Abstract
Corporations have made sizable investments into automation. Despite these significant investments, companies failed to invest equally in training and upskilling to operate and maintain their equipment. Instead, companies looked to hiring the skilled employees necessary to perform these duties. Unfortunately, this human capital strategy has not gone according to plan because companies struggle to find the qualified employees required to support their operations. Although employer-sponsored internship and co-op programs are heavily utilized as a recruitment tool, they fail to provide meaningful training and often fail to meet the employer’s needs to plug the talent shortfall.
Apprenticeships offer a viable way for companies to address the human capital shortfall. There are several apprenticeship models that an employer may select to implement. Not only apprenticeship programs offer employers a positive return on investment, but also the program is a viable human capital strategy a company can employ to create a highly skilled talent pipeline. Moreover, apprenticeships are a retention tool, with 89% of the apprentices remaining with the company’s 3-year postapprenticeship program graduation.
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Umberger, G., Harrison, D. (2023). Case Study: Automation Education and Qualification Apprenticeships. In: Nof, S.Y. (eds) Springer Handbook of Automation. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-96729-1_68
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