ApprentiScope Brings Workflow Automation to Apprenticeship Programs
Burlington, VT (April 2, 2019)
Apprenticeships are a critical part of hiring and training for vocational industries across the country, but the management of apprenticeship programs is severely outdated, cumbersome, inefficient, and redundant – until now. ApprentiScope today announced a solution designed to streamline the entire apprenticeship management process with benefits that include reducing onboarding time from an average of two weeks to merely minutes. By automating and centralizing required state forms, spreadsheets, timesheets, journal entries, and pre-populating certain data throughout the paperwork, formal apprenticeship programs are easier to access and manage for both apprentice and employer.
Apprenticeships, not to be confused with internships, are on-the-job learning programs and are regulated by state and federal departments of labor. These programs are critical to the scalability of the vocational industry and are a key component in attracting and training their workforce. However, apprenticeships require a labor-intensive amount of paperwork to complete for both employers and apprentices when it comes to onboarding as well as regular time tracking, leaving a wide margin for error, redundancy, and inefficiency.
“We recognized how severely underserved the apprenticeship workforce was among traditional vocational industries and, at the same time, how critical these programs are to companies and individuals looking to learn skills and earn a wage outside of traditional higher education institutions,” says William Lippolis, Co-Founder and CEO of ApprentiScope. “It didn’t take long to realize the immediate and tangible benefits that could result from simply streamlining and automating key aspects of apprenticeship programs.”
In 2018, there were 585,000 active apprentices in the U.S., an increase of 56 percent over the last five years. Vermont had 1,783 apprentices in 2018, and the state is actively working to
recruit and retain not just high tech companies and talent, but manufacturing-based companies and employees as well. Green Mountain Power and Vermont Mechanical are two companies that have benefited from having their apprenticeship workflow
management catapulted into the digital age.
“Great products that remove friction and frustration are everything to a business,” says David Bradbury, President of the Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies (VCET). “And for only $20 per user/month, ApprentiScope is a fantastic return for any HR director or apprentice program manager seeking to save time, add value and benefit to its employees.”
Formed while at the University of Vermont (UVM), founders William Lippolis and Shawn Kotch worked in collaboration with Dr. Gerry Ghazi, President of the Institute of American Apprenticeships at Vermont HiTec (IAA) and expert consultant for the US Department of Labor, to ensure and validate ApprentiScope’s functionality and reliability. ApprentiScope is a VCET portfolio company and member which allows the founders to leverage everything they need to operate and scale their business: workspace, access to capital if needed, and business advisors.
“We are enormously proud of this latest student venture, proof-positive of the power and opportunity Vermont’s ‘Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem’ is providing UVM students,” says David Rosowsky, UVM Provost and Senior Vice President. “William and Shawn are the latest students to launch their company from UVM. We look forward to following their progress and success.”
About ApprentiScope
As a business-facing SaaS company, ApprentiScope helps companies manage and scale On
the Job Learning (OJL) programs with modern, intuitive and powerful tools. In collaboration with the Institute for American Apprenticeships, expert consultants at the US Department of Labor, and the Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies (VCET), we’ve built a software platform that centralizes, automates, and modernizes the vocational training process, and has been recognized both locally and nationally. Visit www.apprentiscope.com and follow
@ApprentiScope for more information.
About VCET
Advancing innovation and entrepreneurship, the non-profit Vermont Center for Emerging
Technologies (VCET) provides expert business mentoring, technology professional networking, three coworking and accelerator facilities in Middlebury and Burlington, innovation programs, and early stage venture capital. VCET manages the Vermont Seed Capital Fund, LP, a revolving $5 million venture capital investment fund. VCET was named #11 globally in 2013 by the UBI Index and in 2018 received an IMPACT Award from InBIA. Visit www.vcet.co, follow @VCET and listen to #StartHere podcast.
