It is bringing together Fire & Security integrators and installers, manufacturers, and training providers. Organizations that might otherwise be competing but are now working together to mitigate one of the biggest barriers to industry growth: a lack of skilled engineers.

The program has been several years in the making, but its arrival is timely. Due to the pandemic, technical specialists in fields such as aviation, automotive, and aerospace have either been laid off or are feeling far less certain about their long-term futures.

Zitko Talent provides them with a reliable bridge into Fire & Security: paid employment on a realistic salary from day one; industry training and a recognized qualification; front-line work experience with an employer who’s investing to keep them on, long-term.

Northland Controls Europe took on its first two trainees in October 2021. One came from broadband field engineering, the other from the British armed forces, via the casino and electrical industries. Terry Browne, Northland's Managing Director, shares their experience:

“Zitko Talent’s attracting intense interest and there were some excellent candidates to choose from. Our trainees are flying. They’ve brought useful transferrable skills, valuable fresh perspectives and an enthusiasm that reminds us what a great industry we’re in.”

“The program itself integrates technical education with manufacturer-provided product certification. Trainees receive basic training in at least six of the systems their employer uses, so we’re getting people equipped specifically to work at Northland Controls.”

The program itself is taking shape nicely with LenelS2 recently joining as a strategic partner. As a company that shares our commitment to industry-wide development, they are developing a range of CPD courses which will be freely available to all Talent trainees.

Their involvement also builds the company’s superb, certified training into the fabric of the program for LenelS2 users like us. And it’s a huge vote of confidence in the concept overall.

With our fellow partners, we’re contributing resources, ideas, and feedback to propel the program’s development, from training content to ensuring the considerable administrative side is a well-oiled machine.

Jeff Sheridan, Project Engineering Manager, says, “Talent’s ‘train & deploy’ model already works well in other industries. I’m confident it will provide us with a significant number of engineers who’ll be a credit to the company and help us continue our worldwide growth.”

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To find out more about Zitko Talent, visit www.zitko.co.uk/divisions/talent

To find out more about jobs with Northland Controls, visit https://www.zitko.co.uk/clients/northland

Zitko™ is a fire and security recruiter based in Cambridge, England providing a range of talent solutions for an international client base.