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The UK’s largest international scheduled airline is the first employer to commit to the Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management launched at the APM Conference in June 2012. British Airways will be taking on five apprentices in September to help deliver their five year plan of investing more than £5bn in new aircraft, cabins, infrastructure and customer facing technology.
Developing future talent is key to British Airways as the last couple of years have seen the launch of various apprenticeship schemes, the continuation of the airlines’ graduate scheme and the new Future Pilot Programme.
John Bevan, head of corporate programmes at British Airways was interviewed at the APM Conference in June and believes the Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management is of long-term value to an organisation as it will help to develop their “future leaders”.
The Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management will offer a select number of young people a route into employment and a chance to study for a Level 4 Diploma in Project Management. QA Training will deliver the Level 4 Diploma in Project Management for British Airways, which will provide the baseline skills and knowledge required by the apprentices. Other training providers are also working with various employers on delivering their Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management schemes.
Apprentices will be assigned a mentor to help them on the various British Airways projects that they will be working on. Throughout the course they will undergo placements across the business exposing them to a wide variation of projects, programmes and departments.
British Airways’ apprenticeship runs for two-and-a-half years and consists of 10 weeks formal classroom training at QA, a further two weeks of external accreditation training, with the remainder being practical work experience at BA. By the end of the scheme John can see an apprentice being capable of a role in a major programme or leading on a small project.
John is urging other employers to create places for the Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management, especially as the Government may fund up to 100% towards the cost of the training. “I would definitely recommend the Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management,” John added.
“You get high levels of motivation, loyalty and a can-do attitude which, when coupled with excellent training, can make a real difference to your business.”
If your organisation is interested in learning more about employing apprentices please contact APM. Alternatively, for more information about the scheme please visit the Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management webpage.
Read the full British Airways case study on Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management in the August issue of Project.