My Recommendations so far

As the plan takes shape

Based on feedback, as well as some useful insights from members of this forum, and my own thoughts on these, here are my recommendations so far:

Student Alumni-Networking

·        Students Internships and mentoring schemes could be combined, to make a formal two-way process, in which the Alumnus/adult mentors and coaches the student; and the student in turn helps the Alumnus by solving a long term issue for their business or within their profession (this can be a module/dissertation of the student’s final year of study).

·        Each school of study could have its own specific network, to connect the students with the Alumni of that profession: while still having a main network, for all students and Alumni of that university/college. This would allow students and Alumni to share detailed information on a subject, in specialised groups, but safely in confidence, and under the supervision of the University/college’s administrators.

·        Innovations developed between students and Alumni could be uploaded to special databases (see below) for trial by start-up businesses.

Assessment of Non-Graduates

The key stages to assess 16-24 year olds not in full time education would be:

·         Recommendation by an Appropriate Adult. A process could be set up, to allow any parent, guardian, teacher, employer, or official, to make a Formal Recommendation on the young person’s behalf, for him/her to be assessed and qualified for a skill.

·         School leavers; 16 year olds and above who are going straight into full time work.

·         Job seekers. As well as the normal courses offered to those seeking employment, a comprehensive assessment could be carried out on non-graduates, to give them the chance to qualify for key grades.

·         Long term unemployed. Statistics show that non-graduates between 16-24 have been hit hardest by the Recession, so full assessment should also be offered to anyone who has been actively looking for employment for more than a year.

·         Registered disabled. Any non-graduates who are prevented from working full time due, to a handicap or disability, should be offered full assessment of their skills, to allow them to adjust fairly, and give them opportunities to find the work they want.

·         Incarcerated or long term detained. All 16-24 year old non-graduates in care, detained, or incarcerated, could be fully assessed as part of their rehabilitation/treatment.

Business Start-Ups for Adults

·        A full Toolkit should be offered, for any adults aged 25+ who want to start a business.
·         In additions to the existing resources and schemes now offered, a comprehensive, all-in-one database could be developed.
·        Innovations from the universities and colleges could be included; and newly assessed non-graduates could be registered on the database as a matter of course.
·        This would allow new entrepreneurs to find not only the people they want to work with (both graduate and non-graduate); but also potential new products and services not yet produced; as inspiration for them.
·        Existing databases like Priority Jobs could be modified to accommodate this.
·         Social media networks such as Linkedin could also be approached, to build this as a new kind of network.
·        The Government could establish a national database, to include student-Alumni innovations, recently assessed and registered non-graduates; and all adults looking to start a business. This would ensure a good model for growth, and opportunities for all.

These are my recommendations for creating opportunities. I hope that you may consider implementing some of these measures, and I welcome your thoughts on them.

James M

Founder

Putting it Together: How Assessment, Student-Alumni Networks and Business Start-Ups Can Help Each Other

Here is one way that assessment of non-graduates; student-Alumni networking; and business start-ups could all help each other, by being put together into one comprehensive database, and by other means as well:

“Jane Doe has worked for technology companies in a senior role for over 30 years, and has always wanted to start a business of her own. Her chance comes, when a restructuring at her organisation leaves her redundant. Rather than approach her contacts for employment, she decides it is time to start a business herself.

A few phone calls and emails later, Jane has a list of potential partners and associates from old contacts and friends. They in turn have contacted people they know, and build up a sizeable team. Jane knows that her business will be a technology based provider to the corporate clients she knows. She has already mapped out strategies and scenarios for moving forward. But first, she needs a product to sell.

Sumera is an electrical engineering student at a nearby university. In the course of her studies, she has worked to develop the component parts for a new kind of robotic air control system, that is fully self-sufficient. The university tutors are impressed, and have patented her design. She has received many commendations and even a few awards. But although the university’s partner organisations have shown interest in its manufacture; many have insisted on a pilot project on a smaller scale, before it is put into production.

Jodie is a school leaver and trainee nurse. The oldest of her brothers and sisters, she chose to go straight into work to support her family. Her mother could not afford to send her to university, but she has managed to find night school courses in nursing, and medical science.

To pay for these, and help her family, she has taken a day job at a nearby fast food restaurant. Originally, this was to pay the bills. But her organisational skills, and learning potential have caught her manager’s attention. Following his Formal Recommendation, an Assessor comes to analyse her work, and duly awards Jodie a [fictional grade] Level 2 Certificate in Culinary Arts.

With this new qualification, Jodie decides that a change in career might be in order, and after finishing her medical course, applies for full time work in the city’s restaurants. She approaches the colleges for possible bursaries and sponsorships to support an apprenticeship.  Their response is lukewarm: while the colleges are keen to offer her support, she will need to demonstrate more experience.  Jodie accepts their conclusion, and registers online, in search of temporary contracts.

Meanwhile, Jane is searching for products and services for her business. A [fictional] database, called Initiate, allows her to search for employees, newly qualified candidates, and recently uploaded products and services - developed by agreement, with the universities and colleges. She comes across Sumera’s design for the robot technology, and decides on this as the product of choice.

