The Benefits of Apprenticeships to Employers

Written by Yihya Sirhan, Assessor and Programme Mentor at Itec Skills & Employment

Apprenticeships are an established and highly effective way to recruit and train staff. By integrating the apprenticeship programme into your organisation, you are not only helping staff to develop their career, but you are also making a strong business decision which will generate benefits for your team and your bottom line.

In this blog, we’ll take you through a wide range of advantages that apprenticeships can provide, including benefits for senior leaders, benefits for existing employees, and the financial impact of apprenticeship training.

The hard data

There has been a lot of recent research on the impact of apprenticeships. Here are some of the top facts and statistics:

• 98% of employers which currently employ apprentices experience additional benefits to their business, including addressing skills shortages and providing value for money.
• 86% of employers say apprenticeships helped them develop relevant skills for their organisation.
• 74% of employers say apprenticeships helped them improve the quality of their service and products.
• 78% of employers say apprenticeships helped them improve productivity.
• 33% of employers say apprenticeships helped improve diversity within their business.
• The average net benefit of an apprentice is £2496 during their training period.

The benefits

Below are the top five benefits of apprenticeships for business leaders in my opinion:

1. Developing a motivated, skilled and qualified workforce

Hiring an apprentice is a great way to develop a motivated, skilled, and qualified workforce but also grow a cultivated team that the business can rely on to prepare for any future development or changes that are required to take place.

With apprenticeships, you can mould your candidates to fit in with your business needs, values and culture from the very start. Also, given the opportunity, many apprentices choose to remain within the business as full-time members of staff once they have finished their training.

2. Specific Training

Businesses are always looking to develop new and improved ways of working, as well as bring in fresh new ideas. The bespoke nature of apprenticeships allows employers to not only bring on board talented individuals but adapt their training according to the specific needs of their business.

During the apprenticeship programme, individuals are constantly learning new skills and knowledge that are specific to their job roles, those skills and knowledge provide new ways of working and offer greater opportunity for growth.

Employers are also able to develop the individual in accordance to their company values, allowing the business to mould the individual into their ideal employee.

3. Addresses Skills Shortages

Every sector within any industry suffers from skills shortages. Apprenticeships are a great solution for skills shortage, as it enhances and enables employers to build their future specialists from the ground up. With over 600 approved apprenticeships (Feb 2021), there are apprenticeship routes suitable for all types of business and all skill levels, which can also be tailored to the specific needs of the business.

Employers are using the apprenticeship programme to address their skills shortage by either attracting new talent or upskilling existing employees by choosing the right apprenticeship standard and training provider to suit their specific business needs.

4. Boost Productivity

According to Government research, 78% of employers say apprenticeships helped them improve productivity.

Once your apprentices have found their bearings within the business, they will be able to alleviate a lot of the stress that a heavy workload can bring to a team. The simplest tasks can often end up taking the most time, as they tend to be frequent. Having apprentices on the team means that these basic jobs can be taken care of, freeing up the rest of your team to work on higher level projects.

5. Cost-effective

Even if you can find someone with the skills and experience needed for your business, hiring a senior specialist can be expensive. According to research from Glassdoor, the average employer spends around £3000 and 27.5 days to hire a new worker.

Not only will apprenticeships save recruitments costs for your business, but most training providers, including Itec, will handle the recruitment process for you, helping you find your ideal candidate free of charge.

The government also provides various financial incentives and funding for apprenticeships, for example up until the 28^th of February 2022, employers in Wales can receive up to £4,000 for hiring a new apprentice under the age of 25.