Kieran, Author at Best Traineeship

Meet the Winners: Enexis Group

Kieran — Sun, 24 Apr 2022 19:12:15 +0000

The Enexis Group swept the pool at the last Best Traineeship awards, taking out the Best Traineeship Manager, Return on Investment, and the Overall Best Traineeship awards. The trainees choose the Best Traineeship Manager with new rule changes rather than the jury. This means that the win is based purely on the votes of trainees, and their experiences with the company. In order to be eligible for the overall award, a company must be a Best Practice winner from Round 2. Enexis won Best Traineeship Manager and the Overall awards in a historic first.

With over 4,300 employees and 100 years of experience, The Enexis Group is committed to sharing their expertise and knowledge and building today’s trainees into tomorrow’s employees and leaders. Mart Koeslag, the then manager of their traineeship program, talks with us about the experience of winning the awards and how it motivated the company.

Mart is now at Ludens Talent Development as a Senior Consultant,Trainer, and Coach. He reflects fondly on his time at the Enexis Group with us in this blog.

Hi Mart! Congratulations on the clean sweep of Best Traineeship 2020, with your Overall Best Traineeship Award and Best Traineeship Manager! How does it feel?

I am very proud of this! Proud of myself, of course, but above all of the team at Enexis. Every year with this team, we look at what can be improved. The world around Enexis is changing rapidly, affecting how Enexis organizes itself. Other unexpected matters such as Covid also require quick and unexpected adjustments. And last but definitely not least, how new generations learn requires that we continue to move into the future with this.

Together with our recruiters, involved (former) trainees, a management assistant, colleagues from different departments, HR colleagues, and external parties, we managed to respond to this to achieve an optimal Traineeship.

Receiving these titles is excellent recognition for all of us!

One of the things that we noticed was how you utilized social media to announce your participation and win – what was your motivation behind sharing in this way?

Mainly because we are proud of the results achieved. Social media is also a powerful way to make yourself known as a company with new potential trainees and other colleagues. We see it as an important trainee recruitment tool. Enexis is a terrific company with many possibilities. We are happy to tell everyone this. Participating in ‘Best Traineeship ‘ provides an excellent platform for this.

Did you get feedback or reactions from (potential) trainees regarding your posts?

Yes, we have received a considerable amount of positive feedback.

One of the exciting things we found was the number of people just commenting positively and congratulating Enexis on the win. Comments like how well deserved it was, and our proud they were of our program made us proud.

When trainees apply to our program, some have mentioned that they saw the Best Traineeship Awards recognized us.

What would you consider to be the significant benefit of the awards for anyone considering taking part in the benchmark survey and annual competition?

I believe there are three essential reasons.

1. It gives an excellent insight into how other companies and their traineeships are organized.

2. The benchmark survey among the (former) trainees provides a good overview of how they experience the traineeship. The specialists from the jury also provide feedback. This together provides valuable input for any desired adjustments.

3. Almost every medium to large company has a Traineeship. Enexis recommends participating in the competition, it will bring your distinctive company to the attention of new potential trainees.

What was the added value or positive impact of having the Best Traineeship recognition for Enexis? Can you give examples?

Almost all newly started trainees stated that they had seen that Enexis had been voted the best traineeship this year.

It has ensured a wide range of applications. This year we again had many trainees applying to our program, even in this difficult labor market

It has also given us insights into where we can improve our Traineeships and what is especially good about it. This helps us to identify the areas we should invest in, but also the areas that are good as they are or are potentially being over-invested in. Clarity in strengths and weaknesses give direction for investment and improvement.

What are the key learning points from the awards that you’ve taken away from the benchmark survey and jury feedback? What initiatives were implemented internally after receiving the report? Can you give examples?

I find this difficult to answer because a few months later, I changed employers. But I do have an example from the year before. At that time, we got the tip from @Best Traineeship to put the trainees more behind the wheel themselves concerning the content of our training components.

Enexis decided to make portfolios of various Traineeship components. Two trainees are responsible for each portfolio—for example, a portfolio of energy facilities training. Previously, the program arranged this for the trainees.

Now the trainees can see for themselves in the market who they want to talk to about this, which training courses are appropriate, etc. Most portfolios have a budget that they can deploy independently after a good plan.

In this way, they have more influence on the content and impact on the actual learning.

What words of wisdom do you have for future applicants to the annual competition?

