Why apprenticeships matter

In my view / 01 February 2012

Apprenticeships have long been the lifeblood of many organisations – and they can now be a real route to success in management, says Andy Palmer, director of education and skills at BT

BT has a long heritage in the delivery of apprenticeships, having employed apprentices in the organisation for more than 100 years.

We typically look to recruit large numbers of young people from school and college onto our schemes where they undertake a wide range of frameworks (including IT, engineering and customer service) across levels two, three and four.

The benefits of recruiting apprenticeships are well known – apprentices can bring new skills and innovation into the business, they are highly motivated and enthusiastic and are typically retained by the business for many years. Apprentices are regularly referred to as the ‘lifeblood’ of the organisation at BT.

There are now many thousands of BT employees who have been on an apprenticeship journey and are benefitting from external accreditation of their skills.

This not only gives them greater mobility within our internal recruitment market but also allows our customers to be assured that they are engaging with a professional and accredited workforce.

Like many organisations, we have looked for a consistent approach to the way that we develop and accredit those people who manage our most valuable asset – our people

In large organisations it is very easy for individual business units to develop their own approach to people management and this can dilute the core capabilities that the business expects all people managers, regardless of where they sit in the business, to demonstrate.

By aligning the pan-BT people standards with the national occupational standards (NOS) for managers and encouraging employees being developed against these standards to have their skills and capabilities accredited by a third party, we drive a high level of consistency of approach and also engender an ethos which values the professionalism of people managers.

In large organisations it is very easy for individual business units to develop their own approach to people management and this can dilute the core capabilities that the business expects all people managers, regardless of where they sit in the business, to demonstrate.

Andy Palmer, director of education and skills at BT

The fact that attainment of an apprenticeship in management can be the starting point for an employee to consider recognition by a professional body is an added bonus.

We hope that it encourages our people to consider their own continuous professional development alongside the workplace development that BT offers.

Barriers to manage

The case for investment in apprenticeships for managers seems sound, and for the individual it certainly is.

Too many employers, however, report that their perception of delivering apprenticeships, whether for new recruits or existing employees, is that they are highly bureaucratic and complex to administrate. It is this perception that stops them using apprenticeship frameworks.

As a result of this perception, BT recently sponsored a report which identifies the complexity and duplication currently causing problems in the apprenticeship system. It has received an extremely warm reception from the government, who have committed to working with employers to affect real change in the system and make it more accessible.

We believe that change such as this will not only encourage more employers to consider using apprenticeships, but also encourage those employers who already use apprenticeships to expand their current provision into new and non-traditional areas like management.

At a time when many young people are considering the implication of university fees when making decisions about progression after school or college, the fact that apprenticeships can lead people into successful and fulfilling careers and also be used as a development route into management roles within large organisations must surely encourage more young people to consider vocationally based routes.

Increased uptake of apprenticeships by employers and increased interest in them as an option from young people and employees needs to be driven by those employers and employees already reaping the rewards of apprenticeships.

The onus is on those of us who know the benefits of apprenticeships to work with schools and colleges, to engage with our supply chain and support government initiatives to promote apprenticeships as widely as possible.

The government has thrown its weight behind apprenticeships.

If we, as employers, miss the opportunity we now have to increase use of apprenticeships for our existing workforce or increase the number of new apprentices that we recruit, then we risk missing the opportunity to both benefit our companies and affect a really positive change in the lives of our existing employees – and a generation of young people.