What are the benefits of taking on an apprentice?

 

One of the main challenges we face running Gene Commerce, a specialist ecommerce agency in Brighton, is finding like-minded, talented people that share our values, attitude and ambition. As a professional services business, much like any business, our success is dependent on the quality of our team. Convention dictates that we should be looking for the brightest and best graduating from university; we’ve taken a slightly different approach.

 

I loved my time at university but if I was faced with the choice today, would I go? I was fortunate; 20 years ago I didn’t have to pay fees. I did manage to amass a healthy or more precisely, an unhealthy, £12K debt but that pales into insignificance compared to the £30K - £50K projected debt for some students today. Of course university isn’t just about getting a degree, it’s about new experiences, making life-long friends, broadening your horizons and gaining independence. I don’t envy the choices people have to make today. However, there are real and credible alternatives to an extra three years of expensive education which can set young people on an amazing path to success. 

 

Apprenticeships provide a compelling option for those considering not going to university.

 

For the last 3 years we have been actively involved with the National Apprenticeship scheme so much so that it is now an integral part of our company’s recruitment strategy.

 

At first, we were very apprehensive; what will they do? Will they be a drain on internal resource? Nevertheless we dived in and started interviewing; we wanted to give someone an opportunity to gain the first step for a career in website development. We met between 10 and 15 candidates; some demonstrated skills learnt at school and home, others showed a keen desire to learn. It became clear that it was not the same as interviewing for an experienced member of staff.

 

We eventually selected Dave. In his interview he showed us projects he had developed at home and what technologies he had taught himself. His enthusiasm and energy were very evident. Dave embarked on a year’s apprenticeship, combining a 1-day a week course at the local college to gain a BTEC qualification and 4 days working with us, paid at the Living Wage. Sitting next to and shadowing one of our lead developers, we began to throw more and more challenging projects in Dave’s direction. Time and time again he impressed us with how he turned his hand to these and brought a fresh approach, new ideas and willingness to constantly exceed expectations.

 

3 years on Dave is now one of our senior developers and is a shareholder in the business (Gene is an employee-owned business), what’s more, he is now training and mentoring the new influx of apprentices we have. A fantastic journey considering he’s still only 20.

 

In the last month, our second apprentice, Chloe, has successfully completed her year at college and is now a full-time member of the team. We have sponsored her through a professional certification with Magento software and once again we have been amazed with how much she has developed and learnt over the last 12 months. Her enthusiasm, ideas and hunger to learn is infectious. This year we welcomed Conor and Vicki to the team who have just started on their journey, two months in and they have already demonstrated an aptitude and professional attitude beyond some graduates I have interviewed over the years.

 

Apprenticeships won’t be right for everyone and won’t be right for every career but for us, in the digital sector, where technologies and trends change so quickly, to an extent that colleges and universities sometimes fail to keep up, this alternative to university must be taken seriously. I asked Dave and Chloe if they regret making the decision they did, I get a resounding NO.

 

My advice to businesses is to open your recruitment policy to apprentices and:

 

1.Look for enthusiasm, energy and a desire to learn

2.Treat them like regular team members

3.Pay them properly, a living wage, none of this nonsense of some apprentice wage

4.Give them real, commercial projects to work on, be prepared, mistakes will happen

5.Challenge them, don’t spoon feed them

6.Provide them with a mentor