HR leaders, recruiters and managers have been racking their brains to create
Aon is investing $30 million to expand its apprenticeship program, with the hope it creates 10,000 corporate apprenticeships by 2030 across even more employer partnerships. The financial services company launched their Chicago Apprentice Network along with Accenture and Zurich in 2017, with just 75 apprentices across the three companies. Currently, the program boasts over 2,000 apprenticeships from over 140 companies across 18 industries.
While apprenticeships are often associated with trade work, Aon has set out to prove just how valuable it is to teach future "knowledge workers" the needed skills onsite while still paying them for their time — and in turn, do away with four-year degree requirements.
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"Traditionally, there's this requirement of a four-year degree before getting into an organization, but as we all know, that doesn't always equate to knowing how to do the job," says Shantenae Robinson, public affairs manager for Aon's global eco-systems and apprenticeship program. "An apprenticeship is an opportunity to earn and learn."
Aon's apprentices work 40 hours per week, and Aon not only covers their salaries and benefits but their tuition as they work to complete their associate degree at a local community college. Aon, which launched its program with just 26 apprentices, now welcomes up to 125 apprentices a year.
For Robinson, the key to the program's success is its ability to eliminate arbitrary barriers, such as the cost of a four-year college and unpaid internships. Instead, candidates are picked based on their potential and drive to learn a relevant specialty within the company, rather than their university credentials, explains Robinson.
"Once you graduate high school, you may not be fortunate enough to be able to afford an education," she says. "And if you do go to college, you may have to work anyway. But an apprenticeship bridges skill gaps and diversifies the talent pipeline."
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Terionna Wilson, who is the third person in her family to participate in Aon's program, started her journey as a reinsurance apprentice in 2019 and was hired as a retirement specialist in 2021. Before her apprenticeship, Wilson was struggling to make ends meet while also pursuing higher education.
"I worked as a warehouse associate, packing boxes and unloading trucks," she says. "Joining Aon's apprenticeship program meant finding a balance for myself, where I could attend school and make enough to support myself. It was definitely an upgrade."
As a Black woman in finance, Wilson underlines how vital it was to be able to gain professional experience with a full-time salary without the usual barriers to entry, be it an expensive university, or the white-dominated networking that comes with it. And Aon benefitted, too: Robinson points out that the company now has a full-time employee who knows the job and performs.
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Robinson notes that the apprenticeship program has helped Aon internally promote more diverse talent, and will ultimately create a company that is more representative of the national market.
"When you're in a boardroom, people shouldn't all come from the same school and the same neighborhood — you won't see creative change," says Robinson. "If you get different leaders with different experiences, you get different ideas."
Apprenticeships also mean a higher likelihood of talent sticking around. With an 80%
"We have these conversations with employers who are seeing high turnover on their entry-level roles," she says. "But if you build up your [talent], they stay with you."
