🛠️ DIY ROI Calculator Instructions

This calculator helps estimate the financial and social return on investment (ROI) of hiring and training an apprentice over a 4-year period. It draws on the modelling assumptions from The ROI in Supporting Australian Apprenticeships Sept 2025.

✅ Step 1: Enter Your Inputs

A. Employer Costs

• Apprentice Annual Salary – based on award rates or enterprise agreements.
• Accredited Training Cost – includes off-the-job training fees.
• Supervision % – time spent by qualified staff supervising the apprentice. This is percentage-based and decreases over time (e.g. 30% → 10%).
  

  📌 Note: Supervision costs are calculated using the salary of a qualified worker or supervisor.

• Equipment & PPE – annual cost of tools and safety gear.
• Allowances / Overtime – optional, if applicable.
• Other Costs – use this to bundle any additional expenses not listed above (e.g. travel, admin, onboarding).

🔒 Note: Superannuation is automatically calculated at the current rate of 12% of wages.

B. Employer Benefits (Income)

• Apprentice Productivity % – reflects the apprentice’s contribution to the business. This is percentage-based and typically follows award pay and training progression:
  • Year 1: 25%
  • Year 2: 50%
  • Year 3: 75%
  • Year 4: 90%
• Employer Charge Out Rate – the value of apprentice output based on productivity and standard charge-out rates which comprises: 2x Total Employer Costs for 75-80% of the apprentice’s availability to the employer.  This takes into account leave and off-the-job training.
• Government Subsidies – wage support or hiring incentives.
• Training Cost Subsidies – offsetting formal training expenses.

C. Employee (Apprentice) Benefit

• Includes salary, superannuation, and any wage support received.

D. Community Cost & Benefit

• Costs: Government subsidies and support.
• Benefits: Reduced welfare reliance and increased tax revenue (estimated at 25% of wages).

📊 Step 2: Review the Charts

The calculator includes dynamic charts that update automatically as you enter data:

• Chart 1: Shows employer cost vs benefit and ROI over the 4-year apprenticeship.
• Chart 2: Shows the same data on a quarterly basis, allowing for more accurate plotting of the ROI turnaround point (when benefits begin to exceed costs) and the ROI payback point (when full investment recovery is achieved).
• Chart 3: Displays the 4-year totals for each section- Employer, Employee, and Community.

📌 Notes & Assumptions

• The calculator assumes a 4-year apprenticeship model.
• Productivity and supervision are percentage-based and reflect the apprentice’s skill development over time.