Apprenticeships have long been an integral part of upskilling the inbound workforce and enabling people to retrain into new industries, which is why we decided to create our own technical academy, combining the traditional model with a strategic and industry-specific route to exciting careers in the tech world.

People Director, Joanne Finkeldey explains: “We focus on finding the right people for the right roles, which is why apprenticeships have been so successful for us – you can teach technical skills but it’s harder to teach attitude and work ethic.

“The sad truth is that in the current job market, apprenticeships can be seen as a way for companies to secure short term, cheaper labour with no guaranteed role at the end – and that is absolutely not what we are about.

“razorblue continue to invest a significant amount of time and resources into the structure of this academy so that apprentices are nurtured and can be safe in the knowledge that if they put in the work, there is a career for them at the end of it. For us, it is about securing and upskilling those candidates that align with our core values and providing a meaningful career path.”

We want to help close the digital skills gap within the north east, which is why we partner with educational institutes directly. This includes Darlington College, with plans to extend partnerships within the North East, Manchester and Scotland.

Our apprentices spend four days per week in one of our offices, with a fifth at college. This enables them to experience real-life work and projects hands-on, surrounded by a team of technical professionals to help gain a deeper understanding of how each integral part of the business works.

These roles are incremental, we continue to add to our existing team which is already made up of several apprentices who have gone on to have exciting journeys with us, and many of our staff have been with us more than five years. Commitment and hard work are rewarded, and this is a fundamental part of our ethos.

Operations Director, David Raper said: “We were closely with Darlington College to ensure that all modules of the apprenticeships are covered as well as providing meaningful workplace experiences. Our existing team is on hand to mentor and guide the apprentices and really welcome them to ‘team razorblue’ – we’re about community and long-term growth here, not just as a business but for our people.”

You can find more information on our academy here: Academy | Award-Winning IT Solutions | IT Partner (razorblue.com)