The 41st Growing Talent programme has been the most interesting and challenging so far!
Some got roles and are on the Orientation and Holistic week currently, others have been going for meetings with different managers to identify the right fit.
The waiting game.
We all know how tough it is, waiting to hear results on anything – but especially whether we’ve secured that job or not is painful!
Owolabi was, until yesterday afternoon, waiting to hear and wondering if his life was about to change.
Now he knows it is.
Stable employment and a regular income enable unemployed people to start taking back control of their life, make their own choices and close their own social mobility gap.
This is even more important for those with challenging back experiences. A permanent job really does change lives.
A huge thank you to Matthew Izekor of Southwark Care Leavers who referred Owolabi to Growing Talent and supported him throughout the process.
Also a massive thank you and nod of respect to Gina and the team CIS Security Limited for joining us in doing things differently.
If you are looking to gain some amazing talent with hidden skills that will add value to your business in London – why not join us?
Next programme starts September 2025. Contact me for details.
What I love about Growing Talent‘s ‘Getting to know you’ you events for employers and applicants is the level playing field it creates and the visible change I can see and know applicants feel by the end of the four hours.
Yesterday saw Adil, Alex, Adrian, Chris, Emmanuel, Gerald, Jay, Jayesh, Karen, Matt, Mercy, Ola and Troy walk into the room a little unsure about what lay ahead.
And who can blame them?
Growing Talent is different – no cvs, no formal job interviews – instead we build connection between applicants and employers BEFORE the recruitment stage.
My goodness, how their confidence rose as the morning went on.
It was only fair to put our awesome employers under pressure with a bit of public speaking first, sharing their journey, what went right – and wrong, how they dealt with that, what they currently do and top tips to impress any employer.
After a Q&A session, I rudely evicted the employers for the room to return an hour or so later.
The applicants and I had a discussion on why they personally aren’t working, what is missing for them and what they need most. You won’t be surprised to hear lack of self-confidence was a major theme and an area Growing Talent was designed to build.
The next pressure hit was how to improve London in our London Challenge?
The ideas flowed. These were whittled down to a combination of ideas that could work. In small groups, our awesome applicants had around 45minutes to come up with a plan. What was their idea, why was it needed, who would benefit and how could it be developed.
I don’t know many managers who would be up for this sort of challenge with so little time for prep – do you?
The employers returned to watch the London challenge ideas and give some feedback. Joining them was David #NGBailey
Confidence was rising. Not surprising when speaking about something we’re passionate about. If only all humans could passionately believe in themselves – they would be unstoppable!
After networking over refreshments with the employers, the applicants were left to decide if they would return for the next stage on 14 April.
Check back to find out who does!
Thanks to everyone behind the scenes who made this happen including the magician of getting stuff done Adrienne Simpson the awesome reception and security team (with Alex Portico and Tina CIS Security Limited – graduates of Growing Talent) greeting the new applicants with huge smiles of encouragement. 👏 👏 👏
Special shout out to Mark and the team at #NGBailey who always shift the room around for me 👏 👏 👏
Thanks also to our observers Adam Bushell, Simon and Becky 👏 👏 👏
Lastly to the #JobCentrePlus teams across London who now have to process fares etc – more paperwork! Thank you David Steeds for always having a plan! 👏 👏 👏
Monday 10th March will be Alex’s first day on site with his new employer Portico
Talk about whirlwind! This week Alex has worked through the three The CPD Certification Service certified manuals with content and tasks covering:
🎯 Employer expectations 🎯 How to stand out when you are one of many – ask Alex about the NYC taxi driver! 🎯 Effective communication at all levels
There’s more…..
