In-depth fieldwork undertaken for this study has identified the importance of having a coherent and close network of local stakeholders including government, industry/employers and training sectors involved in the implementation of apprenticeship policies. This is essential to ensure that the design and delivery of programmes responds to different local needs and demands, while also improving communication among relevant parties to provide the necessary support to employers. As implementation of the Skilling Australians Fund goes ahead, state and territory governments should examine opportunities to stimulate collaboration at the local level, which will be a critical success factor in fostering apprenticeship participation for both individuals and employers. Appointing or delegating a local co-ordinator can help ensure that collaboration delivers real results on the ground.
For example, as part of the Sydney Metro project, the Skills and Employment Advisory Group (SEAG) was created which includes different government agencies (both state and national level) as well as industry partners with a shared interest in Sydney’s workforce development objectives. This type of partnership facilitates knowledge and information sharing relevant to training and as well as examining solutions to address skills shortages within local industries. The SEAG members had decision-making powers, met regularly and came from a cross-section of different organisations such as TAFE NSW, NSW Department of Industry, Australian Government Department of Education and Training, Sydney Metro contractors, and Training Services NSW. Sydney Metro led the work of co-ordinating the group to convince the involved stakeholders to recognise the value of having a shared approach and working together towards that goal.
In North Queensland, the Cowboys rugby league club initiated the Dream, Believe, and Achieve (DBA) programme to increase youth engagement in the labour market. This programme also emphasised local community and business networks to generate partnerships with training providers to deliver individually tailored VET programmes in the hospitality sector for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth.
Similarly, the Tasmanian government emphasised partnerships and worked on a new system called Collective Ed, together with the Paul Ramsay Foundation, that focuses on collaborative design and adaptive leadership in educational programmes. As suggested by the name, at its core, Collective Ed adopted a new approach to gain collective understanding of the challenges and achieve common goals by bringing together students, teachers, parents, schools, communities and business and industry leaders.
Building and forming formal local governance networks can be challenging. It requires co-ordination, governance structures and leadership within the community. A common theme that emerged from the case studies was the difficulty of convincing employers of the value of working with government to co-design training programmes. In these cases, having strong leadership from the government as well as a formal co-ordinating organisation is critical to leverage existing local networks of employers. For example, Sydney Metro took the co-ordination lead and had strong leadership from Transport for NSW, the state government department in charge of transport services in New South Wales. The creation of SEAG recognised the need for a close formal industry-government-training partnership.
Another common success factor relates to a long-term commitment to build collaboration among different stakeholders. It takes time to convince different parties about the importance of working together so that the training provided to students improves their chances of finding a job. For the STEMship project, RDA Hunter took on the co-ordinating role, had extensive consultation sessions with local industry, and worked with Hunter TAFE (the partner RTO) for delivery. RDA Hunter has been engaging with businesses, schools, universities, government agencies and community leaders since 2009 through STEM education and workforce development programs. With this active engagement and track record of successful delivery of different programmes in schools, RDA Hunter was able to gain respect and trust in the local community.