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!
Currently unemployed? Live in Birmingham? Able to get to the City Centre? Over 18 ? (no upper age limit) Have Right to Work documents in place or Government share code? Want to secure a role where your employer will invest in your training and development? Looking for a job you can grow into a career?
Why not consider applying to Growing Talent?
We are coming to Birmingham City Centre for our information and application event on 26 February 2024.
If you are interested in attending, send an email to jane@thejjc.net stating the area of Birmingham you live and the JobCentre Plus office you come under.
Alternatively, you can speak with your JobCentre/Work Coach direct.
Growing Talent is not a Government programme. You cannot be mandated to take part nor are you automatically given an opportunity.
A business funded initiative, Growing Talent brings together insightful employers, JobCentre Plus, West Midland Combined Authority, community partners and you – currently unemployed talent.
Deadline to register your interest to participate is 21 February 2024.
Our collaboration with @JobCentrePlus and @WMCA in #Birmingham is growing!
@BaxterStorey and @Portico have confirmed attending @Growing_Talent’s Employer Speed Dating event at the end of February joining @PilgrimsRiskManagementGroup and @Pertemps.
If you are an employer in Birmingham and want to recruit a unique way, why not join us?
Amongst the employers attending @Growing_Talent’s 35th Employer Speed Dating event on 31.10.23 will be Haj joining her colleagues from @Pertemps and Tia joining her colleagues from @PilgrimsRiskManagementGroup.
Both joined their employers via the Growing Talent programme, now they are involved in giving others the opportunity they had.
The following are Parry’s thoughts on his first week @BreyerGroup last week. Parry is on the left in the feature photo below.
I was intrigued to learn what the first week held for Parry….
Speaking on Bank Holiday Monday, Parry was in the middle of a declutter spree ahead of going to his local shoreline to get some head space time.
It was a bit of a shock for Parry based in Wandsworth to be at Breyer Group’s induction at Dartford – starting 8am! – He made it there at 7.30am!
The next two days Parry shadowed James a Multi-Skilled Operative with Breyer before joining Jose, another Multi Skilled Operative based in Wandsworth. Parry is enthused by the variety of tasks – electrical, carpentry, plumbing and electrics coupled with working with diverse members of Breyer’s team – every day is different.
Collaborating with referring, funded organisations to explore options for Parry to secure his own electrical toolkit is currently underway.
Who knew power tools are regarded in the same way as chef’s knives – i.e. every professional has their own set which NO ONE ELSE BORROWS!!?
Check back to see what the following weeks hold for Parry……
Parry and Liam take a well earned break from Growing Talent’s O
Parry and Liam take a well earned break from Growing Talent’s Orientation and Holistic Week. Along with Chyna, Tia, Kerry, Mariia and Norhan. Parry and Liam have been absorbing a lot of information, sharing their views/opinions and ultimately learning together to be more prepared when they go into the next stage of Growing Talent – the in-role mutual evaluation with their future employers and team.
So what have we covered so far?
Exploring what employers want including from our viewpoint if we had our own businesses!
Impact of Behaviours – ours on others and others’ on us! People never forget how we made them feel.
Communication – all components to consider – modes to use, elements to consider, understanding types off conversations, danger of assumptions, what is conflict and how to manage it, the power of I vs You statements, how to have a difficult conversation.
Digital Dementia – what is it, how to manage it and, more importantly, how to prevent it!
Basic finance – exploring different types of bank/savings account, credit rating, modes of payment and when to use them, managing debt, increasing credit ration, budgeting – key things to consider
Personal empowerment – over coming procrastination, brain hack, understanding the importance of sleep, building mind muscle, sketch class
What’s to come?
Nutrition – how to eat well on a limited income, understanding the impact of marketing on our buying choices, the hidden dangers of what we love (sugar)!
Waste & Environment – why it’s important to business and communities. Why can’t everyone recycle? – no, it isn’t just ‘laziness’!
Time to move on – tips and tricks for personal branding, elevator pitch, cv tools, networking
Finally, we round off the week with I-Act’s global proactive programme for Managing and Promoting Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing course accredited by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
After coffee, back to work!
Soon they go on site as follows:
Chyna, Tia & Kerry – join Lasse, Tam and the team at Pilgrims Risk Management
Parry – joins Breyer Group
Mariia – Joins Honeywell
Norhan – joins Jamie, Pedro and the team at Pertemps
Around forty enthused, slightly nervous, currently unemployed, talented people joined our event not too sure what was going to happen.
A level playing field as some of our employers were new and had no idea how things would work either!
Prior to the employers arriving, we had an hour networking session. It’s tough to speak with strangers. It’s easier to blend into the background. Not on Growing Talent!!!! People were supported to step out of the shadows they preferred to stay in and step into the light, talking about themselves and learning about others on the same journey as them.
As the employers arrived and got settled with Anna and Jill from JobCentre Plus – seen in the feature photo above, we moved into a seminar room to go over the finer points and sent the volume skywards as we recognised how much talent was in the room – loudly. Apologies to the internal meeting going on next door!!!!
