs specialist.
• It records the operational roles discussed, notes that Aldi's supply chain director hosted the visit and regularly visits Aston, and states that the apprenticeship has grown tenfold in five years.
• It closes on food supply chain resilience as a live concern.

For brands planning a campaign

An education provider pitching a partnership or advisory role can see what already works: an employer-hosted visit featuring named learners and alumni outcomes, tied to a sector issue. A proposal could offer to repeat the format with new employers rather than ask for a cold introduction.

At CEVA Logistics in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Atkinson writes about Thomas Longland's work on governance and compliance for an aerospace client, as well as Longland's interest in leadership and ESG/CSR initiatives.

• The post notes that Longland is completing the academic phase of the Supply Chain Leadership Degree Apprenticeship and calls CEVA one of the programme's first partner companies.
• It repeats the claim that the programme has grown tenfold in five years.

For brands planning a campaign

Useful when a prospective partner wants evidence of individual learner outcomes rather than aggregate figures. A pitch could propose profiling named learners at partner employers—the unit of proof this account already relies on.

This post previews a new group of more than 50 colleagues arriving at Aston on 30 September 2026 for their first three days on campus.

• It gives a meeting time and place, asks newcomers to bring energy and enthusiasm, and lists the incoming learners by name.
• It describes the apprenticeship as interactive and part of a lifelong leadership journey, and says it offers more than a degree through the networking and leadership skills it claims to build.
• Earlier year groups and graduates are named as the community the newcomers will join.

For brands planning a campaign

Shows the author speaking directly to learners and the employers who send them. A provider could use this intake-and-welcome rhythm as a natural moment for co-branded communication.

Posted after the cohort started, this piece celebrates the new intake and lists the sectors covered by the Aston supply chain network, including aerospace, pharmaceuticals, automotive, FMCG, engineering, supermarkets and healthcare.

• It says alumni include vice presidents, chief executives, managing directors and other senior leaders.
• The post calls the programme probably the finest supply chain degree apprenticeship in the world and names teaching and industry colleagues alongside the learners.

For brands planning a campaign

The alumni and sector list is the account's own summary of who the programme reaches, not a verified outcome, so a partner should treat it as a claim to test. An advisory proposal could position independent outcome data as the thing the current messaging lacks.

One announces that more than 50 colleagues will start on 30 September 2026 with a three-day campus induction, and tells them where to meet, what to bring and what to expect from the programme.

• Another marks the start of a further intake from companies described as some of the world's leading.
• Richard Atkinson presents the programme as an interactive, career-long commitment to leadership and networking, not just a qualification.

First-person welcome posts naming individual learners and outlining arrival details and programme expectations.

For brands planning a campaign

For an education provider or employer looking to grow apprenticeship numbers, this offers a ready-made model for recruitment content: named welcomes, practical details about starting, clear expectations for energy and participation, and a message for both learners and employers.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

At Aldi UK's head office in Atherstone, Richard Atkinson describes Aston University as an established higher education partner in supply chain leadership, notes that more than two-thirds of UK households shop there, and lists current apprentices and alumni working in the business.

• At CEVA Logistics in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, the focus is a learner's governance and compliance work for an aerospace client.
• Both posts say the apprenticeship has grown ten-fold in five years; CEVA is described as one of the first partner companies.

Short first-person posts about on-site visits, naming partners, learners and their specific roles.

For brands planning a campaign

The visit format offers a strong partnership model: go to an employer's site, meet named staff and learners, then publish a short account linking a learner's day job to the programme. This gives the employer visible credit and prospective learners a picture of the work itself.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

These details make the apprenticeship tangible.

Close-up profiles of named learners and alumni, often centred on one work responsibility.

For brands planning a campaign

For brands seeking authentic learner stories, this is a clear model: one person, one role, one responsibility and one reason it matters. Because posts identify people alongside their employer and role, agree naming and consent up front for any content partnership.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2 · Source 3

Richard Atkinson connects Aldi's operation to feeding the nation from farm to fork, calls food supply chain resilience more important than it has rarely been, and repeats the phrase about supply chains helping the world go round. The programme is presented as serving that public purpose, not only employer talent needs.

For brands planning a campaign

A campaign aimed at supply chain managers should lead with operational consequences and public value, not programme features. Resilience, food security and essential services are themes this voice already uses and could bring to partner content.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2 · Source 3

One post lists alumni roles including VPs, CEOs, MDs and senior general managers, and names the sectors the network spans: supply chain, aerospace, pharma, automotive, FMCG, engineering, supermarket and healthcare. The pitch centres on a career-long network, knowledge and know-how.

