Article: 60% Indian employers find apprenticeship effective to build productivity: Report

Skilling

60% Indian employers find apprenticeship effective to build productivity: Report

From an organizational shift standpoint, ‘ROI on Apprenticeships’ paper suggests placing apprenticeship at the heart of workforce planning.
60% Indian employers find apprenticeship effective to build productivity: Report

According to a latest study conducted by Teamlease Skills University, 56% of the Indian workforce is still not skilled enough to meet the demands of the market. Ahead of the 60 years of the Apprentices Act in India - National Employability through Apprenticeship Program (NETAP), the study shows that apprentices are emerging as the primary tool for employee skill development. 

The study titled ‘ROI on Apprenticeships’ shows close to 60% of the employers find that apprenticeships improve productivity and 76% feel that it helps them address attrition.

Addressing the occasion, Sumit Kumar, Vice President and Business Head, NETAP, said, “Apprentice programs are becoming a competitive advantage for employers; as thoughtfully structured programs deliver much more than their costs, because of higher productivity, lower attrition, lower hiring costs, and faster time to fill open positions. The war for talent is being won by employers who are reimaging their people supply chains and this ROI report suggests that offering apprenticeships is a powerful tool for this re-imagination”

The study shows an increase of 22% in productivity gains from apprenticeships (a 5% increase from 16% last year). It also suggests apprentices have higher productivity than people recruited from other channels and apprenticeships offer a 19% reduction in the hiring costs. 

Sharing his views on the ecosystem in India; Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, said, “Apprenticeships play a very crucial role in bridging the skill gap that exists in our ecosystem. We are making every attempt in making the system simplified and encouraging to scale the apprenticeship engagement in the country. Blended learning coupled with on-the-job training provides the youth, with the right skill sets, preparing them to meet the requirements of the industry. In the coming years, all stakeholders (academia, industry, government) need to work together to further improve the adoption of apprenticeships both among employers and candidates.”

Additionally, the report recommends creating measures to widen industry participation, creating a flexible stipend structure for apprentices and introducing equitable management practices which help accelerate adoption. 

The initiatives combined will help India reach the vision of 10 million apprentices in 10 years and create an unfair advantage for brand India as many global employers look for new markets, production bases, and human capital. 

Key findings:

  1. 61% of employers surveyed see there is net positive value in apprenticeship.
  2. 53% of employers ranked long term performance and reduced cost of recruitment as their top two benefits
  3. Nearly 50% of employers see long-term gains, including better performance and/or higher retention.
  4. 60% of employers opined that their productivity improved. In all, depending on the duration of an apprenticeship, employers are benefitting from an increased skill level on the part of apprentices because it is raising their productivity toward the end of the training period.
  5. 76% of employers polled that apprenticeships reduce attrition by building a bond of loyalty between company and employee.
  6. 63% of employers of the survey believe that apprenticeships improved their overall performance and provided a competitive advantage over other firms.
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Topics: Skilling, #SkillUp

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