Successful apprenticeships offer reasons to stay

Technology companies aren’t always cutting-edge; sometimes they pull from practices as old as the 13th century. Some vendors—from Google to IBM to Meta to Microsoft—adopt a similar professional arrangement as an aspiring tanner or shipbuilder of old: the apprenticeship.

While today’s apprenticeships offer an easier entry into a profession (no degree required), companies must also focus on ways of preventing apprentices from wanting to exit—like mentoring and demonstrating a clear career path.

The best retention strategies, according to Amy Kardel, senior VP of strategic workforce relationships at the trade association CompTIA, demonstrate professional possibilities for an apprentice. “There should be no dead ends,” she said.

Steering the apprenticeship. Modern apprentices often train on-the-job while earning wages and taking courses.

Nicole Turner, SVP of technology hubs at Mastercard, began her career as an apprentice at the New York City Department of Education. “Having that exposure, having that network, having that advice and counsel that I [got] from the executives helped to shape me at a very young age,” said Turner, who has worked at Mastercard since 2005.

Mastercard also has a structured apprenticeship program. The company recently partnered with New York’s LaGuardia Community College to offer early-career opportunities for students with cybersecurity training.

Barrier to exit. Not everyone has the financial and social capital to take the traditional pathway of a four-year degree into a job, said Lisa Lewin, CEO at General Assembly (GA), which enrolls individuals in a 10-to-13-week coding “bootcamp” geared toward an employer’s specific needs.

“Apprenticeships really open the aperture of people from all walks of life: women, people of color, returning parents, veterans, all kinds of folks who don’t always have great access to these career pathways,” Lewin told IT Brew.

A 2022 UK-based study from reskilling and training partner Wiley Edge found that 48% of the surveyed tech workers (all between the ages of 18 and 24) have felt uncomfortable in a job because of their gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic background, or neurodevelopmental condition. When asked about factors leading to a decision to depart from a company, 27% of young tech workers cited a lack of sense of belonging.

Over half (64%) of businesses surveyed admitted they are struggling to retain diverse employees, despite 65% stating that they work hard to foster an inclusive company culture.

“If you do not see yourself represented in that workplace, you are more likely to leave,” said Priya Ramanathan, VP of government and workforce partnerships at GA.

Mentors: The jobmaker. Mentors also provide a helpful way of retaining talent and sensing any frustrations.

“That mentor and that buddy relationship is important. Even someone who’s not an apprentice, [if] you have that connection back into an organization that cares about your voice, what you bring to the table, and you can do it under the security and the safety of being who you are, that would make anyone want to stay in the organization,” said Turner.—BH

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