A level Playing Field

Imagine that you are an employer, intervening candidates for a job. There are 4 candidates, going for the 1 position available. The first candidate is an apprentice, with 3 years training and experience in the industry in question. The second candidate is a graduate, with 3 years of study, but no experience in the industry. The third is a non-graduate, who has the voluntary experience needed, but lacks an important certificate qualification for the job. And the fourth candidate is an adult, with many years of experience, and some of the qualifications needed. Which of these people would you be tempted to give the job to?

This is the situation that recruiters are facing now, and hence, why we need to take steps to make sure that all candidates have a level playing field. Adults need opportunities too, but they do have one important advantage: their years of experience, and experience counts for a lot. So young people especially, need the combination of skills, experience and grades, to have a good career. Apprentices are the perfect example of this. But the other young people need to be considered as well, and offered the same kind of experience or grades. Students, for example, need internships, to be able to demonstrate experience in the industry.

Student Internships

All students need working experience as interns if they are to have a chance against their apprentice counterparts. Of course the challenges to this are many. And from the employers’ point of view, they already have apprentices and interns in place. More interns would cost money if paid, and if they were unpaid, could undermine the work of paid full time employees. I concede that from the full timers’ point of view, they do not want to be undercut by interns who could do their jobs for free.

So an agreement needs to be reached, as to who has an internship where and when. Recruiters, University Careers Officers, businesses and employees’ unions, could coordinate their efforts, to agree on how many interns would be allowed.

A rota system, in effect, could be created, using agreed time slots, and locations, so that at any one time, each team of a business has one intern or apprentice assisting them. It should be made clear to these interns that they are there to follow their colleagues’ instructions, and to learn from them; and that they have a finite time to do so. After a few weeks, the next interns could be brought in, and so on.

Employers’ objections to this would be many. The costs, training, and liability would discourage businesses from taking on any more than a few students at a time, to be interns. My response to the employers about this is: there is one major advantage that you will gain, by employing multiple students as interns – albeit within a set time frame, and with clear, agreed limits. That advantage is: individual knowledge transfer.

Each student is unique. He or she brings a unique life experience, and hence a different skillset and a different set of ideas to the table. I’m sure all university staff would agree, that no 2 students – or interns – are alike. And because they are not yet working in the industry they study, these students are able to think outside the box: and will be able to bring new innovations to each business. In return for the mentoring and training given to student interns, I submit that you, the business owners, can recoup your investment, by asking that the students research and solve any long term problems that your businesses face. They are used to having to look into issues in depth, and may come up with the solution you are looking for.

The other challenge of course, is a logistical one. With thousands of students per campus, even with good planning, there may be a finite number of places available for them. With this in mind, care would need to be taken, to restrict the number of students allowed to apply: a set number from each college within their University, at any one time.

Non-Graduates’ Qualifications

At the other end of the scale are the young non-graduates. Contrary to the tabloid press’ negative stereotypes, most of the non-graduates I have known, are 16-24 year olds, who have gone into work and are trying to work their up, to get a decent career.

The challenge they face, is getting key qualifications, to progress to the good positions. For example, an HR position usually requires a CIPD certificate, for an applicant to get the job. It is hard to get jobs in HR without this. But of course, without a CIPD certificate, it is then hard to get into HR roles in the first place, to build up the necessary experience. And the same goes for all other professions.

So the place to start with non-graduates, is with what they know already. A non-graduate in a basic role may not have full managerial skills, but it is likely that he or she may have built up supervisory, or basic managerial experience, from voluntary or extra work, while in the current job. And so the non-graduate’s line manager may recommend him/her for a basic assessment and qualification for managerial skills.

Once the non-graduate has a certificate in this field, this is a major step forward. I can tell you from experience, even a basic level qualification can make a big difference. With a certificate qualification in management already, it will be a lot easier for the non-graduate to prove competency, and to use this to apply for apprenticeship, training courses, or college, in that field. In other words, qualified assessment of a non-graduate’s existing skills, will put him or her in the best possible position, to build a good career.

