Opening the world of work to students.
The lack of young talent in our industry is not a well-kept secret, as highlighted by numerous media outlets including The Telegraph in fact it is something many talk about but very few take action on. Understanding the difficult decisions that face 16-18year olds, Colt wanted to offer something a little different as part its CSR programme. With our industry facing some serious consequences if the problem is not addressed and students typically only aware of roles and occupations they personally encounter, we at Colt launched our debut “work experience week programme”.
Often work experience brings back memories of shadowing, or having to do the tasks that no one else wants to from filing to photocopying and copying and pasting. We wanted this course to be different, we wanted to inspire and involve the candidates in the hope to ignite the flame that technology, IT or the data centre industry could be a suitable path for them.
The programme included workshops, seminars and interactive sessions from a number of departments across Colt. To support the week, our colleagues once again showed their generosity by using employee volunteering hours, allocated as part of the global CSR programme at Colt, to share their experience with the students. 34 employees took the time to prepare inspirational and informative sessions for the students. Our UK charity partner Coram, also participated, sharing how private sector and non-profit organisations can work side by side.
From business continuity to branding, students were provided with insight into different roles here at Colt. With opportunities to develop communication skills through various exercises, our very own Dragon’s Den not to mention ‘CV writing’ and ‘creating LinkedIN profiles’ workshops the week was as varied as the job roles they have access to – if they know about them that is.
With 100% of our work experience candidates willing to recommend the week to their peer group we are proud to have been able to make a difference. The lack of young talent entering our industry is a challenge we need to face together – and take steps to inspire the future workforce.
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