Following the Growing Talent virtual information session last Friday, I’m pleased to announce 24 awesome applicants have chosen to leap into their unknown and join our next stage -‘Getting to Know Each Other” on Wednesday 12 February.
Meeting recruiting employers a different way:
🎯 Spotlight! – Employers share their insight to the world of work
🎯 Let’s Talk! – without the employers, explore why people aren’t working
🎯 London Challenge! – working in small groups to devise an idea to improve London.
🎯 Present London Challenge ideas to employers and gain their thoughts
🎯 Networking coffee! Chat with employers – no discussion of jobs allowed though!!!
So, what makes employers join Growing Talent and recruit differently?
Maybe…..
✅ They get to confidently ‘fish’ from a diverse, unique talent pool
✅ Get to know how applicants think, how they work as part of a team, what their passions are BEFORE the recruitment stage
Fantastic news just in from Filsan! She’s received the results of her SIA licence course last week – nailed it!!! (my words – Filsan is way too polite!)
Anyone in the security industry knows the waiting game and hurdles to complete before starting your journey in security. It’s tough right?
Filsan has shown amazing strength, tenacity and drive to complete @Growing_Talent and secure an opportunity from @CISSecurity.
An absolute role model on what can be achieved despite a challenging start to everyone standing in the same position Filsan started from.
What does the employer think who gave Filsan this opportunity?
“Supporting individuals into a career path they would of never thought of is one of the main reasons I love my job.
When I first met Filsan I knew she had the right attitude, determination and mindset for the security industry; CIS Security Limited was then able to provide support with her SIA licence and a job opportunity.
We look forward to seeing Filsan flourish within her career at CIS Security and the security industry!
Thank you Jane James for your continued support with Growing Talent and we look forward to our partnership growing further and many more success stories with this amazing initiative.” Gina, Talent Resourcing Manager
Times are challenging for both employers seeking new talent to fit their business and unemployed people looking for a role they can grow into a career and close their own social mobility gap.
The introduction of higher employers NI means careful consideration of who to employ and when.
For those looking to secure employment will there be less roles to apply for?
Will there still be a need to supply a cv? – difficult with gaps caused by life’s curve balls.
Will they get a response rather than a profound silence to their applications?
If they get an interview – how are they going to overcome their lack of confidence to showcase their hidden talent and potential?
For over 10 years, Growing Talent has been enabling and empowering both sides to break through those challenges.
Mark, on the current Growing Talent, shares his experience so far in the photo shown.
We ripped up the traditional recruitment ‘rule book’. No cv. No formal job interview. No assumptions.
Growing Talent puts employers and those seeking work on a level, ‘uncomfortable’ playing field.
At our in-person getting to know you event, employers have to stand and deliver a talk on their own journey to their role (no notes), give a clear insight into their company and role they are recruiting for. Whilst they go for a refreshment break, everyone else is put into small groups to devise an idea to improve London. Would you be able to do this after just 1 hour working with people you had not met before? The employers return and listen to the innovative ideas before networking together over juice and nibbles.
Each gets to know the other much more confidently than a cv or formal job interview would ever deliver. This makes the recruitment stage experience (slow dating and 1-2-1s) more fun and raises the confidence of all.
Sponsored by business (thanks Allen and Adam), there is no risk of ‘double funding’ enabling charities and community partners to collaborate with us without risk to their funding.
🎯 unemployed people into sustainable employment 🎯 workplace teams to be more cohesive 🎯 1:1 ADHD coaching to work with, rather than against, unique brains
– is the collaboration with everyone, sharing knowledge to empower each other. Whilst others learn from me, I also learn from them.
Even more breathtaking to me is receiving a comment from someone I’m in awe of. Leanne Maskell the trailblazing activist for neurodivergence and founder of ADHD Works – who trained me to be one of their certified ADHD Coaches:
“Thank you for sharing this Jane – so grateful to have people like you in the world!”
What was the post I wrote that drew this comment?
It focussed on someone I’m currently delivering 1:1 ADHD Coaching to in line with their preference of using text and voice notes.
