Apprenticeships – why hiring diverse talent is smart business

Blog

June 25, 2020 | SMC Admin

---

Apprenticeships are one of the most powerful and effective means of boosting social mobility amongst workers from less advantaged backgrounds – not only that, it’s smart business.​

 

Whether you lead a manufacturing business, a professional services firm or a creative platform, attracting and retaining a diverse talent pool is a must for any forward-thinking business. As an employer you can be a change-maker, creating paths of opportunity that will benefit your organisation. One important way in which you can do this is through apprenticeships.

Breaking down socio-economic barriers is not only a just cause, it’s also smart business.

When given a decent chance, employees from lower socio-economic backgrounds perform at least as well as their more advantaged peers, if not better. Research shows that 43% of businesses with more diverse workforces have higher profits – and apprenticeships are the cornerstone to reaching that talent early.

Individuals who start their careers via an apprenticeship are likely to stay longer, reducing recruitment costs. They also have unparalleled knowledge of your business from working their way up the ladder – and understanding your business at a grass roots level can lead to greater efficiencies.

 

So how can you hire in a smarter way, be it apprentices or employees?​

 

The Social Mobility Commission will be publishing guidance for employers this Friday, 26 June, which you will find a link to in our News & Events section. While our webinar for employers taking place later today (25 June), will include a practical workshop in which to explore ideas. For those who can’t attend, we will be publishing a link to the recording of the webinar on our microsite in the coming days.

Data drives smart recruitment, so you can also use our toolkit to measure the socio-economic background of applicants and benchmark your progress going forward. We also publish an organisation directory where you can find partners that can support you on your journey and share insights into their experiences.

While our new in-depth report – Apprenticeships and social mobility: Fulfilling potential – will help you better understand the apprenticeship landscape, barriers to success and what you, as an employer, can do to champion social mobility through apprenticeships.