70 DEBATE
Five years ago, we created the Hive Business School. Very simply, we’ve connected all of the secondary schools and the college here in Blackburn with businesses.
Manufacturing is an exciting environment, but it’s one that most students haven’t seen and we’re working very hard to get them into the workplace. Covid has made that impossible but in January we’re using digital technology so that every Wednesday, for half an hour, schools in Blackburn can log in and watch one of our businesses present itself. In a virtual sense they will get a feel of the shop floor.
I’m sure we all remember our careers advice at school and if it was anything like mine, it was next to useless. We’ve got to improve on that, so young people are making the right career choices at the age of 14.
Businesses that have brilliant cultures and are investing in young people don’t really struggle with recruitment.
Businesses need to be less corporate and more human and the pandemic, although really challenging for lots of reasons, allowed business leaders to show their true personality.
When we’re asking young people to go into work for eight hours a day, 40 hours a week, employers need to think about what that actually looks like.
Businesses need to ensure that they are good places to work and attract staff. They need to think about their terms and conditions and their culture
IL: Farleys’ model has always been to grow our own, it runs through everything we’ve ever done. I started here as an 18-year-old doing faxing and photocopying and I’ve been a partner for 20-odd years now and a managing partner.
We take on a lot of trainees every year and we want to give them credible pathways to success. We create an environment for them to flourish.
Recruitment starts with retention and what I mean by that is deliver on what you say. So, we do engage with our young people, we do give them a career path, we do give them progression.
We’re able to show it and as you do that, they will talk to people, so they become your sales and recruitment force and you retain them.
How can businesses work to engage better with young potential employees?
HA: Young people are seeing recruitment as a two-way partnership. The days are gone where the employer had the leverage in terms of, ‘I’m paying you, you’ve got a stable job, you’ve got a pension, it’s a job for life.’
All of those things are still important but are not the most important anymore. Young people want a place where they feel supported, they feel valued, they feel listened to.
Show people that they make a difference at work, so you’re actually having an impact on others
NC: The more exposure young people have to the world of work and the more exposure they have to the wonderful businesses in the region the better, and that greater understanding of what careers there are out there.
There’s a lot of good work going on to do that right now. We’ve got more than 3,000 students accessing work placements every year. But it’s not just the young people, it’s the parents and school teachers as well, so it’s really important that everybody is joined up.
In a competitive job market, what retention strategies are working? DG: Culture, commitment and listening to people.
IL: It’s a culture of engagement with your staff and showing them that there is a genuine career progression.
JD: Introducing people to new responsibilities and make them feel part of the team.
MLJ: Employee engagement, making your employees feel like part of the family, really giving them the opportunity to contribute to day-to-day problem solving, so they feel that they’ve got a role in the business.
IB: Making people feel valued in an exciting environment. NC: Developing and upskilling people.
HA: Culture is really important as is being a genuine leader, with a great sense of purpose.
FD: Show people that they make a difference at work, so you’re actually having an impact on others. My biggest asset is my staff, and all employers would argue that is the case. It is about people seeing their value on display. It is around empowering your staff.
Taken on an employee after 1st October 2021 but before 31st January 2022?
If so, you could be eligible for a £3,000 incentive payment when your new starter signs up to an Apprenticeship training programme with Blackburn College.
Email
Claire.Shore@
blackburn.ac.uk or phone 01254 292500 for more information.
www.blackburn.ac.uk
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