Enter the conversation! Network and talk as much as possible with involved parties. Ask for feedback! Each time, this has given me new valuable insights to set up the best possible program for both your company and the trainees.

We want to thank Mart Koeslag, and the Enexis Group for their honesty and openness in answering all our questions and allowing us to interview them for this blog. (We’re looking forward to seeing what they bring to this year’s competition!)

You can join the 2022 Best Traineeship awards and showcase your incredible traineeship programs against the best. Click here.

The post Meet the Winners: Enexis Group appeared first on Best Traineeship.

Best Traineeship 2020 Winners and Final Round of Competition

Kieran — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 19:57:58 +0000

On Friday the 12th of March, the exciting final of Best Traineeship 2020 took place. This year four finalists were nominated to participate in the Best Traineeship online final and competed against each other through a Elevator Pitch video.

Jury members Kieran Canisius, Marco Koot and guest jury member Claudette Rensen (Traineeship Program Manager of last year’s winner KPN) were given the challenging task of determining the winner of this year’s Best Traineeship. For the first time in the history of Best Traineeship, both Best Traineeship and Best Traineeship Program Manager were won by the same organisation.

THE BEST TRAINEESHIP COMPETITION

The first round of the competition (the benchmark report based on trainee surveys) is followed by an interview with the jury. Those interviews combined with the available data result in five Best Practice Winners who qualify for the final. One of the teams, NN Group, even picked up two Best Practice Awards!

Winner Best Practice Award Balanced Projects: DisGover
Winner Best Practice Award Learning & Development: NN Group
Winner Best Practice Award Performance Improvement: Facilicom
Winner Best Practice Award Personal Branding: NN Group
Winner Best Practice Award Return on Investment: Enexis Groep

Transparency is key

Under new management, Best Traineeship has seen a few changes since last year. The website and logo received a makeover and Clarine Deijnen and Kieran Canisius optimised the way the Trainee Survey was conducted to create a more in-depth benchmark report. The nomination process for the Best Traineeship Program Manager Award was also amended. Best Traineeship’s mission is to inspire organizations and individuals to grow and blossom by benchmarking influential and impactful traineeships. The ultimate goal is to drive traineeship excellence, helping organisations to realise impactful traineeships that offer young professionals the tools they need to reach their full potential. This can be achieved by providing valuable resources and actionable feedback to all Trainees, Trainee Program Managers and organisations, whether they participate in the competition or not. Therefore transparency is essential.

Adaptability

Before starting the final round and showing the teams’ video pitches, Kieran and Clarine shared some interesting insights from this year’s benchmark report. Program Managers had been wondering if their organisations and traineeships were adaptable enough to deal with changing circumstances, for example. A topical subject, but from the surveys it was very clear that none of the trainees thought that was an issue. All organisations scored high on adaptability. And that’s exactly what the Traineeship Survey and resulting benchmark report are for: to provide insights, data and direction that help organisations improve their traineeships and focus on areas that are important to their trainees.

Video pitches

In their creative video pitches, each team showed what made their traineeship stand out and how it had helped them grow, both on a professional and a personal level. After each pitch there was room for other teams to ask questions about the traineeship. And after watching all four pitches, each team was asked to pick their favourite one. Those votes were also taken into account in selecting the ultimate winner. While the jury took some time to deliberate, attendees were invited to join a fun ‘Laughter Break’ workshop with Bente Adriaens from GetTheLaughFlow Events.

Best Traineeship Program Manager 2020

Energised and with a drink ready to celebrate, everyone was eager to find out who won this year’s competition. The Best Traineeship Program Manager 2020 was announced first. It’s great to see the impact Program Managers have on their trainees’ development and experiences. This year the jury took the votes and comments from the trainee survey into account while selecting the winner of Best Traineeship Program Manager 2020. The winner was nominated by an impressive 83% of trainees and the jury agreed with the feedback they provided. From the jury report: “The full support from your trainees is consistent with the image we have from you. Both trainees and the jury are impressed with your work.” Congratulations to winner Mart Koeslag of Enexis Groep, Best Traineeship Program Manager 2020!