🎯 The world of Unconscious Bias 🎯 Training our brain to be more resilient 🎯 What is neurodiversity? how might it show-up in the workplace? How to be an ally 🎯 Conflict identification, analysis and management 🎯 When the time comes, how to move on
And that was just book 1!!! Onto Book 2
🎯 The power of personal values and mantras 🎯 Understand how the ‘reptilian brain’ can cause issues and how to tame it 🎯 Proactive mind muscle building tools
Now to the body’s fuel…
🎯 Nutrition on a budget with simple hacks – just ask Alex about the connection between sugar and cocaine! 🎯 Personal finance tips and tricks 🎯 Impact of behaviour and how to build better connections
Are you exhausted yet reading this????
Lastly we had book 3 which is Growing Talent’s journal, art space and notes section!
Each day, Alex took note of his thoughts in the morning and reflected on the day each evening.
On Tuesday, Adam Bushell, #NikkiGallant and #BeckyShell dropped by to ask Alex about his experience. A confident, engaged speaker who enthused about his experience so far and his excitement of what lies ahead.
Adam Bushell took up the challenge to join us for some art! Kicking off with our ‘fill a heart’ task.
We often live life on auto pilot. Working hard, it’s easy to forget what really matters. A few minutes drawing the things we love within our respective hearts renews our focus on what is really important to us. It’s safe to say Picasso would have been impressed by our efforts!!!
In the feature photo, you can see Alex receiving his certificate of completion of the CPD accredited part of the Orientation Week.
Growing Talent‘s 39th employer event with 11 amazing, incredibly talented, but currently unemployed applicants.
Let’s hear it for Aboidun, Alex, Bozena, James, luliia, Katie, Leon, Mulenga, Niki, Samuel, and Shantelle. 👏 👏 👏 You stepped outside your comfort zone and shone! Well done!
Also stepping outside their comfort zone to do things a little differently were our fabulous employers 👏 👏 👏:
Phil, Angela & Sophie #NGBailey Elliott and Rakesh ISS A/S Stace and Daisy SPS UK and Ireland Gemma and Josh Portico (the gold star is to mask my sponsor – not a gold star for attendance!!! 🤣 ) Shelby, Mick, Megan and Ben CIS Security Limited
Spending 20 minutes at each table to learn more about each other following the ‘getting to know you event’ on 12.2.25 and the personal profile sheets compilation – it’s been an exhausting, yet energising process for all involved.
Now the nail biting commences whilst employers are going through their shortlists to arrange 1-2-1s!
Thanks to the legends behind the scenes that make Growing Talent happen…
Growing Talent is lucky to have strong collaboration ties with employers, #JobCentrePlus, community groups and the hidden talent of the unemployed people in London.
All share the common ground of enabling unemployed people to secure a job a different way, which they can grow into a career and close their own social mobility gap – permanently.
Over the 10 years it has run, multiple people have proven this and climbed their career ladders. Compared to where they started, the difference is as strong as that between night and day.
Confirmed employers for this round – our 39th programme – include:
There is still time to join these insightful employers if you have a role in London to fill.
But, the clock is ticking! ⏰
Deadline is 9am on 6 February. DM me for more information
A huge thank you to our insightful employers, #DavidSteeds team at #JobCentrePlus, Rob Matthews (Anna) their partners in the community, Matthew Izekor of #SouthwarkCareLeavers and our unemployed applicants who collaborate together to do things differently 👏 👏 👏
In a week that saw @Growing_Talent 30th Employer Speed Dating event, it was great to hear what the applicants thought…. Thanks to the employers that took part
The picture below features Jay – manager to Shari @Masterfix – view after the first week of Growing Talent 29! Scoring the majority of 9 and 10 out of 10 for all employability areas Shari has talked every task given to her with enthusiasm and energy to learn.
From Shari’s point of view, it’s still early days. This is a completely new environment – out of her comfort zone but she’s keeping an open mind and learning, learning, learning.
What a fabulous start!Master-fix
If you are an employer looking to recruit a different way, why not consider Growing Talent and literally ‘Grow Your Own’!
Equally, if you are looking for a role and need a confidence boost, why not drop the usual recruitment tools – cv, formal job interview – willing to learn, jump out of your comfort zone like Shari – why not apply?