For brands planning a campaign

For an advisory or promotional partnership, provide outcome data, alumni roles and evidence of sector breadth. A brand can sponsor or contribute to outcome-focused content, with claims backed by the kind of named-role evidence already used here.

Examples: Source 1

It shows an audience-facing role beyond the university programme and uses a direct call to action rather than a story.

The only post in the reviewed set promoting a date-and-place event outside the apprenticeship programme is also the only one built around a booking link.

For brands planning a campaign

The event channel offers a clear partnership opportunity: support a professional gathering, provide a speaker or take a presence in the room. The short booking-link format is easy to co-brand.

Examples: Source 1

The post reports a visit to Aldi’s Atherstone head office and names learners joining the programme from Aldi, including Megan Church and Oliver Langley, as well as colleagues further into it: Sam Alcock, sharne blackwood, Siobhan Burke and Luisa Rose. Aldi supply chain director Simon Webb hosted the visit.

View example

The post recounts a day with CEVA’s Thomas Longland, who handles governance and compliance for a client in the aerospace sector and is completing the academic phase of the apprenticeship. It also notes the programme’s growth alongside the partnership.

View example

One post marks the final campus days of a BSc supply chain management degree apprenticeship at Aston University and names Atkinson among the support she valued; another reflects on nine years at Kuehne+Nagel and what she learned about leading with honesty and developing others. Both present a supply chain career as a leadership craft built over years, in a reflective first-person register.

Saleh reflects on her own career move rather than recruiting employers and cohorts as a programme leader; the writing is personal, not course promotion.

Read original · Original 2

A night at Croke Park becomes a piece about courage, discipline and role models; a safety tech report becomes a case for a safer cyberspace. Both write short first-person posts that connect specialist work to social good in plain language.

Aiken focuses on cyberpsychology and safety technology, citing a sector report and a live event. Atkinson's posts focus on supply chain education, naming learners, employer visits and programme growth claims.

Read original · Original 2

Both write opinion-driven first-person posts that make a practical point about how work should change for the people doing it, and both repeat a signature closing line.

Pumfrey writes about AI and sustainability software for procurement and Scope 3 teams. Drawing on product building rather than running an education programme, he uses arguments and platforms instead of named learners and employer visits.

Read original · Original 2

In a June 2026 post, Saleh marks the final campus day of the BSc Supply Chain Management degree programme at Aston University, names the ground the group covered (operations, leadership, innovation, strategic supply chain management), explains the End Point Assessment and final workplace-based business report, and thanks Richard Atkinson by name for support.

• An earlier May 2026 post closes nine years at Kuehne+Nagel and describes the values Saleh tried to lead with: honesty, empathy, openness and helping people see their own potential.
• When the hard part of a brief is convincing someone that three years of study alongside a full-time job is worth it, that first-person answer is something the programme account can’t supply.

Individual experience, not institutional reach.

• The posts follow one learner’s route with one employer, but don’t show programme ownership, an employer-partner roster, intake dates, campus logistics or an event or booking channel.
• No follower count, seniority or sector breakdown is published, so reach can’t be compared with Atkinson’s 11,130 followers.
• Two posts offer a thin basis for anything beyond a single peer-to-peer piece; ask for more learner posts or testimonials before committing.
• Let Saleh answer prospective learners’ questions and keep Atkinson’s account for the employer-partner pitch and intake call to action.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

Pumfrey writes for procurement practitioners from inside a product build.

• A September 2026 post argues that expecting "Dave in procurement" to become a prompt engineer just adds another job, and that prompts, architecture and governance should sit behind the scenes.
• A second September 2026 post uses the launch of Martin Chilcott's book "Get Sh*t Done" to describe the Scope 3 problem plainly (years and millions spent measuring supply chain emissions while the doing stalls) and to introduce Need2Know, a platform built over eight to nine months that puts supplier data, category knowledge and sustainability guidance into the procurement team's day-to-day work.
• Same audience, different job: a short course, tool or campaign aimed at working procurement teams fits Pumfrey's framing more closely than a degree recruitment campaign.

Pumfrey’s posts don’t show them running, teaching on or promoting an apprenticeship, and offer no cohort, campus, employer-partner programme or event channel for prospective learners.

• Their claims of 3.5 years working with AI and 8 to 9 months on the platform are self-reported, not independently verified.
• Both posts lead towards Pumfrey’s own product, so a partner message would sit alongside that story rather than replace it.
• Pumfrey doesn’t publish a follower figure to compare with Atkinson’s 11,130.
• For practitioner attention around a course or tool, Pumfrey is the closer match; for employer partners and named enrolments, Atkinson’s account supports that goal.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2