Winner Best Traineeship 2020

It was time to reveal the overall winner of Best Traineeship 2020. Although all candidates were strong, the jury voted unanimously for Enexis Groep as this year’s winner of Best Traineeship 2020: “The video pitch was very creative, authentic and gave insight into how the trainees experienced their traineeships. It’s a consistent, clear and complete story about how the traineeship is structured. There is always room for improvement but the Program Manager is aware and open about that. Trainees know why they do what they do and how it benefits them. Additionally, it’s clear how the organisation benefits from the trainees, as well.” Program Manager Mart Koeslag was flabbergasted. “We’re very happy! It’s a cliche but I really mean it: thanks to all trainees involved. It felt like being in a pressure cooker at times, to get a pitch ready in these challenging times, but the trainees were so passionate and I am proud we were able to pull it off. They did a fantastic job. Thank you jury and thank you trainees.”

Insights into impactful traineeships

As a social enterprise, Best Traineeship will continue to help organisations recognise and harness unique talents, and encourage young professionals to not only grow, but to thrive. Therefore we invite trainees to participate in our Trainee Survey. We would also like to invite Traineeship Program Managers to join our quarterly meetings. Four times a year we meet up with Traineeship Program Managers to inspire and support each other. Next meeting, on the 22th of April, the focus will be on the benchmark report and the insights gathered from it. This meeting is open to all Traineeship Program Managers in the Netherlands. We’re looking forward to helping more trainees and organisations learn, discover and grow this year!

Interested in joining us?

Interested in joining the Traineeship Program Managers meeting and/or the Best Traineeship competition?

The post Best Traineeship 2020 Winners and Final Round of Competition appeared first on Best Traineeship.

Trainees and alumni, we need your help to impact the future of traineeships.

Kieran — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 22:15:52 +0000

Are you currently participating in a traineeship program? Or finished in the last 3 years? We need your support by completing the Traineeship Evaluation Survey to change the future of traineeships worldwide.

At Best Traineeship, we envision a world where traineeship programs provide impactful, life-changing opportunities for young professionals to learn, develop and succeed in their chosen careers.

But to get there, we quite simply can’t do it without you. By taking part and completing our annual survey, you can help to shape the future of traineeship programs and their outcomes.

Want to join the annual survey?

Get involved today!

What is Best Traineeship?

We help organizations around the world evaluate and improve their traineeship programs through our annual Best Traineeship competition. The competition allows competing businesses to gain extensive insights, research, and knowledge into their own traineeships and discover how they can grow, develop, and improve.

How does it work?

Companies enter their traineeship programs and compete over 5 months to win prestigious awards and the coveted title of Best Traineeship.

But it goes beyond a shiny trophy and title; it’s a learning experience like no other.

With your help, each year, hundreds of current trainees join our annual survey. Your insights into your traineeship experiences create 10 unique benchmark standards, which we use to assess the quality and impact of traineeships, but most importantly, allow us to empower program managers to question, learn, discover, and grow their programs and outcomes.

Read more about our annual competition here.

How you can get involved?

Get your voice heard by taking part in our annual survey.

Click Here to start the survey

Nobody knows a traineeship better than a trainee. Companies may think they’ve got a great program with ample opportunities, but how impactful is it really? That’s where you come in.

Our survey is designed to learn from you. Your answers and insights help us to spot emerging trends and make in-depth performance analysis and continuous improvement recommendations for organizations.

By taking part in our survey, you can make a real difference to the standard of traineeship programs, and that’s an exciting prospect.

Why should I get involved?

If your traineeship has impacted your life, take this opportunity to help organizations create and enhance their programs for the next generation.

Here’s a few more reasons –just in case you’re not already convinced:

It’s completely free
It only takes 20-30 minutes to complete
Hundreds of organizations hear your feedback

Your input to the Traineeship Evaluation Survey gives us the knowledge to empower organizations to improve, enhance, and enrich their traineeship programs.

Without your insights, organizations simply can’t grow and develop.

Click here to start the survey

Who are we?

We’re a team of dedicated learning and development experts who believe in bringing businesses and people together to create opportunities to learn, improve, and evolve for both economic and social value.

We’re incredibly proud to run Best Traineeship as a social enterprise. We know that traineeships are the key to unlocking boundless and fruitful futures. That’s why we work tirelessly to develop traineeship programs alongside you, the trainees.

Together we can help organizations create impactful opportunities for young professionals to not only grow but thrive.

The post Trainees and alumni, we need your help to impact the future of traineeships. appeared first on Best Traineeship.

Raising the bar on traineeships with new transparent benchmark standards

Kieran — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 07:46:40 +0000

Ahead of the Best Traineeship 2020 competition, we’re delighted to announce new transparent benchmark standards designed to accelerate insights into what it takes to create an outstanding and impactful traineeship program.