Last week was the 28th Orientation and Holistic element of Growing Talent! We covered a lot including:
Communication
Emotional intelligence and behavioural impact
Conflict styles and management
The power of body language
Nutrition on a budget – the perils to avoid
Wellbeing windows and non-negotiables
Basic finance tips and tricks
Workplace ettiquette
Case studies – what would you do in these real situations?
Facing fear and overcoming procrastination to move forward
Fake it until you become it
Automatic habits
Challenging thoughts
Schedule in self-care
Working from etc venues in Fenchurch Place, London Monday – Thursday last week, we enjoyed an energising breakfast, mid-morning break, full on lunch with hot and cold options, desserts and cheeses. Smoothies, vegetable shots and tea, coffee (in many different compilations) as well as water!
On Thursday Paul, Ella and Suaad’s prospective employer was able to join us for a networking lunch along with Anna and Mick from DWP. Ella, Florence and Suaad shared some of their experiences over the week and questioned Paul, Anna and Mick on how they had dealt with a range of things from Covid to conflict both at work and in their personal lives. I sat and listened with pride at how their confidence had grown over that few days. Our guests were very generous in sharing past and present experiences. Mick’s previous life in the Met Police gave a lot of insight that maybe we don’t always think about. It was a powerful reminder that everyone has a back story we usually know nothing about.
After the ‘grilling’, We had a sumptuous lunch together before departing for the week.
The feature photo above shows Ella, Suaad and Florence completing their @I-act Managing and Promoting Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing ready to use some of the tools and learning to empower their resilience in the workplace as well as support those around them where they feel safe to do so.
So what did Ella, Florence and Suaad think of they journey so far?
“I enjoyed all of the workshops and found them very informative- I didn’t necessarily have the most open mind (I generally don’t about lots of ‘work training’ things) in advance of attending but Jane’s attitude and openness made me want to attend. What I enjoyed the most (besides the food which was phenomenal) was being able to openly share my background, hopes and fears, experiences with others in such a safe and encouraging environment. So much about looking for work requires us to be constantly positive in attempts to oversell ourselves. What Jane does so well, and what I enjoyed the most, was being able to be a whole person- with room for improvement but a clear pathway to that improvement. It was such a boost to my self-esteem and made me feel that there were practical steps to moving forward that didn’t involve berating myself for not having achieved them yet.”
“I found the ‘five second rule’ very practical- I could definitely recognise that in myself and the way my brain talks me out of doing things I am worried about. I also found the discussions around confrontation and interpersonal workplace relationships (and outside) really helpful. Also the continual emphasis on maintaining good channels of communication is definitely something I am trying to keep permanently in mind until it becomes second nature.”
“Personal well-being and learning how to structure your work day to make sure your mood is optimal and you’re making the most of your day. If you take a proactive stance and not react to what life throws at you, you can be in control and change the quality of your day to day experiences.”
“Jane has been wonderful over the week. The way the programme was delivered over the week shows this is something Jane deeply cares about and enabling participants with the right information and boost of confidence/morale is just as important as securing a job. After facing unemployment you have to mentally prepare yourself before starting a job, you may feel out of the loop or in a low mood. By completing a holistic short course beforehand, it allows you to evaluate how you are doing on a scale and gives you insight to what to work on going forward.”
“The I-Act course is a great source to keep around and use as a reference, it provides a great summary of different types of mental health issues and illnesses. Once again, it is a tool you can use to see how you’re doing on scale and can be used to advocate for yourself and others. Courses such as this are needed to destigmatize the issue of mental health, a simple heartfelt conversation may change the trajectory of someone’s health and even their life.”
“I am very grateful and happy to be given this opportunity, it is a unique and lovely programme that would not be possible if curated by someone who didn’t understand how to genuinely help people (to help themselves!). It’s clear this is a labour of love and it really shows in the quality of the programme and the impact it has on me over just one week. Bravo, thank you!”
