Trainee recruitment includes all activities related to sustainably filling a training vacancy. Its fundamental task is to meet companies’ demand for trainees according to their needs and at low cost. There are five phases of trainee recruitment:
1. Planning
Planning is the development of strategies and the definition of goals and courses of action for attracting trainees. A central task is defining recruitment instruments.
2. Acquisition
Acquisition is the advertising of training vacancies and the recruitment of qualified people interested in training. Acquisition activities take place throughout the entire training year.
3. Selection
Selection includes all the activities that identify all of the qualified candidates who will be offered a training position within a pool of candidates.
4. Concluding the contract
Concluding the contract refers to the recruitment phase encompassing tasks performed between the selection decision and the start of training. These include the signing of the contract itself as well as further measures for forming a bond with prospective trainees.
5. Integration
Integration is the recruitment phase that lies between the first day of training and the end of the probationary period. It includes all of the tasks that strengthen the long-term bond between trainees and the firm and integrate them into the company. At the same time, a final review of the selection decision is made.
Recruitment instruments are used in every phase
Recruitment instruments are all the measures and channels that businesses use to recruit, select, employ and retain trainees. It is a central task of the planning stage to opt for those recruitment instruments deemed to be qualified and most promising.
Select the instruments such that a range of tools can be used in each recruitment phase. Instruments with identical or similar objectives should be applied in ways that they complement each other. There is a huge repertoire of instruments that can be used in the acquisition, selection, contract signing and integration phases.
Project “StartApp – Starting with Apprenticeship” supports small and medium sized businesses (SME) in intensifying their commitment to in-company training. To that end, this project provides solutions for the recruitment of young people interested in on the job training. Here the focus is on methods of acquisition, selection and integration of trainees during the first phase of their staff membership in the company.
The handbook “Finding and retaining trainees” is a guide for companies that want to make their trainee recruitment capable of addressing the current challenges in the training market. It guides the reader step by step through the individual phases of recruitment. Numerous tips and instructions ensure successful implemen tation of the recruitment measures in a practical business environment. It reveals new ways to inspire young people for a career and win them over as trainees.
