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Planning Your Apprenticeship Program: The Basics
Apprenticeship programs have five major players and each must perform their responsibilities for all player to be successful. The five major players are the mentor, the apprentice, the manager/supervisor, the sponsor, and the industry organization(s). Successful apprenticeship programs benefit from for all five players implementing their responsibilities effectively.
Your apprenticeship program plan must include the support, onboarding, and visible management of all the players, with provisions for the tools and resources for each player so s/he can achieve her/his targeted outcomes.
Mentor
Responsibilities
The Mentor must provide the work-based projects with effective guidance and instruction to enable the apprentice to plan, implement, and assess her/his work on the project.
Outcomes
- Effectively transfer technical and workplace skills and knowledge to the apprentice while successfully performing their own job.
- Delegate work to the apprentice that will increase the capabilities of the apprentices and optimizes the use of the mentor’s time and talents.
Apprentice
Responsibilities
The Apprentice must be dedicated to apply the mentor’s guidance and instruction in her/his planning, implementation, and assessment of their work on the project.
Outcomes
- Become more successful at completing jobs more efficiently, effectively, and reliably.
- Retain their position with improved and valued competencies.
- Improve their level of satisfaction and motivation with the job.
- Improve their salaries and advancement opportunities.
Manager/Supervisor
Responsibilities
The Manager/Supervisor must provide the mentor and apprentice the sufficient schedule, budget, encouragement, and specificity in defining the requirements of the project.
Outcomes
- More productive assignment of staff to complete work successfully on time and within budget. The business unit could take on more work with the same staff, increasing workplace productivity.
- Reduces risks of personnel becoming single point failures in the company’s work flow. The quality and reliability of work products should improve.
Sponsors
Responsibilities
Apprenticeship programs are sponsored (funded) and operated on a voluntary basis by individual employers, employer associations, or partnerships between employers and labor unions.
Outcomes
- Manage the funding, outreach, application, selection, implementation, and assessment activities of the apprenticeship program.
- Successfully provide a pipeline of qualified prospective and employed workers.
Industry Organization(s)
Responsibilities
The Industry Organization(s) help define the qualifications of workers in the industry sector and provide sponsors and industry managers some level of standards for quality work.
Outcomes
- Provide documentation on the goals, expectations, and strategies for effectively designing, implementing, and continuously improving an apprenticeship program.
- Improved quality and reliability of work product should result in improved success in business development and operations (increase profitability of industry).