Conclusion

In an increasingly competitive, and increasingly global, job market, apprenticeships have set a brilliant example for us all to follow. The combination of skills, experience and qualifications, is exactly what candidates – young people especially – need to get a job. But this has raised the bar for employers’ expectations, and so we need to make sure that all young people (and adults) are given the same opportunity. Students need internships; non-graduates need qualifications. Adults need empowerment. By doing this, we can ensure that the next time any of these people apply for a job, they will have both the grades and the experience, to put them in the best position for a good career.

Let's Make a Business

The Case for Making Let’s Build Bridges into a Full Time Operation

I would like to put an idea forward to you all, that could make a big difference. A few years ago, I founded Let’s Build Bridges as an open forum, for one purpose: to make sure that everyone has a job and a career, and to look at the ways of doing this. I personally believed that the need for jobs and careers was a fundamental part of our society. People can’t go without them. You need a job for income to survive. And you need a good career to be valued as a human being. While there are many other causes that certainly deserve attention, I believe that the need for opportunity is something that is often overlooked.

And from the attention these pages have been getting, (from viewers in this country and many others), as well as insightful ideas people have put to me, I think there is a clear case for making this Forum into some kind of charity, or social enterprise, so that we can help get people stable jobs and good careers. At the moment, I am looking for people who may have ideas, or for volunteers, who believe in any of the causes I will talk about below. You’re welcome to read the proposal I have put forward, and to give me feedback on how it you think it could be done.

Objectives

While the ultimate aim of Let's Build Bridges is to create jobs and career opportunities, the specific objectives for this are:

• To ensure that all students in full time education are given the opportunity for work experience, as a fully integral part of their studies. 
• To ensure that student-Alumni networks at all colleges and universities, are operating at their optimum capability.
• To ensure that all 16-24 year olds who are not in full time education or training, are offered qualified assessment, to allow them to gain certificate qualifications that reflect their skills and abilities.
• To provide all non-graduates with a career path, according to their skills and abilities.
• To empower and assist entrepreneurs, to create jobs, by developing and providing them with a comprehensive Toolkit for business start-ups.
• To ensure that adults's skills and experience are valued, through participation in business start ups, mentoring, and other activities.

What This Will Involve

To achieve these objectives, and considering the 3 areas (or pillars) or the operation that will be discussed below; the function of Let’s Build Bridges as a charity/social enterprise, would be to:

•  Engage with universities and colleges to ensure student internships form an integral part of very course of study; and that the students are mentored in return, by the people who take them on.
• Work with careers officers and Employability Teams, to devise strategies and long terms plans for achieving this.
• Work with Youth Engagement Teams, and organisations such as the QCF, to integrate qualified assessment into the support that young people not in education or training, will receive.
• Work with small, medium and big businesses, to place student interns, enhance knowledge transfer, and promote qualified assessment for any non-graduate employees.
• Work with entrepreneurs, to develop start-up toolkits, find investment and support for new businesses, to create jobs.

Each of these tasks would fulfill the purpose for the 3 basic areas, of Let's Build Bridges. I’d like us to look at each of them in turn, as I think they could form the 3 pillars of a full time operation.

Let's Build Bridges divides the need for opportunity into 3 main areas. My case for each of them is as follows:

Knowledge Transfer as a Charitable Cause

Knowledge transfer ensures free flow of information and ideas, leading to health industries and growth. If the students of an industry co-ordinate information sharing with the Alumni (or graduates) in that industry, then this helps both sides. But it can also be very helpful to both students’ and graduates’ careers. I would like to focus on 2 ways to make this happen: student internships, and student-Alumni networking in general.

