Keeping an eye on hundreds of apprentices across a network can be a challenge. You simply can’t watch everybody all the time.
But wouldn’t it be nice to have a crystal ball you could gaze into that shows you exactly which apprentices are struggling, and why?
Danger, danger!
Typically, it’s not until a trainee has completely dropped off the radar that a GTO will look back and realise that there were several red flags alerting them to the fact that the apprentice was struggling.
Indicators can be as straightforward as a slip in their class-based learning, or something a little less obvious, like not opening the emails you send them. Or it can be an unexplained or sudden absence from the workplace (sick leave or otherwise), not completing online learning, or skipping classes. All of these are signs that an apprentice is disengaging, and all are easy to overlook until it’s too late.
And while you want successful apprentices, you also want to make sure your host employers are satisfied with the trainees you send out onsite.
It’s rare to have an apprentice decide out of the blue that they just don’t want to continue with their training. It is more common, however, to have one who habitually turns up to work late, doesn’t engage well with workmates, and fails to pay attention to what they’re doing - resulting in shoddy workmanship. These things can directly impact a host employer and possibly their customers.
Raising the red flags
The challenge for a GTO is knowing what information to “listen” to and when to act on it.
An apprentice putting in for sick leave in and of itself doesn’t mean they are disengaging. In most cases, it’s quite genuine. But when combined with missing classes and ignoring important emails, it can indicate something is going very, very wrong.
GTOs need to make sure that they have systems in place to monitor these activities, but most of the available solutions for this sector don’t provide this.
Project Crystal Ball
So, what if you there was an easy-to-use solution which enabled you to watch data from multiple systems? One which allowed you to apply a workflow to your organisational data to deliver actionable insights?
We’ve been working closely with our technology partners to spot trouble before it happens. Our training and management solution has a powerful inbuilt monitoring and reporting system that combines the data it collects with that from your external systems – so it raises red flags at the beginning of a potential apprentice disengagement.
We figure it is high time to stop the surprises and start to understand what’s happening with your apprentices in real-time (not after the fact) and ensure their future success, and yours.
