To Grow Work-Based Learning, Think Like a Salesperson
June 9, 2025 | Written by Andy Ferrera (Kinetic West) and Dr. Chantelle George (Chantelle George Consulting)
The modern job market presents a persistent challenge for aspiring professionals: how do you gain the crucial work experience required for entry-level positions without first securing a job? Work-based learning (WBL)—activities undertaken in real workplaces where youth and adults acquire the knowledge, skills, and practical experience vital for career entry or advancement—offers a powerful solution. Bold initiatives are gaining traction throughout the country in New York, Maryland, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Texas, Colorado, Washington, and Hawai’i (just to name a few). This nationwide embrace stems from clear, mutual benefits: students secure relevant skills and reduce debt, while employers cultivate a pipeline of talent tailored to their evolving workforce demands.
The Limiting Factor: Employer Participation
Yet, despite its undeniable value and growing momentum, the transformative potential of work-based learning remains largely untapped for the very populations who stand to gain most. Historically, access to valuable work-based learning and paid internships has been skewed towards individuals who are already highly educated and well-connected. While work-based learning promises to build social capital and provide in-demand skills training for underserved groups, this can only happen if employer involvement dramatically increases.
Current methods of employer recruitment that rely on personal networks, cold outreach, or hoping employers will self-select into programs simply won't scale to meet the demand. The math is straightforward: if a program wants to serve 1,000 students annually through internships, and each employer hosts an average of 10 interns, that program needs 100 participating employers. Most programs, however, struggle to consistently secure even 20 to 30 employer partners.
A New Approach to a Current Challenge
This challenge of employer participation isn't unique to any single program or region. It's the common thread we see everywhere, which is why we're excited to launch this multi-part blog series focused on adapting proven sales and business strategies to grow employer participation in work-based learning programs. Our goal is to share practical advice that organizations can adapt and scale.
Three Critical Challenges
Through our work with organizations across the country, we've identified three distinct challenges that limit employer participation in work-based learning:
Challenge 1: The majority of employers are unfamiliar with work-based learning. Despite growing attention, work-based learning remains unfamiliar terminology in most business circles. Employers understand "internships" but broader concepts like work-based learning, earn-and-learn models, or general “industry partnerships” often draw blank stares.
Challenge 2: The majority of employers don't know how work-based learning works. Even employers familiar with the concept often lack clarity about how a work-based learning program would fit into their organization. How long is the program? What training will students already have? How much time will I need to supervise? How will this program meet my organization’s talent needs? This uncertainty breeds hesitation, particularly among smaller employers who may lack dedicated HR resources.
Challenge 3: The majority of employers don't know how to participate. Interested employers frequently get lost in the process. Unclear expectations about costs, legal requirements, and organizational roles create friction that can derail an employer from signing up.
Applying the Purchase Funnel to Work-Based Learning
To tackle these challenges systematically, we can borrow from a proven framework in the sales toolkit: the purchase funnel. This model breaks the customer journey into three stages (awareness, consideration, and purchase) that align perfectly with our employer engagement challenges.
Awareness: Getting on Their Radar
Challenge: Employers are unfamiliar with work-based learning
Solutions:
Meet employers where they already are, not where we wish they were. This means showing up at chamber of commerce events, writing for business publications, presenting at industry association meetings, and participating in workforce development forums.
Leverage trusted messengers: Ask your current employer partners to help recruit new businesses. When local economic development organizations or established business leaders talk about their experience with work-based learning other employers listen.
Use language that resonates: "talent pipeline development," "skills-based hiring," or "intern programs" often land better than "work-based learning."
Consideration: Building Confidence
Challenge: Employers don't know how work-based learning works
Solutions:
Address risk aversion head-on. Employers considering work-based learning partnerships are often weighing potential benefits against perceived risks: Will students be productive? Will supervision burden existing staff?
Anticipate the potential push back employers could receive from skeptical colleagues. To mitigate, provide case studies, return-on-investment data, and testimonials from current employer partners. If you’re just getting started with work-based learning, use examples from other parts of the country. The Partnership to Advance Youth Apprenticeship (PAYA) Resource Library has several examples to use.
Offer pilot programs or smaller commitments that allow employers to test the waters. Make it easy for them to say yes by reducing both real and perceived barriers.
Provide a menu of program options from low-touch opportunities like career fairs and job shadows to high-touch opportunities like paid internships and apprenticeship programs.
Purchase: Making Participation Simple
Challenge: Employers don't know how to participate
Solutions:
Eliminate friction in the sign-up process. Create clear, concise materials that outline costs, responsibilities, timelines, and expectations. Develop standardized agreements that protect both parties while remaining accessible to employers without legal departments.
Make clear the support model employers will receive through participation. This includes training supervisors, checking in regularly with both employers and students, and handling administrative details that could otherwise overwhelm busy employers.
A Systematic Approach to Scale
The purchase funnel approach acknowledges that employer recruitment isn't a single conversation but rather a process that moves companies from unaware to actively participating. By addressing each stage systematically, work-based learning focused organizations can build sustainable pipelines of employer partners rather than constantly scrambling to fill slots.
This framework also allows you to measure and optimize your recruitment efforts. For instance, if employers are getting stuck at the awareness stage, you know to focus on improving your visibility and messaging. If you're losing them during the consideration phase, it's time to invest in risk mitigation strategies and compelling case studies. And if you're having trouble converting interest into actual participation, you can streamline your partnership agreement and onboarding process.
Crucially, this systematic approach scales effectively. While personal networks and individual relationships will always be important, the purchase funnel provides a repeatable framework for reaching a broader range of employers, enabling your program to grow significantly.
This is the first post in a multi-part series exploring strategies for scaling work-based learning through improved employer partnerships. Are you interested in advancing your employer recruitment strategies? Please complete this short interest form to stay up to date on the latest posts.
About Chantelle George Consulting: Chantelle George Consulting (CGC) is a premier consulting firm dedicated to community engagement and social impact. We focus on identifying systemic barriers, providing actionable solutions, and empowering our clients to promote equitable opportunities for all students, regardless of their background. With a deep understanding of underserved communities, our team of consultants helps bridge gaps in communities by developing inclusive environments, fostering collaboration, and empowering leaders.