As students are no doubt aware, a degree in itself, is no longer enough to get you a good job. Employers want experience and so graduates need to demonstrate their work experience, through internships, to compete with their apprentice counterparts. Student internships are also a very good form of knowledge transfer, as each generation of students bring new ideas and innovations that businesses need. And the mentoring and coaching they can receive in return, puts them in a good position to apply for work there when they graduate. But as I have found, there is not yet a consistent approach to this.

While there are well established schemes and government sponsored programmes for the apprentices, the schemes for student internships vary. Even at my own University, some courses include work experience as an integral part of the students’ learning experience: others do not. But while learning different subjects may have meant different ways of studying in the past, there is now one option that must be made available to all students; and an important reason why.

Students are now paying customers. Universities are now businesses. And a fundamental rule of business, is that customers who pay the same fee, should get the same level of service. At the moment, every student at a University in the UK, must pay around £9,000 a year tuition fee, not including other expenses. Since all students are paying the same (high) fee, then they should all get the same level of service. It should not matter whether a student studies History, Medicine, or Sport. He or she should have the same integral work experience, offered as part of his/her degree.

Apprentices already have this, of course, from their training on the job, which has been hugely successful in all industries. And so the same principles could be applied to student interns.

Skills and Qualifications as a Charitable Cause

Apprenticeships have, been a great success, by qualifying young candidates from all walks of life, for their chosen industries. And in the past, degrees in higher education, at both colleges and universities, have always been a big help to their student’s career prospects. But as one person pointed out to me, there is a downside to this: what about the young people who did not get these opportunities?

For these non-graduates especially, there is one way we can even the playing field. The same system of qualified assessment that is used for apprentices, could also be used to help non-graduates. After all, you don’t need to teach someone what they already know. If a person has a skill for which he or she does not yet have a grade, then that person should be assessed and qualified, so that his/her skills are reflected by his/her grades. 

The classic Catch-22 situation, (as a senior manager of mine herself once told me), is where someone with the talent, but not the grades is trying to get on the career ladder, but can’t land a decent job without the right certificate qualifications, to get him or her through the door. But of course, you need to get in first to earn the grades in the industry, and so it can be a frustrating process for young hopefuls: particularly non-graduates, who are often denied the entry level job they need to prove themselves. Yet, if they were graded according to their actual skills and abilities, then I believe this would open a lot of doors for them.

16-24 year olds who are not in education or training could still be assessed and qualified, according to the skills they have; and given certificate qualifications to reflect their talent. There is a strong case for this as a charitable cause, by helping the disadvantaged with their careers. 16-24 year old NEETs are a particularly vulnerable group. Without the job prospects or good careers, they risk drifting into crime or long term unemployment: hence why many councils have Youth Engagement Teams to help these young people.

I say that part of the help they receive could come in the form of qualified assessment, where young NEETs who have skills, could be given the certificate qualifications they need, to apply for decent jobs. This could help the employed and unemployed alike, because as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s researchers have found, there are young people in low paid jobs who are financially just as disadvantaged, as some who are unemployed. Qualified assessment of all skills they possess, could hold the answer.

But the challenge to this - and hence the case for a charitable cause – is that, for non-graduates trying to work their way to good careers, businesses will only develop employees for their current line of work. For example, someone who works in customer service may not be able to qualify for a certificate in managerial skills: even though he or she has them. Some employees may have their managers’ support to train for new skills, but some may not.

Let's make sure that all these young people (and adults) get their chance, by ensuring that their grades reflect their skills. The non-graduates I have worked with – both young and adult - were not given a higher education, and have had to go straight into work from a young age. They are salt of the earth, hard working, and I submit that many o these people are actually working to the same level as their qualified counterparts. I submit that qualified assessment will give them a fighting chance.  

Job Creation as A Charitable Cause

Skills, qualifications and knowledge transfer are all very well, but there is one fundamental need that is still missing: people need jobs. Job creation is a very important part of how our society functions. Without jobs and job security, unemployment can lead to crime, and social inactivity. And there is another reason for job creation, besides guaranteeing a steady income.