“Jane made us feel very comfortable and secure enough to share our personal stories as to what led us to Growing Talent. I also enjoyed the company of the other people on the journey with me. There was nothing that I didn’t enjoy. I looked forward to each day!”
“The whole concept of having a “Holistic Employment Programme” is such a great idea and perfect in my situation. It provides a level playing field for everyone. Thank you!”
If you are unemployed, live in London and interested in a different route to employment – check us out and or speak with your work coach at JobCentre Plus.
If you are an employer with permanent jobs in London which you are willing to train in, why not consider Growing Talent? Like Ella, Florence and Suaad you will have empowered, resilient, enthused, empathetic new talent before you formerly hire them with qualities you wouldn’t usually see in traditional recruitment – and it’s free. Get in touch to discuss.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-57349802 This features a report by KPMG on the situation UK PLC finds itself in: “thousands of job vacancies but no people to fill them” How can that be so?
In other reports from @BBC we know there are 1.7m unemployed and over 4m on furlough who may not have jobs to return to when furlough finally ends.
There seems a huge disconnect.
From the people I’ve spoken to over the past fourteen months I think there’s an elephant in the room we are not addressing. Fear.
Fear of stepping outside their door.
Fear of leaving their family.
Fear of stepping onto public transport.
Fear of walking into a new environment.
Fear of getting to learn a new role.
Fear of a new routine
Fear of not being respected by colleagues
Fear of not ‘gelling’ with the team/management
Fear of losing this new job
Fear of failing
There is an expectation employers will address this fear. Those integrating the new ISO45003 guidelines will go a long way to achieving this. Using Growing Talent to gain new talent will see them go even further in achieving the goal of sustainable new talent who have grown into the available role through the methods taught on Growing Talent to flourishing adding real value to everyone.
If you have a real job to fill, why not consider www.growing-talent.co.uk? It’s completely free and not a Government funded programme.
The global pandemic has seen businesses change the way they operate to get the results they want.
Isn’t now the time to change the way you recruit to reveal those hidden gems of talent you’ve potentially been missing?
Ever put your trust in someone who’s then let you down?
It’s a situation we can all relate to – especially at work.
A conversation with someone in this position recently reminded me of a couple experiences in my distant past. The trouble with some humans is it can sometimes take repeat experiences to learn the lesson!
Similar to the person I spoke to recently, I was in a recruitment admin role in a complete rut. I knew the role was never going to expand and neither was the micro business it was in. One of the clients headhunted me to a role in their new start-up. Looking back, I didn’t reflect on the offer to check it was real and what I wanted. I believed everything I was told after all the offer was made by a client – they wouldn’t exaggerate the truth…..would they?
Of course! The thing I’d buried at the time was they were human first and foremost.
At that point in time, I was bored, frustrated and going nowhere professionally so I accepted the offer which I quickly realised was a big mistake! I could do nothing other than try to make the best of things until something better revealed itself. After all, who can leave a job without another to go to when they have bills to pay?
Shortly after came my repeat lesson. I was approached by a headhunter I knew about an ‘exciting new opportunity’ to set up a talent hub within a business who had done a lot of research and had interested clients lined up to use the hub’s services.
Too good to be true? Yep it was. The opportunity was real but they had done no research. There were no interested clients lined up.
The difference this time was my attitude. This was a blank canvas. I could grow it how I wanted it to be. Over a number of years I grew that talent hub into a multi award winning programme which made a real difference to many people who had experienced barriers to get into work.
So why share this with you? Well a couple of reasons really:
We are all human and trust those offering us an escape – without considering it might not be the right escape.
Sometimes when you make a mistake you can turn it into the most magical thing ever just by changing the way you look at it.
If you are in a rut professionally, frustrated and feeling like you are on a burning platform, take the time to stop and think what your purpose is. Plan your own escape journey to where you want to be. Otherwise you may end up having repeat experiences which are exhausting and worthless.