The annual Best Traineeship competition and yearly benchmark report continue to gather momentum, captivating businesses across diverse industry sectors who want to impact and inspire their traineeship programs’ growth and success. Does your organization and traineeship program have what it takes to compete this year?

What is The Best Traineeship annual competition?

Does your company have an award winning traineeship?

Every year we work with outstanding organizations and individuals to assess and develop their traineeship programs. Companies can enter their programs and compete over 3 rounds to win prestigious awards and the coveted title of Best Traineeship

The competition allows competing organizations to gain extensive insights, research, and knowledge into their own traineeships and discover how they can grow, develop, and improve.

Discover more about the annual competition here.

WHY SHARE BENCHMARK STANDARDS?

Giving complete transparency and insight into the benchmark standards is another way we’re driving traineeship excellence, which, as a business, is our vision and purpose. Revealing our benchmark standards is an exciting prospect that we believe will enhance organizations’ opportunities to create impactful traineeships.

HOW ARE THE STANDARDS FORMED?

Trainees themselves help form the 10 benchmark standards. Through our annual trainee survey, their input and participation allow us to create insightful performance analysis, competitive comparison, and continuous improvement recommendations for organizations.

The 2020 benchmark standards

Our benchmark standards comprise of 10 unique categories. Today, we’re proud to share the first 5, which also form the best in practice categories and discussion topics for round 2 of the annual competition.

During the semi-final, organizations are assessed on their program’s ability to perform against these 5 categories. Then winners are selected for Best Practice awards and The Best Traineeship Manager award. Best Practice Winners then go on to compete for the overall Best Traineeship award. Read more about the competition and the rounds here.

Personal Branding

The program drives trainees to understand and clearly communicate their authentic personal brands, which are recognized by a valuable & extensive network within the company. A personal brand is defined as the unique combination of values, skills, and experiences that make a trainee who they are. It is how they present themselves to the company.

Balanced Projects

The program ensures that the trainee is exposed to varied projects and job functions to provide a wealth of experience in a relatively short period. The projects have clear expectations and timelines that support a rotation between multiple hierarchical layers and departments.

Learning and Development

The program has a well-thought-through learning & development methodology that is firmly embedded within the entire organization. It focuses on empowering trainees and equipping them to drive the company’s business performance in a shorter time period than non-trainee hires. The program includes individual learning needs analysis and an L&D plan adapted as the trainee develops and takes on new projects; this includes standard company driven and individual topics.

Performance Improvement

The extent to which the traineeship program is driven by the measurable performance of individual trainees, their participation in projects, as well as involved mentors and managers. Performance measurement and related feedback are welcomed by trainees to adjust behavior and skills swiftly which in turn embeds continuous improvement and learning from mistakes.

Return on Investment

The extent to which the trainee, the program, and the projects have received a measurable value for the individual trainee and the company in general regarding the investment of resources, i.e., financial, time, network, or reputation.

We believe our benchmark standards are beneficial to all organizations, no matter the sector or size, empowering program managers to question, learn, discover, and grow their programs and impact.

The traineeship standards will never remain stagnant

That’s part of our responsibility and commitment to organizations, program managers, and trainees.

They evolve as the world and the expectations of trainees and organizations grow. We are always striving for better opportunities, outcomes, and excellence. That’s what makes them so crucial to the development of impactful traineeships.

So, how does your traineeship program stand up to our best practice standards? Do you think you have a program that ignites organizational success and creates opportunities for young professionals to thrive?

We invite all organizations that want to meet, network, gain insights, and keep improving their traineeships to register!

During our Traineeship Manager event, a new element to our annual competition, the chance for many diverse companies to come together to discuss, align, and evolve these standards, is one of the most beneficial aspects of the whole annual competition.

The conversation will begin this year at our virtual traineeship program manager event on the 12th of November. Are you ready to join the discussion?

Transparency in traineeship standards

Transparency in the world of traineeship standards gives organizations and program managers an opportunity for growth and improvement. We hope our new standards will:

Increase the visibility and focus of traineeship standards
Inspire organizations to improve and develop their programs
Challenges organizations to enhance their program value and outcomes
Provides accurate, measurable comparatives for organizations

Get ready to innovate your traineeships, and make an impact on the futures of tomorrow’s leaders.

Let’s blaze the trail together.

Apply now to participate

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