[redgolum]

First of I, I respect what you are trying to do. I once tried to implement something like that at a plant I used to work at.

HR listened, and said that they would not train the competition. The current view is that having a mentor program would be a great way to train upcoming engineers, who would then leave the company and work for the competition. Or the new engineers would replace the trainers, who would then get laid off.

In short, training someone was viewed as a threat to the business, and it was much better to let the competition train them and then poach them away.

Ruthless? Yes, but I saw enough of it to know that it worked, and is the way many companies operate these days (ever wonder why an entry level job requires experience?)

So while I applaud you dedication, I suspect a lot of your apprentices are working for your competition.

[oblomov]

I do a lot of poaching myself, and am ruthless about it.

The less experienced people in my shop are not “entry level” - they have at least 2-3 years of experience and a quantitative MS or PhD. We pay them well, and so I can select the best.