Having a job gives you a sense of self-respect, and a sense of achievement. It is important for people’s emotional well-being and self-esteem. We are all happier when we feel that we are part of something, and are doing something that matters. But as entrepreneurs like Luke Johnson, have reminded us, “[J]obs are not a natural phenomena, invented for the general benefit of society. Jobs are a by-product of someone’s urge to build a business and create wealth for themselves.” So we need to be proactively creating new jobs in any way possible.

There are several ways to do this. Government investment and infrastructure are always very good to create several thousand new jobs, on a strategic (usually regional level). This is fine, but despite the fact that the UK economy is growing, there are still gaps to fill. If the empty shops and closed businesses, throughout every city in the UK aren’t proof enough, then there is another sign of continuing job losses; my redundancy and others. I have been made redundant from my previous role, as are quite a few others from organisations all over the UK. Despite overall growth, these organisations are still hemorrhaging jobs as a result of global economic forces: and the after-effects of the recent Recession.

Whether in good times or bad, people will always need jobs, and since there are only a finite number to go around, we need to keep making more. One way to do this, is through business start-ups. According to one leaflet for the up and coming UK election: “Across the UK since 2010, more than 760,000 new businesses have been created, supporting 1.9 million jobs & 2 million new apprentices.” And as the saying goes, when you’re doing something right, keep doing it. But there is another reason why business start-ups should be used to create jobs.

An experienced professional once asked me: what about the opportunities for adults aged 55 and over? It was a good point. In fact, there are many adults of all ages, who may feel held down, or under-valued as individuals: both employed and unemployed. It occurred to me that the best way to make sure these people were valued, was to offer them business start-ups as a solution. After all, why spend your adult life working in a menial role you hate, when you have years of experience, that could be applied to something new?  So I believe that the way to value adults’ (and young entrepreneurs’) skills and experiences; is to get these competent people together, and help them to start businesses of their own.

At the present time, a manager named Marcus Claytor is very kindly designing a new kind of database, that can be used as a Toolkit, to help entrepreneurs do just that. This is our own initiative, to help local enterprise.

But essentially, the charitable purpose behind these business start-ups, is to create jobs, and to empower adults (including the over 55’s) with their opportunities. Start-ups would be the most effective way to create jobs on our own initiative. People need them, and we need to keep creating them. 

The Need For Opportunity

Having considered these 3 ways to create opportunity, it is worth considering why opportunity itself will always be an important cause. While the need for food, water and a roof over our heads are all important causes, we should not underestimate the role that opportunity plays in people's lives. I believe that a great many social ills can be traced back to the lack of opportunity.

As countless studies have proven, a lack of jobs and career prospects causes frustration, and has led to everything from bullying, to crime. Again and again it is the same old story. I myself have known a few individuals whose jealousy and bitterness has been because of a missed opportunity.

In times past, there were glass ceilings that prevented people from having opportunities. Research has shown that women, ethnic minorities, homosexual and disabled applicants did not have an equal share of opportunities in the workplace. These people were not just unlucky: they were of course, discriminated against by being held down, or denied opportunities for career development. Over the past few decades, legislation has been drafted, to break these glass ceilings, and enforce equal opportunities for all.

I believe that the challenge we face now, is that not only are there glass ceilings; but glass walls as well. Time and again, I have seen people in Catch-22 situations, who are prevented from developing a good career. Either the training isn't there, there is not a clear path to the career they want, or people's years of experience is not valued. It is time that we dealt with these issues head on.  And over the past few years, one occurrence has made it more important than ever.

We are now recovering from one of the worst recessions in our economy's history, following the economic crash of 2008. The damage this has caused to people's job prospects and careers is still being felt, even now. Tuition fees and rents are higher than ever. Food banks still exist for people who can't even afford a decent meal. Homeless people still walk our streets. In many ways, the Recession and it's effects are still with us. And to fight it, we should take a leaf out of history's book.

