Active Zones
When the going gets tough, the tough need shopping (and feeding). This is where you’ll come in. Joining NAAFI’s Expeditionary Forces Institute (our voluntary military unit that’s officially part of the Territorial Army), you’ll be following British Forces into operational areas. At the moment we’re only active in Afghanistan, but we never know when this might change. The support you’ll provide will make sure service personnel get a taste of home no matter where they are in the world. It really is life support on the front line.
As you’d expect, you’ll need to pass a few fitness tests and there’ll be some basic training. You can join us as a uniformed member of the Territorial Army (in which case you’ll be given an army rank) or as a civilian employee. Either way you’ll be given a bonus at the end of each six-month tour. It’s rewarding and exciting work. Many people find it a life-changing experience.
Roles
Are you ready to test yourself and experience something completely different? These jobs aren’t for everyone, as the retail environments (clubs, bars and shops) are uniquely challenging. But they’re more rewarding too.
Site Managers
This is your chance to be passionate about a business like it’s your own. You’ll develop and motivate your team – ensuring the delivery of excellent customer service and, of course, profits. These are varied and challenging roles, so you’ll need proven management and retail experience.
Supervisors
Setting the standards for customer focus and productivity, you’ll ensure your team are motivated, properly trained and inspired to deliver a great service. Given the variety of your role, commercial awareness, supervisory experience and a firm belief in high standards of customer service will be vital.
Customer Service Assistants
Wherever you work, you’ll join a great team and give our customers the best possible service. Maintaining a great environment for your customers will probably be your biggest challenge. If you’re a team player with a passion for service and customer rapport, our training will give you the other skills you need.
Q&A
If you want to know what it’s like to work in an active zone, the best people to listen to are our staff. They’ve been there, they’ve done it and they’ve got the t-shirt. And they’re happy to share their experiences.
So what's it like to work for us in EFI?
Supervisor, Iraq
One thing's for sure, you won't have experienced anything like it before. But don’t take our word for it.
How long have you worked for NAAFI?
Three years.
What do you do day-to-day?
Run back office and help on shifts in the bar.
What do you like about your job?
Making sure the troops get a good and friendly service.
What's your base like?
We live in tents but it’s got everything you need.
What's the social life like?
It’s really good. We have bingo and pool tables, and Internet and DVD nights so you always have something to do. And you can always meet new people in the cafés on camp.
What advice would you give to anyone thinking about joining NAAFI?
I would say that it’s a good job, as you learn a lot about different ways of living and you get to meet people from all over the world. You can also do a lot of courses to get where you want to be in the job. Most of all, it’s about helping the troops out there – giving them a good service and making them happy when they’re coming off the ground.
What's it like working in a different country?
At first it’s hard, but you’ll get used to it very quickly. If you’re in Afghanistan there are some places where you have to live in tents. And when there are rockets coming into camp, you have to wear body armour and a helmet. If you’re in uniform then you have to carry your weapon everywhere with you. And every day is different.
What do you think are the important things you need to remember when working for NAAFI?
Respect your team mates and others around you and deliver a good service to your customers. You have to have passion in your job, be honest with your customers and help them as much as you can.
A Day in the Life
Retail Assistant, Basrah
"A 6 o'clock start. Didn’t get the best night's sleep as the guy next to me gets back from his shift just after midnight, and no matter how quiet he tries to be, I still hear him settle in.
After fumbling around in the dark in a tent shared with 12 EFI colleagues, I go outside to the loos and showers to wash. Already the sun is up, bright and hot. Getting back into the tent, it takes a few seconds for my eyes to readjust to the darkness. I get dressed and wait for the mini-bus (first registered in the 60s?). "Trenchard Lines, please mate". Along bumpy desert tracks and off. Past the guards on the gates and into the bombproof Dining Facility (D.FAC) where I catch my first glimpse of the amazing coffee pod that will be my place of work for the day. Waterloo Station or Basrah Composite Operations Base? I could be anywhere - this coffee pod is High Street.
Power up, unlock, stock the pod and displays. Count the float. Perfect! Now I'm ready for the first customer. A Flight Sgt. Cappuccino of course! I'm courteous, wish him a good day, and off he disappears. Living the dream!
A slow start to the day gathers pace and by 11.30 the customers build up. The supervisor arrives to collect the cash and drop off stock, checks the HAACP file, and goes off on her rounds to the other D.FACs. Shelves to stock, tables and chairs to keep clean, check the water supply is topped up. There’s no running water in the desert, so everything is bottle-fed.
The D.FAC gets massively busy at lunchtime as the people working here come in for lunch. Time passes quickly and soon I'm cashing up at the end of the shift to hand over to Steve who is running the pm shift.
Taking out the rubbish as I go, I wait for the magic bus to take me back to 'Charlie' - the camp where we are living.
I catch up on my sleep, go to the Internet cabins to talk to the other side of the world, and then do some 'phys' in the gym - grunting Americans watching themselves lift weights in the mirrors; panting Brits running on machines or spinning on bikes. Shower and back to the tent. In ones and twos, others return from their shifts; we share stories about the day and go off for 'scoff'. Great choice of food eaten half hoping the alarms will go off, picking up an incoming IDF attack, for a bit of excitement. But tonight, like most nights, we eat in peace.
Back to the tent; laptop; iPod; sleep.