The 5% Club is hugely supportive of apprenticeships. Our members know that they are an important way of bringing much-needed new talent and fresh perspectives into a business, and of ensuring that skills are being developed according to the company’s future needs. However, getting people to enrol on an apprenticeship is only half the battle. Supporting them through the apprenticeship and offering them a fulfilling career within the business is the overall objective.
The 5% Club member MBDA is a multinational integrated defence company which designs and produces missiles and missile systems for the three armed forces. MBDA has a well-established, multi-award winning apprenticeship programme, with 110 apprentices on early careers programmes (ages 17-22) and a further 30 more experienced apprentices, who undertake apprenticeships to enhance their skills later in their careers. Their apprenticeships cover a range of disciplines, from engineering, finance, and procurement to Systems Engineering and Defence Export at Masters level. Importantly, MBDA has a retention rate of over 90% of its apprentices.
In this edition of Expert Opinion, we interview Cathy Strachan to find out the secrets of MBDA’s successful formula.
Getting apprentices to the finishing line