As you can see from the action shot above everyone enthusiastically chatted to the employers from different industries learning about each other as they went around the room.
So now the employers have time to deliberate who they would like to invite to the next stage – 1-2-1 meetings on their sites.
We were lucky to have some observers drop in and say ‘hello’ including Nigel and Allen from our funders and Tevin and Jenny from Ingeus.
But what did the applicants think as Growing Talent is so far away from traditional recruitment?
“I loved it. It’s really different”
“There’s jobs here I’m interested in but never though I would be”
“Thanks for inviting me, I’m so glad I came”
Check back to see who is going on their Growing Talent journey!
A massive thanks to our awesome employers, who all said they’d seem some ‘gems’:
Lasse and Tam @PilgrimsGroup
Jamie and Sharaz @Pertemps
Anne-Marie, Will and Rikpal @BreyerGroup
Lauren, Paul and awesome team member @Honeywell
Stace, Holy, Antonio, Jonathan, Darren and Katherine @SPSUKandIreland
Toni and Dana @WSHGroup #Portico #BaxterStorey
Mark and his awesome logistics team #Honeywell for being flexible and supportive with my last minute changes!!!!!
For me, the highlight was see a number of applicants who’d walked in not knowing anyone with their heads down a little unsure and walked out laughing, heads high, talking about their experience – just fabulous!
After weeks of preparation and collaboration with #JobCentrePlus, #Ingeus, #HaveringWorks #YouthBuild, #Heretoga and #BreyerGroup our first stage selection by employers has arrived!
Today, 53 unemployed people have been invited to our London event to meet some inspiring employers with the insight to recruit a different way.
Who needs cvs, job descriptions and recruitment interview scripts? Growing Talent does things differently and the results, for many, have been life changing.
Our collaborative employers this time around are:
BreyerGroup, #Honeywell, #Pertemps, #PilgrimsRiskManagement, #SPSUKandIreland, #WSHGroup – #Portico and #BaxterStorey who will meet some hidden talent to consider for their roles this morning.
Going on our track record, some amazing stories will begin today. Check back to learn what they are!
A big thank you to #AnnaM and #JillF from @JobCentrePlus for their support over the years at our speed dating events – which start off very quietly and rise in volume as confidence grows, laughter rises and connections are made.
“I have the pleasure getting into this program and working with Jane at Growing Talent. Since the whole job market has changed after Covid, many people struggle with finding themselves or finding their confidence for looking for a job.
Growing Talent gives this confidence back to people, who are talented, keen and willing to work but maybe they are just not visible enough to employers.
Instead of going through the same old recruitment process of sending CVs, trying to stand out from thousands of resumes, catching employers’ attention in 6 seconds (which often feels like a battle), at Growing Talent your resume is your personality, your charisma, energy and you have the opportunity to show & talk about yourself the way you want the employers to know about you.
Great companies give you their time and attention in a fun event that can actually lead to your next amazing role. And the best thing is that Jane guides you through the whole process, making sure that you are prepared and perform at your best.
This is such a unique experience that could benefit more companies and candidates – l wish more organisations would operate this way! Thanks to Growing Talent, many of us had the chance to step into a pool of great opportunities.” Fru, Growing Talent participant March 2023 joining SPS Global
Wing, joining Pilgrims Group & Fru joining SPSGlobal during the Orientation and Holistic week.
Growing Talent works because of our 360 collaboration with employers, the currently unemployed, the JobCentre Plus ‘All Stars’ led by David & Anna and of course our awesome funders – a global financial services organisation.
Thank you all with special thanks to those partners taking part this time – as you can see Fru eloquently shows the difference we all make when working together.
Take a bow everyone 👏 👏 👏
Our employers taking part this time: Breyer Group, Office Concierge, ISS, Restore Harrow Green, Honeywell, Portico & SPS, our JobCentre Plus ‘All Stars’ and cheerleaders – David Steeds & Anna Matthews & of course our fabulous Growing Talent Associates: Fru, Wing, Shanika, Ola & Joseph who took the leap to do something completely different 👏 👏 👏
If you are an employer looking to fill your vacancies with some awesome talent in London or someone who has lost their mojo to secure a job they can grow into a career why not check Growing Talent out?
Monday night saw the relaunch of Growing Talent at the London HQ of our host and sponsor PwC.
With over 90 people present the pre-event networking was a hub of energetic networking. Interspersed with ‘OMG it’s been so long’ as ex-Growing Talent Associates over the years met-up for the first time since their journey began.
In addition to these awesome people, guests included members of JobCentrePlus, senior management of DWP, community organisations including SLAM, Southwark Care Leavers and Breyer Foundation as well as employers – veterans of Growing Talent and those new to the collaboration – looking to find out more.
The co-ordinator of Growing Talent kicked off proceedings explaining what Growing Talent was and when it started, why, in their view, it is as important today as when it started, the social value it has delivered and the benefits to all taking part.