Throughout my entire career coaching close to 1,000 people into work through commercial recruitment, unique employment programmes like the Real Apprentice and currently Growing Talent, the hundreds of workplace personnel I’ve trained in proactive mind health i-act (for positive mental health and wellbeing) training. Mental Health Training and the courageous people learning to understand and tame their neurodivergence, the following three traits have been front and centre of everything I do:
🎯 lead with kindness and empathy 🎯 meet people where they are – everyone is unique, the way they are coached should be too 🎯 empower people to grow in confidence and become independent of me
What has been front and centre of your style working with others?
CIS-Security, ISS, NG Bailey, Portico, SPS UK & Ireland, choose innovation to discover new talent for their businesses.
After a couple of inspiring weeks during which we held a getting to know each other event, London Challenge – ideas to make London better, employer spotlights – insight into recruiting businesses and managers, networking over bags of nibbles, and finally1-2-1 meetings – the results are in!
We welcome Antoinette, Filsan, Mark & Yohana to start the next stage in their Growing Talent journey – the Orientation and Holistic week! Starting Monday, we will explore workplace and life skills, effective communication, making better connections, the power of EI, understand and manage unconscious bias, even an art class!, before finishing with a qualification in the global pro active i-act (for positive mental health and wellbeing) training. Mental Health Training course aligned with ISO45003.
Check back to see how this awesome quartet gets on.
Meanwhile, over in our innovative new Talent Hub, some awesome talent who didn’t make it past the selection stage – before any judgement, some employer offers were made and declined – will collaborate and explore their journey into work, empowering themselves and learning tools to build their resilience with weekly virtual workshops starting 4.11.24 for eight weeks.
So, in 2025 – will you choose traditional or innovative to secure your new talent?
Thanks to our applicant referring organisations who also jumped into innovation to help their awesomely talented, but currently unemployed people including:
Many in the wrong job will know that Sunday night feeling of dread.
Boomtown Rats had a No 1 hit about this very subject back in ’79.
At Growing Talent – we LOVED this Monday! Our 38th Employer Speed Dating event – aka 1st mutual stage selection.
Uniquely, this followed an in-depth ‘getting to know you’ event held for the first time last week – so there was already a connection between candidates and employers. Takes the heat out of nerves a little.
Conversation flowed. As did the laughter and smiles. Who thought recruitment could be this much fun?
In small groups, Antoinette, Dejanae, Elizabeth, Filsan, Hosil, Luliia, Leena, Mark, Jibrail, Niketa, Rahime, Riaz, Sarah & Yohana met the employers again from SPSCIS Security Limited#NGBailey, ISS A/S & Portico to get to know each other a little more.
Feedback on the new format from employers and candidates was 100% positive – so it’s a keeper!
Next steps are currently being decided by the employers – so the suspense for our awesome candidates continues a little longer.
What a whirlwind the last few weeks have been mobilising the latest Growing Talent which sees the launch of a new format where applicants and employers get to know each other BEFORE the selection stage.
Let’s take a look at the numbers:
71 applicants referred by JobCentre Plus and Southwark Care Leavers requested the virtual Zoom information session.
36 talented, currently unemployed people joined the virtual presentation to learn the new format, additional resources available to them and the benefits they will get from participating.
17 registered to attend the next stage on 8 October!
Employers, get ready to meet some awesomely talented people on Tuesday!
Cocktails, for me, should be visually exciting and have discernible flavours.
Songs and films are incorrect – although potentially great titles!
Cocktails is potentially correct in the right coffee brewer’s hands! Read on.
They are just some of the awesome coffees on display at Extract Coffee London just off Bermondsey Street.
I’d been invited by @Growing_Talent’s sponsors to pitch the programme and additional resources on ADHD, @I-Act and general team empowerment training to their supply chain held yesterday at this London gem!
Arriving early, as usual, Veena gave me 1:1 insight into Extract’s beginnings, their credentials, their partners – at home and across the globe, their connections with organisations focussing on enabling those who need it to close their own social mobility gap through skills training ready for the world of employment. Which led nicely on to the science of coffee.
