Work Experience: What’s in it for employers?

1. Work Experience: What’s in it for employers? October 2011 Joe Shamash & Kate Shoesmith

2. Outline • Introduction • Work Inspiration • Research Approach • Key Business Impact Areas • Recommendations • Questions?

3. Introduction • City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development • Improving skills policy and practice through an evidence based approach • Business in the Community (BITC) • Business led charity • Over 850 member companies • Improving business performance through sustainable practice

4. BITC’s Work Inspiration campaign • Making the first experience of the workplace a meaningful one • Launched in 2009 • More than 500 companiesnow signed up • Promoting good practice amongst BITC members • Building the business case for high quality work experience programmes

5. Research approach • International literature review • Work Inspiration Evaluation • Survey of 192 employers engaged in Work Inspiration • Case studies of eight employers from different sectors, geographic areas, and of different sizes • Emphasis on employer perspectives • In research • In communicating findings • Evidence presented together under four themes

6. Key Impact Areas for Businesses • Recruitment; • Employee development and engagement; • Business development and community collaboration; • Brand, values and market intelligence.

7. Employer views on the business benefits of work experience Adapted from CBI (2010) Ready To Grow: Business Priorities for Education and Skills. Education and Skills Survey 2010

8. 1. Recruitment • ‘As a company we are trying to enthuse students into careers in engineering.’ • ‘Many years ago we were approached by a 15 year old who had been told to find herself a work experience place in the graphics field as her careers teacher had never heard of graphics. From there we recognised that we could put back into the community whilst identifying early talented youngsters who might be possible employees or even clients.’ • ‘Given the diversity of the work inspiration participants and their feedback, we believe a wider cross section of young people will now consider BT and the communications/IT sector as a career choice. This increased from 1 in 10 pre-event to 7 in 10 post-event.’ • ‘We are starting to see more students from disadvantaged backgrounds seriously consider a career in the legal profession. The downside is the funding for university is likely to make this now less likely as they are petrified of debt.’

9. 2. Employee development and engagement • It gives our newer staff the chance to manage people and workloads and set priorities and plans for others. • Our employees like working with new people, some getting a chance to manage people when normally that isn't part of their role. It's definitely a personal development opportunity but it's also a break from the norm and (in most cases) a stress reliever. • ‘by increasing work experience we're working towards the development of staff who require a greater set of skills for line management etc. Also, it is good for workforce planning, knowing where the interest of the future talent is [and] how to develop them’

10. 3. Business Development and Community Collaboration • Return on Investment • ‘Too difficult’ to measure accurately. • ‘Please show me how’ • ‘Not what it’s about’ • ‘Too early to tell’ • New business opportunities and partnerships • ‘Access different ways of thinking’ • ‘Having strong credentials’ in sustainability and social responsibility, a competitive edge for client bids

11. 4. Brand, values and market intelligence Meeting public expectations and retaining organisational values • ‘‘to keep our family values as we grow’. Positioning within local communities • ‘Work placements allow us to engage with schools, pupils and parents supporting our brand profile and our local efforts to promote [Employer] as a family retailer.’ • ‘Raising profile of our business and business sector in the local communities’ Engaging with younger audiences • It’s a win/win/win because the young people get to see how business works, and [Employer] and our client/partner can access different ways of thinking.’

12. Recommendations for policy and research • Focus on engaging smaller employers • Demonstrate the win / win for learners and businesses • Support Education Business Partnerships • Give clear, consistent, timely information to employers • Promote more flexible work experience arrangements • Build on links between work experience and apprenticeships • Track the long term outcomes of programmes

13. Recommendations for employers • Secure senior management buy in. • Agree the programme in advance with school partners. • Ask young people for their input when developing programmes. • Plan placements in detail, from inductions to end of placement reviews. • Give students the opportunity to provide their perspectives on business processes and products. • Link work experience to other recruitment and development programmes. • Sustain links with students after programmes, to support measurement of programme outcomes, and to lead to future recruitment opportunities. • Consider ‘whole project’, cross departmental work experience placements. • Identify opportunities to collaborate with other firms.

14. Any questions? Email: joe.shamash@skillsdevelopment.org Web: http://www.skillsdevelopment.org Twitter: @skillsdev