We were incredibly lucky to have Ian Elliott, Chief People Officer at PwC join us to share why social mobility programmes like Growing Talent are so important to the Firm, why they support these initiatives and how important it is for businesses to engage with their local communities to gain innovative talent to grow effectively.
Following Ian, David senior manager from DWP, a long-time staunch supporter of Growing Talent, shared why they support Growing Talent when it is not a Government programme.
Following David, were the stars of the event – ex-Growing Talent Associates Charlie-Ray and Rehana – sharing their experience, where they were at the start of their journey and where they are now.
From a starting point of no confidence nor direction at the start of his journey on Growing Talent, Charlie flourished and won promotion to his current position as Senior Welcome Host with Portico leading a team of 30 direct reports!
He’s taken ownership for a lot of diverse projects nationally, including a secondment for a number of weeks to help mobilise a new regional office ensuring new staff feel they belong and have a strong sense of connection. This secondment was meant to be a one day trip!
Rehana was next to share her roller coaster journey on Growing Talent. Working with Portico for a few years as Welcome Host following completion before returning to full-time education to study to be a Counsellor – a long held passion.
But how to fund such an intensive course?
Rehana started her own craft business ‘Sealed with a Stitch’ selling crochet items within the UK and internationally – ideal for corporate gifts, unique birthday presents or to mark a special event.
Easter Bunny example of Rehana’s work during Covid!
Rehana juggles this business with her position as a Counsellor supporting vulnerable people with Headstrong.
Charlie and Rehana both shared the power of what saying ‘yes’ to someone can have.
Neither of them would have been recruited by their employers in a traditional recruitment process – but look at the awesome talent that would have been missed!
Allen, Head of Information Management Services at PwC as well as lead for Growing Talent at PwC, was last to speak and share his personal experience of supporting Growing Talent over the last nine years, from holding roundtable discussions on basic finance considerations to being a judge on our previous social enterprise challenges.
It was powerful to listen to Allen share his thoughts of meeting the Growing Talent Associates at the start of their journey and see the empowering transformation they underwent. He still sees many working in the PwC offices continuing to grow every day.
It was fantastic catching up with some of the ex-Growing Talent Associates and learning of where they are now…..
Chloe and Sophia joined Growing Talent virtually during Covid in August 2021.
Several promotions later for each of them, they are still working for PwC and ‘so happy’ – their words.
Sophia is now Team Leader and PwC Support Specialist coaching and developing many team members into other areas of PwC’s business. Sophia shared she can now make ‘grown-up’ decisions on investments and pensions.
Chloe is now an Executive Assistant organising and supporting her managers delivering projects.
In addition to clearly loving their careers, both shared how making their children proud of them was a powerful realisation.
L-R – Stephan, Miyuki from ISS, Kieron, Bernie of Swiss Post Solutions, Anna – JobCentre Plus lead who has taken countless early morning calls to sort out any issues participants were experiencing over the years, Charlie-Ray of Portico, Navin and Jamie of Swiss Post Solutions with Chloe & Sophia – PwC.
The ripple effect of the positive impact on those around the Growing Talent Associates is clear. One example, Navin shared the huge recognition his dad, Nalin, received from his employer recently (met on Growing Talent in 2019). Nalin has won so many testimonials from guests and colleagues over the years, the hotel recognised this commitment by awarding him a visit to New York taking his wife and Navin along for some shopping and sightseeing! How great is that?
Of course, I had to get in the photos too!!!!
The post event networking went on longer than anticipated with wonderful bitesize canapes and drinks. Thanks to the team at Baxter Storey especially the particularly tasty beetroot bites!
Employers were buzzing about what roles they could ring-fence to take part in the next programme and community groups were thinking of the awesome clients they could refer.
It was certainly a night to remember!
The Growing Talent story continues…….
Let’s recap the benefits so you can decide to get involved:
Potential applicants
No cvs nor job descriptions = no assumptions.
Mentored to grow into a permanent role which you can turn into a career
Empowering orientation and holistic week which includes a qualification in positive mental health before going on the employers site
Retain your benefits, have all fares paid and get paid by the employer during the mutual ‘test drive period’
Be confident the role, employer and team is right for you
Start to believe in the talent you have within you
Cost free robust pre-onboarding process aiding retention
Differentiator with competitors in commercial bids
Fish from an innovative, diverse talent pool to grow some awesome new talent
Confidence the match is right before making a permanent hire
If you are an employer with vacancies to fill in London, why not recruit a different way? Contact me for more information or see https://www.growing-talent.co.uk/employers/
What are you waiting for? Experience the power of saying yes!
A big thank you to all organisations including Pertemps, MasterFix Properties, Swiss Post Solutions, ISS@PwC and Aviva, ISS UK & Ireland, Office Concierge, Honeywell, Portico, Baxter Story, senior management from PwC, ex-Growing Talent Associates, members of DWP and JobCentre Plus, community groups including SLAM, Breyer Foundation and Southwark Care Leavers who gave up their personal time to attend.
A very special thank you to Adrienne Simpson who juggled her ‘day job’ as Allen’s Executive Assistant with organising the whole event start to finish – Ads – you are a superstar!
