Lots of businesses are under all sorts of pressure. That means, particularly for young people, it's going to be more important than ever to develop the skills they need to be successful in getting their first job or progressing in the job they're in. Whether it’s a role at BT or any other company, we want to help young people develop those skills.

BT’s Work Ready training scheme has already helped thousands of young people kickstart their careers, providing opportunities for young people who aren't in employment, education or training and preparing them for the world of work. Our Work Ready two-week programme gives young people the experience, knowledge and digital skills they need to take their first steps to a career in the digital world.

A placement is not a practical step for any of us to take at the moment – although we are running Work Ready webinars (which you can find on the link below). As an extension of those webinars, earlier this week we live streamed our Work Ready event from the BT Sport studio, with advice on finding a job, taking charge of your career path, and staying motivated in challenging times from Maya Jama, Chelcee Grimes, Spencer Owen, BT Sport’s Andrew Mensah and the CEO of The Youth Group, Jack Parsons.

They were all eager to share their life experience. Spencer asked me how it was for me when I was starting out. Like many young people might be finding now, I had a few weeks and months where it was a tough time economically. We didn't have emails – we had to send letters to apply for positions. It could often be a long wait to get to the next stage. But in each interview I had, I found a way of saying: 'I may not have this experience, but I can bring you this.'

You can take something from everyone – no one person has all the answers. And, if you're interested, willing to learn and give it a go, you'll find you are given the opportunities you are looking for. Technology is evolving rapidly, with new platforms changing the way we live, work and connect. So you can never say you know everything. It doesn't matter if you're a CEO or if you have just joined the company – you can always be learning!

The most important investment you can make is in yourself. Develop your skills, your knowledge to give yourself an advantage. That's more important than ever. Invest a few minutes every day. An hour or more, if you have it. With the right skills, attitude and mindset, you can be successful.

As an employer, one of the most important things I look for is passion. You want to work with people who care about the business you're in. I also look for different perspectives; people who can bring different ideas and give you the overall picture from diverse backgrounds. Business is about solving problems. We face different challenges, big and small, every day. So I look for people who can think around problems, and people with resilience who are not going to give up at the first hurdle.

Particular talents and aptitudes are important – and you can train for those, often on the job. But so are so-called ‘soft skills’:

Communication: it's a really important thing in business. Being able to convey ideas, or challenges you might be facing.

Collaboration: working with a team, be open to new ideas, being able to work well with others is an important foundation skill.

Learning: that curiosity and willingness to learn. Be proactive about your own development.

Enthusiasm: it can be infectious – people who care about the workplace and the world around them.

Positive energy is one of the things employers are looking for when they ask the classic question: 'Tell me about a time you've dealt with a challenging situation.'

That's about problem-solving, creative thinking and an approach to tackling tasks differently to make things better. Things don't always go well. Resilience is like a muscle – the older you get, the more you use it, the stronger it becomes. Being able to bounce back when things haven't gone as planned is so important.

These are skills that can be transferred – you'll need them in any job as you move companies, teams and departments. And, if you become someone who other people want to pass knowledge onto, you’ll find you can progress further and faster. As an employer, you don't want to do that with people who don't care. So encourage other people to give you those skills and opportunities when they do come around – whether that ends up being at BT, or anywhere else.

At BT, we connect for good. We're on a mission to help not just young people up and down the UK, but our customers, communities and businesses overcome barriers and release their potential. Work Ready is just one part of our Skills for Tomorrow ambition: by 2025, we’re aiming to help 10m people in the UK develop the skills they need to make the most of life in the digital world.

You can watch our Work Ready Live Event on YouTube, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2jPZ06zqhE

And find out more about our Work Ready programme and BT’s Skills for Tomorrow, with free courses to develop your digital skills, here: https://www.bt.com/skillsfortomorrow

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A group of young people in London have learned vital digital skills and had coaching to help them land jobs, as part of a BT scheme that has already helped more than 3,200 unemployed young adults.

A celebration event was held on Friday, 28 January, at the BT Tower in Fitzrovia, to mark the graduation of 40 people who took part in a 10-day BT Work Ready Programme.

Theo Blackwell, London’s chief digital officer, attended to present certificates to the graduates. The participants, all aged between 18 and 24, have received training and work experience with the technology firm to help them in their future careers.

BT’s Work Ready programme, in partnership with charity Movement to Work (MtW), is helping thousands of young people not in education, employment or training across the UK. The programme equips them with vital skills and work experience for a career in an increasingly digital world.

