As the skill shortage continues to bite the print industry, the nation's biggest trade printer CMYKhub has taken matters into its own hands, offering a self-developed cadet programme for aspiring staff.
The CMYKhub cadet programme aims to offer young people a pathway into print. Running over six months, the cadetship provides exposure in each of of prepress, wide format and digital printing, offset printing and finishing, and warehousing and dispatch. It also provides insight into sales and marketing.
Paul Norton, sales director at CMYKhub said, “The cadet programme provides a solid foundation into print. It is for people looking for a great career, and who demonstrate a determination to develop themselves, a commitment to hard work, an enjoyment in being part of a great team, and a can-do attitude.
“Following the cadetship we hope to offer employment in spheres that the individual has excelled and enjoyed working in, or shows potential for further growth to develop into a leader in the business. If there is no obvious role after this six month period, we will look at other opportunities in our ever-evolving organisation to see if they will suit the individual better.”
Established two years ago, the CMYKhub cadet programme has seen eight of the ten cadets that have gone through the programme still working for the business. It is available at any of the multiple sites operated around the country by the company, with cadets so far coming through the Victoria, NSW and Queensland locations.
Norton says, “The programme sees cadets gaining an understanding of all aspects of the trade, and then gives them a platform to go on and specialise. For instance if they show an aptitude for offset printing then they would go on and develop with our backing into a fully fledged offset printer.”
According to Norton, the cadetship is based on his own successful entry into print, and that of many of his peers. He says, “The classic Aussie path is to start at the bottom and work your way up, and that is the CMYKhub cadetship, and is my experience. It gives the cadet the opportunity to see where their natural skills are, and it gives the company the same opportunity. Then once that is established CMYKhub backs it with training, knowing that the cadet has the right attitude, and is committed to developing a skill set.”
Interestingly the cadet programme is not just for young people - there have been more mature people, including an ex golf pro, coming through the ranks. Norton says, “Print offers people the opportunity to work in a dynamic high tech environment, which is appealing.”
The cadet programme has been developed in-house by CMYKhub itself, and is, says Norton, mainly on-the-job. He says, “The approach is to encourage the cadet to get stuck in with full support of course and see how they go.”
The company actively promotes its cadetship programme in schools through careers officers. Norton says, “If a student expresses an interest and shows the right attitude, we will invite them in for a chat. Generally they are usually really impressed when the see the high tech nature of the CMYKhub operation and realise they could eventually play an important role in the business.”