blueAPACHE selected as a finalist in the 2022 Victorian Training Awards

blueAPACHE selected as a finalist in the 2022 Victorian Training Awards

25 August 2022. After a rigorous evaluation and judging process, blueAPACHE has been named a finalist in the Employer Award for Apprenticeship Development category of the 2022 Victorian Training Awards.

What is being recognised

The acknowledgement celebrates blueAPACHE's Traineeship Program, established in 2021, which centres on offering new ICT entrants a genuinely foundational career pathway.

The Victorian Training Awards recognise employers who underpin the Victorian Government's Education State promise of building a world-class training system, creating opportunities that lead to the jobs of the future. blueAPACHE is honoured to be recognised as a leader in this space.

Why a traineeship programme matters in ICT

This is a different kind of recognition from the industry awards a technology company usually collects, and it addresses a real structural problem.

The Australian technology sector has a well-documented skills shortage. The standard response is to compete harder for people who already have the skills — which raises salaries, increases churn, and does nothing about the size of the pool. Every organisation doing this is drawing from the same finite group.

A traineeship programme takes the other path. It takes people who do not yet have the skills and builds them, which increases the total number of qualified people in the industry rather than redistributing the existing ones.

It is also considerably harder. Training someone from a standing start costs money and senior time before it returns anything, the return arrives over years rather than quarters, and there is no guarantee the person stays. Most organisations conclude the economics do not work for them and recruit laterally instead. That an employer award category exists specifically for apprenticeship development reflects how uncommon the alternative is.

Who it opens the door to

The phrase in the programme description that carries the most weight is new ICT entrants.

A conventional entry-level technology role typically requires a relevant degree and, frequently, prior experience — a requirement that excludes career changers, people who could not afford university, and anyone whose circumstances did not permit the standard path.

A traineeship removes that filter. The entry requirement becomes aptitude and willingness rather than credentials already held.

blueAPACHE has visible evidence that this pathway produces results. Renata Di Stefano, now the company's Head of Marketing, began her ICT career in 2010 as a receptionist at a managed service provider with no corporate sector experience, moving into marketing within two years and holding senior roles since 2012 — and going on to win the Shining Star – Partner award at WIICTA 2023. Rahwa Salew moved from recruitment into project management within four years, and was subsequently recognised as a Rising Star in the ARN Women in ICT Awards.

Neither entered through a conventional technical pathway. Both are examples of what the traineeship programme is designed to make repeatable rather than incidental.

The timing

The programme was established in 2021 and recognised in 2022 — which places it precisely in the period when blueAPACHE was growing fastest and hiring hardest. The company employed more than 280 people by July 2023, with a further 20 being recruited at the time, having grown at approximately 30% year on year over an extended period.

At that rate, recruitment is not a support function. It is a constraint on how much service the business can deliver. Building capability internally rather than only buying it externally is a direct response to that constraint.

The organisational logic was formalised shortly afterwards. In November 2022, blueAPACHE launched a dedicated Experience Division bringing talent acquisition and people operations together with service delivery and the end-user help desk under a single general manager — on the reasoning that employee experience and customer experience are the same problem viewed from two sides.

Putting hiring and service delivery under one accountable leader means the person responsible for service quality is also responsible for the pipeline of people who deliver it. A traineeship programme is exactly what that structure should produce.

About the Victorian Training Awards

The Victorian Training Awards recognise excellence across the state's vocational education and training sector — spanning apprentices, trainees, students, teachers, training providers and employers.

The Employer Award for Apprenticeship Development category specifically recognises employers who provide outstanding support, training and career development to apprentices and trainees. Finalists are selected following a rigorous evaluation and judging process.

Award programmes assessing employer training practice are worth distinguishing from technology awards. A vendor or channel award assesses what a company delivers to customers. This one assesses what it does for the people it employs — and, indirectly, what it contributes to the skills base the whole industry draws from.

Frequently asked questions

What was blueAPACHE shortlisted for? The Employer Award for Apprenticeship Development category of the 2022 Victorian Training Awards, announced on 25 August 2022 after a rigorous evaluation and judging process.

What is being recognised? blueAPACHE's Traineeship Program, established in 2021, which offers new ICT entrants a foundational career pathway. The awards recognise employers supporting the Victorian Government's Education State commitment to a world-class training system.

Why does the page argue a traineeship programme matters more than lateral hiring? Because competing harder for people who already have the skills raises salaries and increases churn without changing the size of the pool — every organisation is drawing from the same finite group. Training people who do not yet have the skills increases the total number of qualified people in the industry rather than redistributing existing ones.

Why do most organisations not do it? Because it is harder. Training someone from a standing start costs money and senior time before returning anything, the return arrives over years rather than quarters, and there is no guarantee the person stays. The page observes that the existence of a dedicated employer award category for apprenticeship development reflects how uncommon the alternative is.

Who does a traineeship open the door to? People excluded by the conventional filter. Entry-level technology roles typically require a relevant degree and often prior experience, which rules out career changers, people who could not afford university, and anyone whose circumstances did not permit the standard path. A traineeship makes the entry requirement aptitude and willingness rather than credentials already held.

Is there evidence this pathway works at blueAPACHE? The page points to two examples of non-conventional entry. Renata Di Stefano began in 2010 as a receptionist at a managed service provider with no corporate sector experience, moved into marketing within two years, has held senior roles since 2012 and won the Shining Star – Partner award at WIICTA 2023. Rahwa Salew moved from recruitment into project management within four years and was recognised as an ARN Women in ICT Awards Rising Star.

Why did the programme start when it did? Because 2021–22 was the period of fastest growth and hardest hiring — more than 280 staff by July 2023 with a further 20 recruiting, after approximately 30% year-on-year growth over an extended period. At that rate recruitment is a constraint on how much service the business can deliver, not a support function.

How was that reflected organisationally? In November 2022 blueAPACHE launched an Experience Division bringing talent acquisition and people operations together with service delivery and the end-user help desk under a single general manager — so the person accountable for service quality is also accountable for the pipeline of people who deliver it.

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Further information

For more information about the Victorian Training Awards, visit the Victorian Government website at vic.gov.au.

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