Through the admins of the university’s student-Alumni network, Jane contacts Sumera, and is given access to the design, and implementation agreements. With her teams assembled, and the legal and financial plans in place, Jane Doe Technologies [fictional company] is born. Direct communication between the technical consultants, and the student-Alumni network, makes the technicians’ and engineers’ work very effective.  Jane’s technicians and engineers begin construction of the robots, while she and others, contact the corporate clients to market to.

A few months later and Jane’s business is growing. The uniqueness of Sumera’s design, and Jane’s years of marketing experience, have combined to grow her client base considerably. Jane has moved her business from her house to new premises, and will now need to upgrade several of her volunteers, to being paid staff. No onsite catering has yet been arranged, so Jane looks on the database for contractors. And one of the candidates on her list is a freelance catering contractor, by the name of Jodie.

Not long afterwards, an official launch is held at the new premises. This is Jodie’s first time catering on site to a business, and it has been a nerve wracking operation behind the scenes. A last minute change has meant that the Team Leader did not turn up, and Jodie has had to step in to replace him.  But her years of organising experience at home pay off, and she rises to the challenge. Under her guidance, the catering team have prepared, a full buffet on time, for the assembled guests.

At the launch are a great many guests, including Sumera, who has come to unveil the official display case of her robot designs. Representatives from other technology companies have already approached her, to work on new designs for them. Jane’s new colleagues toast Sumera and Jane for their efforts. And little do the guests know, but Jodie’s work that day will get her noticed by some full time catering contractors, who will secure her full time training for the roll as Assistant Chef at a big chain of restaurants.

All in all, opportunity has paid off for everyone.”

That is how it could work.

DISCLAIMER: THE ABOVE SCENARIO IS A HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE, ADAPTED FROM EXISTING NETWORKS, QUALIFICATIONS, AND ORGANISATIONS, TO DEMONSTRATE POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENTS; AND SHOULD BE REGARDED AS SUCH. NO MISREPRESENTATION OF EXISTING INDIVIDUALS, PROFESSIONS, ORGANISATIONS, NETWORKS, UNIVERSITIES, COLLEGES, BUSINESSES, OR INSTITUTIONS IS INTENDED, NOR SHOULD IT BE INFERRED.

Warwick's Student-Alumni Service

Here's a good example of the closer links that we could develop between students and Alumni, courtesy of Claudia C. at the University of Warwick:

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/Warwick-Alumni-5133737.S.5871931131049320448?qid=b22c81bb-e681-4572-8de7-70a18e5917b5&trk=groups_most_recent-0-b-ttl&goback=%2Egmr_5133737

I am still convinced that specific Linkedin networks should exist for each school of study: ie engineering students and Alumni; medical students and Alumni etc. This would allow students and Alumni to share confidential information about their profession, under clear guidance from the University, whose careers officers could be the administrators of each Linkedin group.

What do you think? Discussion on Linkedin goup if you're interested.

We Need More Enterprise

As this recent articles from the Washington Post shows us, business start ups in America seem to be on the decline:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/05/05/u-s-businesses-are-being-destroyed-faster-than-theyre-being-created/

Granted that this may not be the whole story; and in fairness to the Americans on this forum, I will say that the situation is the same here in Britain, and most of continental Europe.

But what this article illustrates is a simple truth: that opportunities are being lost. More enterprise is needed for jobs; new ideas are needed for enterprise; and more student-Alumni networking/non-graduate assessment is needed, for new ideas.

Every chance that is lost to create a new product or service is potentially costing someone a job. Of course, the need for enterprise doesn't mean we should be reckless. It is not an excuse to waste efforts on sub standard projects; nor to play games with large sums of money. The results of those catastrophes are all too evident from the Recession. No, the need for enterprise is the need for innovation. People with original ideas must keep creating, and becoming successful entrepreneurs. Our economies need this now more than ever.

That is why we can take action now, to change this: and push hard on all fronts to develop new opportunities for everyone.  It matters, and we can do it.

Mentoring-Internships: A New Kind of Scheme

Based on a very original suggestion by an Alumnus to the 'Let's Build Bridges' project, there is a special kind of scheme that I would like to put for your consideration. 

It is true that long standing arrangements already exist between most universities and colleges, and the larger organisations. But there is something new that could be tried with the small to medium enterprises. 

As per existing mentoring schemes, careers officers could arrange with students to work with specific mentors, selected from the small to medium enterprises, in their chosen field of study. The Alumnus (or selected adult), could mentor and coach the student. Most contact could be as and when the student and Alumnus agree, and by email. 

However, the crucial difference with this scheme, would be that the student must help the Alumnus in return, by researching and solving a long term problem in their business or profession for them. This could be a formal module/assignment, integrated into the student’s final year of study. 

To maximise the effect, the internship could be made a formal module of the student's final year of study, and the students and Alumni could all compare notes and experiences on the university or college's student-Alumni network. This would guarantee good knowledge transfer on all levels, and to all partner organisations. 

In effect, we would be rolling student mentoring and internships into one: so that the mentoring schemes become the formal two-way process that they aspire to be, between students and Alumni. The knowledge transfer to small to medium enterprises, hit hardest by the Recession, could be profound. The students’ knowledge and research could prove integral to helping their long term recovery: and the University would be accredited. 

I think this could be done. It really could make a lot of difference to students’ careers, and to Alumni’s businesses. What are your thoughts on this?