Have you been wondering about the advantages of upskilling your team in data literacy? Data upskilling through a Data Technician Apprenticeship can offer huge benefits to employees and their organisations—from an NHS employee reducing a day’s worth of routine work to under a second, to an administrator drawing insights from employee engagement data, drafting an action plan and presenting to senior management.
Welcome to your complete guide to Cambridge Spark’s version of the Data Technician Apprenticeship, the Level 3 Data Citizen Apprenticeship. Here you’ll discover everything you need to know about who the apprenticeship is suitable for, what your team members can expect from the programme and the business impact upskilling in this field can bring to your organisation.
The apprenticeship is designed to empower your employees who regularly use data in your organisation to develop a strong understanding of the value and opportunities that are possible with sufficient data training.
The apprenticeship is designed to empower your employees who regularly use data in your organisation to develop a strong understanding of the value and opportunities that are possible with sufficient data training.
And apart from the general Data Citizen programme, you might also consider a few bespoke alternatives also based on the Data Technician standard:
This Level 3 apprenticeship is ideal for teams who:
A data literate workforce fosters a culture of innovation and enables organisations to leverage their data as a strategic asset, driving growth and success in an increasingly data-driven world. Technology is constantly evolving and the way businesses use technology in their daily processes is increasing at a rapid speed. So, it is vital to harness the power of data that is now available to businesses.
According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD): “80% of employers have maintained or improved future skills in the business” by utilising apprenticeships.
Below we’ve outlined key ways in which upskilling your workforce in data literacy can impact your organisation:
An employee with sufficient data training can help your organisation effectively manage and organise your data. They can assist in collecting, cleaning, and organising data, ensuring its quality and accessibility. This can lead to improved data governance, streamlined processes, and better decision making based on accurate and reliable information.
Upskilled workers can assist in analysing your data, identifying patterns, and extracting meaningful insights. By providing accurate and timely information, they contribute to data-driven decision-making, enabling organisations to make informed choices and seize opportunities.
Chloe Giles, a data compliance administrator within the NHS, who completed her Level 3 apprenticeship said:
“The course has made me start to think analytically about the data: why we are using it, who it is for, what is the impact. It has got me talking to lots of different departments and using data in different ways.”
Upskilling additional members of your team in data literacy means that existing data experts in your organisation can concentrate on higher-value data work. Team members with basic data literacy can then autonomously handle most of their own daily data analysis tasks, creating more of a “hub and spoke” model of data service, improving efficiency and productivity.
Team members with data literacy skills can contribute to improving efficiency and productivity within an organisation. They can automate repetitive, data-related tasks, develop data pipelines, and implement streamlined processes. This saves time, reduces errors, and allows employees to focus on more value-added activities.
See how Paul Knox, from the Mid & South Essex NHS Foundation Trust saved 182 hours of reporting per year by automating his weekly reporting after completing his Level 3 apprenticeship.
By assisting in data analysis and generating insights, upskilled members of your team can provide valuable decision support to various departments within an organisation. They can help in forecasting, trend analysis, and scenario modelling, enabling better strategic planning and resource allocation. This leads to more informed and effective decision making across the organisation.
Check out how Madhavi Thatikonda, a medical administrator developed her data literacy skills to enable her to design and present a data-insight-led action plan to her management team after completing her apprenticeship.
Employees completing the apprenticeship can contribute to optimising business operations and processes. By analysing data related to various aspects of the business, such as sales, marketing, supply chain, or customer behaviour, they can identify inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and areas for improvement. This enables organisations to make data-driven optimisations, reduce costs, and enhance overall performance.
Remi Martins-Tonk, Head of Data and Insight at Barnados had this to say about their colleague, Robyn St John, after they started their apprenticeship with us:
“Since starting the Data Citizen L3 Apprenticeship, Robyn has become at least 100% more productive. Prior to joining the programme her work consisted of doing simple data analysis (in Excel). She is now working in Power BI, creating dashboards in significantly less time, and taking on more complex work. As a result, the volume of her outputs has increased along with the value those outputs generate. A key contributing factor has been the Cambridge Spark course.”
Play a role in driving innovation within an organisation. By leveraging their data skills, upskilled employees can explore new ways of analysing data, identifying emerging trends, and uncovering opportunities for innovation. This can give organisations a competitive edge by enabling them to adapt to market changes, develop new products or services, and stay ahead of the competition.
Not sure what job roles within your organisation would benefit most from data literacy upskilling? Here are just a few of the types of job roles that are ideally suited to gaining the most from this programme:
“After 10 years there were discussions about my job role changing. I wanted to focus more on data so I took the Level 3 Apprenticeship for new skills and more confidence. Since then, I've been given a promotion. Now I'm supporting the whole of Barnardo's with data requests and Barnardo's has brought Data Specialists into the company; a role I'd love to do next” - Robyn St John, Barnardo's Team Support Officer
Once apprentices have completed the programme, how can they apply their learnings to benefit their organisation and improve their business processes? Below are a handful of ways in which they can apply their new knowledge to directly make an impact in their organisation:
In short, there is no cost to you or your organisation to enrol your staff onto the apprenticeship. Like the other data apprenticeships we offer, this programme is funded by the UK Apprenticeship Levy. The scheme took effect in April 2017 as a way to drive investment in strengthening the country’s skills base. All organisations with staff costs of over £3m per year have to pay 0.5% of their salary bill into a ring-fenced apprenticeship levy pot.
The money is collected monthly via PAYE but can be used within 24 months for training on approved apprenticeship schemes. This means there is no cost for levy-paying employers to upskill their staff.
If your organisation operates in the UK, you likely already have access to Levy funding for upskilling your staff. But there are a few criteria set by the UK government that determine the eligibility of individual employees. To be eligible for an apprenticeship, an employee must generally:
Government funding rules also dictate the following for all apprenticeships:
Across the 13 months, learners will undertake expertly designed modules delivered remotely, whilst receiving coaching, attending check-ins and submitting assignments via EDUKATE.AI, Cambridge Spark’s own AI-powered learning and assessment platform. At the end of the 13 months, learners will then undertake an End Point Assessment to evaluate their success on the programme.
This apprenticeship is broken down into the following modules, or stages:
Still got some queries? See if our frequently asked questions on the Level 3 Data Citizen programme page can help explain. Or please do not hesitate to get in touch with us and we’ll be happy to help you with any queries you may have.
If you are interested in enrolling your team into the Level 3 Data Citizen Apprenticeship, you can get started with your organisation's digital transformation by getting in touch via the form below.