I attended a really good & well turned out seminar this morning; hosted by TheBusinessDesk.com in association with with National Apprenticeship Service (NAS). The event follows the National Apprenticeship Week which was at the beginning of the month and the seminar was designed to highlight the benefits to Yorkshire’s business community in employing an apprentice.
I am sure there will be some film footage uploaded soon by TheBusinessDesk.com, but I thought I would do a quick synopsis of the event for those who missed it or want more info:
Anthony Knowles (Employer Services Director for NAS in Yorkshire and Humber) very eloquently explained the benefits of taking on an apprentice. He highlighted that by doing this, employers have a great opportunity to compliment their existing recruitment strategies. Their online vacancy system is designed to be easy to use and FREE have a look at the site and see for yourself. They also offer full support in helping employers through the apprentice recruitment process.
Gary Verity (Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire) as usual, did an entertaining & engaging presentation on the successes of the recent campaigns to promote the regions tourism. Highlighting some fantastic facts: Yorkshire is the fastest growing region in the UK with the number of visitors up by a staggering 31% and the money spent by visitors in 2009 increased by 13%.
Alison Ashworth Brown (Head of NG Bailey’s Engineering Academy) presented the practical side to taking on an apprentice. NG Baily have been employing apprentices since 1934 and she highlighted some great examples of improved staff retention, career development, bridging the skills gap and promotion of an employer of choice. Her overall message was designed to encourage people to change the way we view apprenticeship schemes.
Overall this was a great introduction to apprenticeship schemes, the support that NAS can offer and how an employer can add real value to his/her recruitment strategy and bottom line. For more information, visit their website or check out their facebook page
Lis Wilson is a Director at HR Connexions and helps businesses use the internet to recruit and manage talent.