In the the Great Depression of the 1930's, the Recruitment and Employment's Confederation's original; the London Employment Agencies Federation; was formed, to help people back into work. And by the same logic, rather than wait for the next economic downturn now, we need to put measures in place, to prevent another Recession, by creating as many opportunities as we can, until everyone has a job and a career.

Challenges

I have identified several challenges that Let’s Build Bridges would face if it were to put these ideas into action:

1.       This forum would need funding, and to establish a good reputation, to be effective as a charity.

There are several possible solutions to funding. Community projects sometimes have ‘moneypots’ or crowdfunding for specific projects, and if we start small and build up, this might work. For example, I have started with The Guild Musical Theatre Group, as a smaller scale project, to build up student-Alumni networking for knowledge transfer and career opportunities among this group of people. I think this has real potential to work, and it does not (at this moment) require any funding from our side.

With regards to reputation, I believe that a few small ‘test projects’ like this one and others, will lead to bigger things, and establish a growing reputation of Let’s Build Bridges, as an effective group that can make opportunities happen.

2.       Let’s Build Bridges would need the participation and support of a dedicated team of people, for it to work.

Those who have come forward already have all had useful ideas, and may be able to volunteer some help, for this to get started: or they will know the people who do. As I have said before, at this stage, I am looking for a few volunteers with ideas, who believe in job creation and career opportunities as a cause, and are willing to help make it happen.

If the people from one project are invited to continue helping, then their work and contribution can help us take on more detailed projects, and form what I believe will become a long term plan for the charity. I will leave contact details below for people’s feedback on this.

3.       Student internships could clash with Apprenticeships.

Business owners may not want both Apprentices and student interns working for them. The interns’ role may undermine the Apprentices’ role, as they could be brought in to work temporarily or for free. The Apprentices in turn are full time, hence business owners could argue that there is no need for interns to volunteer their services. Also, there is the argument, that students are already receiving higher education: so why have a mini-apprenticeship as well?

The solution to these is to work out a strategy, where interns are co-ordinated with the Apprentices, in such a way, that businesses have either one or the other at certain times; or that interns be restricted to working only in certain teams or departments within an organisation. There could also be a quota agreed with a business, that there should be a set number of interns for every Apprentice and so on.

4.       Some of the identified tasks (including qualified assessment of non-graduates) would need a high level of networking, and in some cases lobbying, for them to be achieved.

One solution to this would be to apply for a charter to operate as a public agency, on behalf of government. The down side to this would be, that the Government department in question would then make the rules, and may take this Forum in different directions, to the ones intended. That is why I think that the best way Let’s Build Bridges could function, would be as self-sufficient charity, and that we should pick skilled and experienced people to do our lobbying.

Conclusion

With all these points considered, I think there is a strong case for making Let’s Build Bridges into a charity, as there is a clear need to get people jobs and careers. Equality of opportunity for all, is a principle that is enshrined into our laws: and everyone has the right to a job and a career. But the opportunities for these are often overlooked. I argue that it is just as important to regard the creation of jobs and career opportunities, as being essential for the quality of people’s lives, in much the same way as for the many other causes, for which charities are set up. 

Therefore, I’d like to hear from you, if you have ideas about any of the following: student-Alumni networking, job creation, the empowerment of adults (including the over 55’s), youth engagement and development of non-graduates, qualified assessment, student internships/mentoring; or how we could work with organisations to make these things happen. We need to think about how this could be made into a full time operation; and the best people we could find, who would be willing volunteers for this. You are more than welcome to leave comments on this page, or to contact me on the email below.

Best Regards

James M

Founder

Email: Jamesmegarry@hotmail.com

Sources

·         Luke Johnson: Start It Up, Why Running Your Own Business is Easier than You Think, 205 Penguin Books, The Penguin Group, 2011

·         ‘Robin Walker’ election leaflet, Worcestershire Conservatives, Genesis Europrint Limited, 2015