The Herne Group meets Nuclear Sector skill demands with our Skills Bootcamp

Case Study with Mike Preston, Director of Training & Compliance at The Herne Group

In response to the escalating demands for project controls in the nuclear sector, driven by increasingly complex projects, The Herne Group strategically expanded their team. Although the newly recruited talent showcased exceptional skills, the need for upskilling through industry-recognised training to align with the evolving industry to satisfy clients demands, was identified.

Although The Herne Group possess mentoring capabilities internally, the absence of accredited training capacity prompted them to partner with 20/20 Project Management Training. This collaboration aimed to deliver tailored courses, addressing the specific needs of both the industry and the company, particularly emphasising the undertaking of ECITB and APM qualifications for their employee’s development.

Initially, The Herne Group intended to implement the training gradually against a predefined plan, but then the Skills Bootcamp in Applied Project Controls emerged as a solution, which would address the training requirements and allow them to meet industry demands and their training objectives more efficiently.

The Skills Bootcamps in Applied Project Controls allowed their employees to achieve three ECITB qualifications with practical application and provide the learners with an opportunity to 'put into practice' what they had learnt. This was all sandwiched between a competency assessment at the start and end of the course to measure the effectiveness of the Skills Bootcamp for The Herne Group. All of this was provided with the DfE supporting a significant percentage of the course cost.

The Impact of 20/20's Skills Bootcamps

When asked about the impact of the Skills Bootcamp in Applied Project Controls, Mike Preston, Director of Training & Compliance at The Herne Group, commented, ''post-training, we’ve observed a marked improvement in our team’s ability to identify and mitigate risks and they are working together using technical language about planning, commercial and general project management. Some of our staff have been able to accelerate their customer-facing work because of the qualifications they obtained and the increase in workload has been managed with minimal fuss. The company culture and general teamwork amongst the new entrants in our company has also improved. The Skills Bootcamp learners were a team of 4, who experienced the journey together which was great for team development and camaraderie.''

The Herne Group’s Experience with 20/20

In reflecting on their experience with 20/20, Mike Preston shared, ''our experience with 20/20's Skills Bootcamp in Applied Project Controls was positive compared to previous training experiences with other providers. The training content was not only comprehensive but also tailored to current industry standards and best practices, allowing our team to apply their learning to our current projects.

20/20 employed a blended approach to learning which worked well and was appreciated by the learners. This flexibility allowed us to maximise the training benefits without disrupting our normal business operations. Most valuable was the chance to apply hands-on learning and group exercises at the end which cemented the learning even further.

20/20 are leaders in project management training and The Herne Group has a standing relationship with them as a trusted provider, knowing first-hand how they have successfully trained a considerable number of students in our industry. Their approach to learning, which combines theoretical underpinnings with practical, real-world applications, aligns with our needs and their experienced facilitators with industry experience is extremely valuable to us. Furthermore, their accreditation and partnership with renowned project management institutions (APM/ECITB) assure us of quality and relevance to industry standards.''

Interested in developing your team with 70-90% of the cost funded for you? Contact us to explore our Skills Bootcamp opportunities.