Government gives go-ahead to degree-level management apprenticeship

24 July 2015 -

CMI’s Petra Wilton said this new apprenticeship scheme will be ‘game-changing’

Matt Scott

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has given the green light to a new degree-level apprenticeship in management developed by a group of 40 employers and universities, headed by Serco.

Skills minister Nick Boles said: “Increasing the number of people who understand how to lead and manage people is essential to the UK’s future. This Degree Apprenticeship will equip people starting their careers with the leadership and management skills needed to rise to the top and shape the future of UK industry.”

The Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship is aimed at boosting the number of professional managers in the UK and at driving productivity and business growth.

Petra Wilton, CMI director of strategy, said the new apprenticeship would be ‘game-changing’ for future generations.

“This Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship offers a game-changing new route for building the next generation of professional managers,” she said. “It brings together the very best of higher education, professional development and work-based learning. It provides a new way for employers to up skill those ‘accidental’ managers already in the workforce.

“It also offers a fantastic opportunity that will put far more young people on the track to professional management careers. CMI has been delighted to work with Serco and so many employers dedicated to raising the standard of the UK’s management performance.”

Under the scheme, workers who complete the apprenticeship will earn a degree in management and business, and become a Chartered Manager and member of CMI.

The apprenticeship will take around four years to complete, and will be provided by their employer in partnership with a university or business school. It will be mostly delivered in the workplace through work-based projects but will also include university study time.

Liz Benison, chief executive of Serco’s UK and Europe Local and Regional Government Business, said: “I am sure this apprenticeship will not only contribute to the successful development of Serco employees but also the wider UK economy. I would like to thank the team within Serco that have led on this work and also the group of businesses and universities that has contributed to the development of this high quality apprenticeship.”

Anne Kiem, chief executive of the Chartered Association of Business Schools, added: “A critical factor in productivity is good management. The Chartered Manager Apprenticeship is a great opportunity for employers to develop a new generation of managers equipped to drive their businesses, and address the UK’s productivity crisis for years to come.

“Our business schools are looking forward to working with employers and their apprentices to provide access to a world class management education with relevant and applied on-the-job training.”

The Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship is one of a series of new degree-level apprenticeships that the Government has asked business to develop under its Trailblazer programme to meet the future needs of the UK economy.

Visit the degree apprenticeship page or email apprenticeships@managers.org.uk for further information.