Resources and Partnering
How to Build Digital Talent With Earn and Learn Training:
A Toolkit for Small and Medium-Sized Employers
How to Get Started
We hope this toolkit inspires you and motivates to find out more about earn and learn programs. If you’re interested in implementing one of these programs, there are a number of local and regional resources and partners you can turn to for help with planning, implementation, and evaluation.
Here are steps you can take to make the most of programs, resources, and opportunities in your area:
Engage with national intermediaries like Jobs for the Future, which can help you navigate your options and identify local partners.
Reach out to your local chamber of commerce, which can help connect you with other small and medium-sized businesses. You can use the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Directory to find yours.
Contact local community colleges, which can be key partners for the classroom learning components of Registered Apprenticeships. The DOL’s Career One Stop website offers a directory you can use to find community colleges.
Partner with your local workforce development board, which can offer a number of resources and will be especially helpful if you’re interested in on-the-job training. You can use the DOL’s Career One Stop directory to find the workforce development board serving your area.
Check to see if there’s a regional apprenticeship network in your community—as there are in Philadelphia, Chicago, Greater Houston, and Greater Washington, DC.
Questions to Ask Potential Partners
Because there’s such a wide variety of partner organizations that you can work with, it’s important to carefully evaluate your options so you can identify the ones that can best help you achieve your goals. Here are some questions, organized into five categories, that you can ask to vet potential partners:
Existing Assets
Does my company have strengths or resources that we can build on? How will this approach align with our business goals and my strategy?
Example Peer Companies
Have you worked with other small and medium-sized employers in this area that have had success with earn and learn models? What contributed to that success?
Payment Structure
Do you charge us directly for your services? Do you know of any sources of funding that we could use to support our partnership with you or with our efforts to launch an earn and learn program?
Role and Services Offered
What role do you play in earn and learn programs, and what services do you offer small and medium-sized businesses? For example, for apprenticeships, do you provide the related technical instruction, do you recruit the apprentices, and do you provide ongoing support?
Your Company’s Commitments
What do you need from us to ensure success? What commitments must we make, and what baseline level of readiness should we have? If we’re not yet ready, are there other resources we should tap, or additional research we should do?
Learn More About These Common Earn and Learn Models, and Find Out How to Create Your Own
Stay in Touch
No matter the stage in your Earn and Learn program journey, we’re here to help.