On the latest Major Convos episode, Sharon Wernowski, Early Careers Advisor at Airbus, breaks down what it takes to recruit, mentor and retain apprentices and graduates in the aviation industry.
Sharon has recently made the jump to the private sector, and she’s spent five months embedded at Airbus reimagining how the business supports its apprentices and graduates from recruitment through to graduation.
She talks candidly about the compliance load that comes with defence contracts, why she thinks Group Training Organisations still have the best pastoral care model in the sector, and the conversation that turned one stalled apprentice into an apprentice of the year.
It’s a useful listen for anyone in an early careers’ role, or anyone trying to work out whether one exists at their own organisation yet.
Show notes with timestamps
04:08 What Airbus actually does in Australia. No aircraft manufacturing here, but major defence contracts covering mechanical, structures, and avionics apprentices, with around 31 apprentices across New South Wales and South Australia and a graduate engineering pathway in Queensland.
06:52 Age isn’t a barrier and mature age apprentices are welcome, but roles tied to defence bases require Australian citizenship for security clearance.
09:33 The scale of demand. A single graduate position at the Richmond base drew over 350 applicants.
11:00 Standing out from the pack. Sharon wants a cover letter that doesn’t use AI, written in the applicant’s own voice.
13:06 Closing a skills gap. Pre-vocational courses as a practical way to show genuine intent, plus Sharon’s interview trick of asking candidates to bring something that means something to them.
17:37 Airbus is trialling a full year of classroom-based training before apprentices touch the product, and Sharon likens the regulatory load to an electrical apprenticeship, among the most heavily regulated trades going around.
18:32 Sharon’s ideal early careers model, built on what she credits to Group Training Organisations. Strong pastoral care, a genuine speak up culture, and mental health first aid training for supervisors and mentors.
20:17 A turnaround story. A third-year apprentice who hadn’t submitted a single exemplar in twelve months, and the accountability conversation that got him back on track. He went on to become his organisation’s Apprentice of the Year.
39:17 Watching incentives change across her career, from an $850 tool card early on to $10,000 for new energy trades today, and why every early career team needs someone tracking government announcements closely.
46:51 Sharon’s advice for anyone wanting to work in early careers. Be authentic, keep learning, and treat every day like a job interview because nothing is permanent.
Sharon’s main takeaway from the podcast is that showing genuine care
You can listen to the full episode through Spotify.
