How UG2 Leverages Apprenticeships to Develop the Next Generation of Talent
As UG2 is approaching its 12th anniversary, National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) is marking its own 10 years of success showcasing the value of apprenticeship. NAW is a broad effort to highlight the essential role of apprenticeship meeting industry needs, creating career pathways, and advancing racial and gender equity in the trades.
Efforts to promote the value of apprenticeships are particularly welcome in this moment, as the number of retirement-eligible workers outpaces new employees entering the skilled trades, setting up the facility services industry for significant workforce shortages.
Fortunately, UG2’s founders had the foresight to anticipate these challenges and built our company from the ground up with a commitment to identify, recruit, and develop the talent in our industry. In fact, this year’s theme for NAW, “Engagement, Expansion, and Innovation,” perfectly captures UG2’s long-established success in engaging and supporting future talent.
UG2 takes a multi-pronged approach in this endeavor, by:
Building connections early. Today’s students are bombarded with information about their future prospects earlier and earlier in their academic careers and attempting to digest and navigate this influx can be overwhelming. The COVID-19 pandemic crystallized the importance of viewing potential career paths through a wider lens that expands students’ opportunities for success. UG2 partners with high schools and some trade schools in the communities where we live and work to build awareness about careers in facility services. We strive to ensure that students are aware of opportunities and have the support to explore different career paths with a stable employment future.
Creating lasting partnerships. UG2 works with institutions from coast to coast to raise awareness about careers in facility services. Our partners include schools like Mass Maritime Academy, Cal Maritime, and Lemoyne College. Participating students gain exposure to different environments along with a wealth of knowledge from their more experienced peers, which adds to their education, visibility, and technical efficiency. As a result, a growing number of students from these programs have a job lined up with UG2 well before they graduate.
Prioritizing professional growth. We take pride in our teams of PhDs – passionate, hardworking, and dedicated employees who bring deep expertise to their jobs and deliver exceptional service. We recruit and retain extraordinary individuals by identifying those with a passion for learning, and by providing them with a wealth of options for advancing their professional development. For starters, UG2 employees across the country can access best-in-class training through our groundbreaking Training and Innovation Lab. We also take a very intentional approach to mentoring, developing employees who embrace opportunities to mentor and to be mentored so that they can share, learn, and pass on knowledge. Within our growing company, we prioritize promoting from within and supporting advancement among our incredibly diverse workforce.
By engaging with partners to offer apprenticeship opportunities, UG2 provides future leaders with hands-on experience in all aspects of our work, from troubleshooting issues to relationship management to learning best practices. Our apprentices are mentored and monitored by some of the industry’s most skilled and generous professionals.
And the advantages flow both ways. Our apprentices get support, encouragement and the tools to build a rewarding career. We benefit by adding talent to our teams, but also because we have the incredibly gratifying experience of creating career pathways and seeing promising young professionals grow and thrive.