The APL programme, or Accreditation of Prior Learning, enables any individual, regardless of age or education level, to have their prior work experience recognised in the form of a Professional Certification. The approach initiated nation-wide in 2002 intends to bolster and foster access to training and education. The prerequisite for enrolment is a minimum three-year prior work experience in a field related to the relevant diploma. The prior professional activity may have been continuous, part time or full time and under any job contract status (permanent, fixed-term, temp).

At La Redoute, over half of the current staff have grown in the company, with promotions to new types of occupations. Most have some 20 years of seniority. Hence the importance of the APL process that was launched in 2010 in response to recent developments in the company that has been adapting to cultural and technological changes. It is also intended to foster the engagement of La Redoute staff members. A further key element is to help employees become full-fledged actors of their own development by acknowledging the value of their skills with a recognised diploma or certification, thereby enhancing their employability by joining a momentum of progress and openness.

In the wake of this successful first APL class, a second wave of trainees is underway, with 161 employees enrolled as of late April. Among them, 80% have initial education at high-school Baccalauréat level or less, 75% have AOE (operator) status, 16% are supervisors, 9% managers, and 92 will soon graduate. The success rate is particularly high, with 100% for secondary education (Baccalauréat) and 2-year higher education diplomas, 80% for Level V vocational certificates and 20% for bachelor’s degrees.

The 80 in-house sponsors engaged in tutoring the trainees are one of the key success factors of the project, as explained by Corinne R., APL candidate and proud holder of a vocational high-school diploma in Secretariat: “After attending an information meeting at La Redoute, I decided to enrol in the APL programme to get a vocational Baccalauréat diploma in Secretariat. Without my in-house sponsor, I would have had a hard time making it to the end of the course. At one point, I thought I would give up, that I would never make it! But I kept going, because I felt committed to my family, my sponsor and the company. My sponsor gave me a boost whenever I needed it, and helped me put things in perspective. Everybody was there to help me, and today I want to keep going and prepare for an assistant manager BTS-level Certificate”. On the sponsors’ side, the experience has proved just as positive: “I really appreciate my role as a sponsor: tutoring is very self-fulfilling and enriching, with exchanges and discoveries of different jobs and tasks”, says Karima D., HR Manager and APL sponsor. “The sponsored trainees have such complete trust in us! They share every step of their projects with us, so we have a chance to experience and enjoy their progress with them. We also learn to challenge ourselves. You can’t just proclaim yourself a ‘sponsor’ one day, you become one over the course of time and exchanges”.