You may have heard of WSET – home to the Wine & Spirit Trust – whose qualifications are sought after by the hospitality industry as well as individual wine enthusiasts. Did you know there is a science to coffee too? I absolutely didn’t. I was shown the various different beans, how they are produced by farmers and used in Extract’s coffee in different ways.
Did you know the mainstream coffee shops use only one type of coffee bean?
Some coffees are great for gut health and have a lot of fibre in – who knew!
Seeing the areas used to train people in the diverse world of coffee production, learning the different careers available and the industry awards on offer showed the passionate, social inclusion core of Extract Coffee – and the public can even buy their unique coffees and teas on line! Amazing.
The pitch to the supply chain went really well with lots of questions and engagement.
After the team – including award winning Chloe – showed how coffee can be used in the composition of cocktails and mocktails. Of course, I had to try the martini! I love a fancy glass.
Check Extract Coffee out online and make a difference whilst enjoying your unique cup of morning coffee
Great to brainstorm our new information session roadshows idea for the next @ Growing_Talent with the awesome @DavidSteeds and @Maddiemum #JobCentrePlus
For employers, time is money. Spending their time wisely can gain them financial added value in the future.
For the unemployed time spent looking for a job they can grow into a career, can weigh heavy on them. The longer they are unemployed, the more invisible they can feel.
Growing Talent is coming to Birmingham City Centre in February.
What does that mean for employers and the unemployed?
Our 10 year track record of success, tells me the difference Growing Talent can make to the businesses and people of Birmingham can be mind blowing!
Let’s take a closer look at some key highlights:
Funded by private business. We are not dependent on Government, local authority, JobCentre Plus nor charity funding. Which means when those entities are under financial pressure, Growing Talent is not! In addition, we can collaborate without any organisation we are working with feel they are at risk of ‘ double funding’.
Disrupted traditional recruitment tools. How can you showcase your skills, ability and future potential to an employer when your self-esteem is through the floor because you are unemployed? That is of course if your cv/application form gets you an interview.
Equally, how much hidden talent are employers missing because they can’t see the hidden talent within? Either from a cv their sifting software has missed because key ‘buzz’ words were missing or because the person sitting in front of them was overwhelmed with imposter syndrome they could hardly speak? Therefore, we’ve banned resumes and formal interviews. Instead, we have speed dating and 1-2-1 chats.
Mentoring – How often do employers get a mentor for the journey their new recruit is with them? I don’t just mean the initial period of onboarding where a portion of any recruitment fee paid can be refunded. I mean for the months and years that employer wants to keep their mentor connection. At no cost of course.
Equally, how often does the unemployed applicant get a free mentor to guide and encourage them through the process of Growing Talent and beyond if they are selected for an opportunity by an employer? We have mentored people long after they have secured their role and developed their careers.
Unique collaboration – from day one, we have collaborated with diverse organisations giving their local communities access to opportunities they wouldn’t usually have gained in a traditional recruitment route. Resources and expertise are shared so that no one feels alone. JobCentre Plus has been a steadfast collaborator of Growing Talent since day 1.
Higher retention – our robust orientation and holistic week ensures new talent already feel empowered and have a sense of belonging with their new employer before they step on site. This gives a solid foundation for the employer/employee relationship to grow.
Confident, risk free – what’s not to like? Our unique collaboration enables both employers and new talent to know the match is right for them before formal hiring. There is no financial hardship for the new talent who retain their benefits, has their travel paid by JobCentre Plus, gains life and workplace skills as well as an accredited qualification in mind health in line with ISO45003 and is paid by the employer for the in-role mutual evaluation period of the ring-fenced permanent job on offer.
So, really, what is not to like? Applicants are over 18 (no upper age limit), have right to work documents or Government issued share code in place and are able to undertake a permanent role.
Participation is neither automatic nor mandatory, But if the match is right, what magic can be made!
Deadlines:
Employers, register your interest by 15 February.
Unemployed applicants able to travel to Birmingham City Centre – register your interest by 21 February 2024.
