But there’s also an opportunity here - an opportunity to fundamentally disrupt the way companies develop new talent, with a laser focus on building skills for the 21st century and enhancing diversity. We can give career starters a springboard into a well-paid, exciting career, and create opportunities for those whose backgrounds mean they are all too often underserved - all while giving businesses access to the very best talent in the areas they need it most.

We’ve recently announced the launch of our Digital Business Accelerator, a new programme that exists to do just that.

The Digital Business Accelerator gives young professionals the best possible start to their career. They’ll work at a top company, like Microsoft, Unilever or Dentsu, while learning key skills like the ones you’d expect from a grad programme or MBA - like communication and problem solving - as well as skills that are becoming more important in every line of work - like data manipulation and analysis.

It’s this focus on data that really makes the Digital Business Accelerator programme unique. Businesses are facing a shortage of data skills that is costing them up to 10% of their revenues. The Digital Business Accelerator recognises that data and digital skills will be essential to every business in the modern world. The programme is built on the Data Technician Level 3 apprenticeship, with broad applicability for candidates across a business, and apprentices can start using their new skills after just three months.

Reaching, attracting and promoting diverse young professionals

Everybody deserves a chance at a life of learning and a top career. As we rebuild entry level careers, we’re ensuring that diversity, equity and inclusion are the driving forces in all that we do – from the design and delivery of our programmes to our recruitment, culture, learning and development.

We have the network, resources and experience to reach the broadest pool of candidates. We have a dedicated outreach team that reaches out to talented young people across the country, and a network of partnerships including a long-standing partnership with the Black Young Professionals network, that enables us to reach even more candidates.

Our impact speaks for itself: of the candidates that we hire, 53% identify as BAME, more than half are women and 36% meet one of Multiverse's indicators of socio-economic disadvantage.

Delivering impactful education

Our Digital Business Accelerator programme puts data and digital skills at the heart of the curriculum: that’s because we recognise they are going to be the core skills that professionals need in the 21st century. But we don’t stop at those skills. We also teach what we call ‘durable skills’ - like problem solving and communication.

The way we teach these skills is what sets us apart as a training provider. It’s the reason that, in 2021, 100% of apprentices that have completed their Multiverse programme received a pass or above.

England’s education inspector, Ofsted, recently rated us as an ‘outstanding’ provider - their top available mark. Just 13% of providers get this top score.

Our incredible coaches provide 1-1 sessions with all apprentices, to help them talk through problems and work on their development. Our apprentices make a real impact at the businesses they work at. Apprentices hired by us are three times more likely to stay in their role - 87% stay long-term and 90% get promoted.

And finally, we’re building an outstanding alternative that truly rivals the university experience. Apprentices benefit from access to our community of 5000+ apprentices, and 100s of hours of events - including social, development and networking events.

If you’re interested in learning more about the Digital Business Accelerator, join us on November 17th to hear how digital apprenticeships are helping Dentsu build critical skills and improve retention and diversity - all while delighting their customers and improving internal collaboration.

This article was released in 2019 and all information was correct at the time.

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