Improvement Technician Apprenticeship Level 3
Course code: AP0109
Is this apprenticeship right for me?
Improvement technicians are responsible for delivery and coaching of improvement activity within an area of responsibility, often associated with Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.
They can be found across all industry sectors and functions including automotive, banking, engineering, food products, IT, property, retail, telecoms etc and typically work as a member of an operational team to resolve problems – preventing re-occurrence, engaging others in issues affecting them and to support the improvement of performance.
Typical activities include engaging team members in the identification of improvement opportunities and relevant countermeasures and controls, initiating and facilitating improvement activities through to confirmed resolution, and providing local expertise in business improvement methods and basic tools to team.
Typical job titles include business improvement co-ordinator, continuous improvement executive, process technician, operational excellence/Lean engineer, Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt and quality control analyst.
Course details
Entry Requirements:
Entry criteria will be set by individual employers.
Apprentices without Level 2 (or equivalent) in maths and/or English must ensure that they achieve this level and take the test for Level 2 prior to taking the end-point assessment.
For those with an education, health and care plan or a legacy statement the minimum maths and English requirement is Entry Level 3.
A British Sign Language qualification is an alternative to English qualifications for those for whom this is their primary language.
What will I learn?
- Understanding basic compliance requirements, including legislation, customer standards and health & safety.
- Knowing improvement team roles and how teams work during change.
- Awareness of ways to develop knowledge and skills.
- Understanding core project tools (charters, Gantt charts, RAG, reporting and communication plans).
- Understanding basic change management, influencing and coaching principles.
- Awareness of Lean and Six Sigma basics, containment actions and improvement methods.
- Knowing how to select, scope and define improvement projects.
- Understanding process mapping, waste analysis and basic performance metrics.
- Knowing data types, sampling basics, variation and measurement principles.
- Awareness of simple statistics, control charts, capability and root‑cause tools.
- Understanding simple experimentation and how to prioritise solutions.
- Awareness of how to sustain and control improved processes.
- Working safely and in line with compliance and organisational rules.
- Communicating improvement progress clearly.
- Planning and supporting improvement activities and risks.
- Engaging colleagues through change and coaching effectively.
- Using structured improvement tools with experts.
- Scoping projects and defining problems using validated data.
- Mapping and analysing processes to find improvement opportunities.
- Applying basic Lean tools (5S, waste removal, standard work, visual controls).
- Collecting and analysing simple data to identify trends and variation.
- Using root‑cause tools (5 Whys, cause & effect).
- Prioritising solutions and using benchmarking.
- Creating simple control and reaction plans to sustain improvements.
- Showing commitment to finding improvement opportunities and paying attention to detail.
- Working well with others and supporting the team.
- Acting professionally and aligning behaviour to organisational values.
- Seeking feedback, learning continuously and reflecting on performance.
- Maintaining safe working practices and challenging unsafe behaviour.
How will I be assessed?
Throughout the programme you will receive expert training from experienced business improvement practitioners.
A qualified assessor will provide an induction and regular workplace assessments
What can I do next?
Completion of the programme will enable you to gain employment in a relevant role across a broad spectrum of industries
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