Kerensa Jennings, BT’s Digital Impact Director, said: “Our Work Ready programme is designed to boost young peoples’ opportunities by inspiring them into a career in the digital workforce. We are helping them develop employability and digital skills and providing access to work experience. The programme helps young people acquire the hard and soft skills needed by employers and provides support to get into work through coaching and job networking opportunities.

“The programme is well established with over 3,200 young people graduating since 2014. More than 56% of those completing the course have gone on to get a job, an apprenticeship or moved into further education.”

Work Ready programme graduate Maisy Osbon, 24, from Dartford, said she was grateful for the experience: “It has helped me hone skills I didn’t know I had like business and technical skills. I’ve had coaching to dramatically improve my CV and it’s given me a lot more confidence."

London’s Chief Digital Officer, Theo Blackwell, said: “Improving people’s digital skills boosts their employability and social inclusion. The Mayor and I are committed to building a more inclusive economy – and schemes such as his £7 million Digital Talent Programme is helping tackle digital skills gaps and address the under-representation of women and Londoners of black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. BT’s Work Ready scheme is a great example of how we can create more opportunities for everyone to thrive in the digital economy.”

Youth unemployment remains a persistent and stubborn challenge in the UK. The national youth unemployment rate was 11.13 per cent in September - November 2019, compared with 3.8% for the whole population.

The Work Ready programme is part of BT Skills for Tomorrow – a new digital skills initiative to help 10 million people, families and businesses across the UK get the skills they need by 2025. For more information see here

A celebration event was held on Friday, 31 January, at Fazeley Studios, to mark the graduation of 30 people who took part in a 10-day BT Work Ready Programme.

Jose Lopes, head of business engagement at the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), attended to present certificates to the graduates. The participants, all aged between 18 and 24, have received training and work experience with BT to help them in their future careers.

BT’s Work Ready programme, in partnership with charity Movement to Work (MtW), is helping thousands of young people not in education, employment or training across the UK. The programme equips them with vital skills and work experience for a career in an increasingly digital world.

Ricky Ricketts, director for local government, health and education at BT, said: “Our Work Ready programme is designed to boost young peoples’ opportunities by inspiring them into a career in the digital workforce – offering employability skills, digital skills and work experience. The programme helps young people acquire the hard and soft skills needed by employers and provides support to get into work through coaching and job networking opportunities.

“The programme is well established with over 3,200 young people graduating since 2014. Over 56% of those completing the course have gone on to get a job, an apprenticeship or moved into further education.”

Jose Lopes, head of business engagement at WMCA, said: “I’d like to congratulate the young people for successfully graduating after their work placements.

“It’s critical that we tackle youth unemployment, and with the help of employers like BT, and through our work with programmes such as Movement to Work, we are giving young people digital and team skills, helping remove the barriers they may encounter to start an exciting new career.”

The work placements are part of a national pilot of the Government-led Transition to Work project, also involving the WMCA, which aims to support unemployed young people into work.

Youth unemployment remains a persistent and stubborn challenge in the UK. The national youth unemployment rate was 11.3 per cent in September - November 2019, compared with 3.8% for the whole population.

A celebration event was held yesterday (25 September) at BT Sport Production Hub in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, to mark the graduation of 45 people who took part in an 11-day BT Work Ready Programme.

Labour peer, Lord Tony Young attended to present certificates to the graduates. The participants, all aged between 18 and 24, have received training and work experience with the telecoms firm to help them in their future careers.

BT’s Work Ready programme, in partnership with charity Movement to Work (MtW), is helping thousands of young people not in education, employment or training across the UK. The programme equips them with vital skills and work experience for a career in an increasingly digital world.

Fabian Douglas, 21, from Bromley, said he had struggled to find a job since 2017 but was feeling more optimistic after taking part in the programme.

“The BT Work Ready programme has been great and I already feel so much more confident. I’ve gained tips on how to create a great CV, learned how to cope with the pressure of a job interview and developed lots of new skills which I’ve now updated on my LinkedIN profile. Being unemployed over the past couple years has been difficult, but this opportunity at BT has given me a clearer understanding of what I want to do.

“The work experience placement was brilliant and I’m really grateful to the BT staff who helped me get a taste of what it’s like working in a digital role for the company. It’s also opened my eyes to the opportunities available.”

Mat Sears, corporate affairs director for BT’s Consumer division, who presented certificates alongside Lord Young at the event, said: “I’d like to say a huge congratulations to all these young people who have taken the first steps towards their future careers.

“Nothing can imitate a real working environment so that is exactly what this programme sets out to achieve. The workplace is changing and nearly all jobs in the future will require at least an element of digital skills, so it’s vital that we equip the next generation with the tools and knowledge they need to be able to thrive.”

The work placements are part of a national pilot of the Government-led Transition to Work project which aims to support unemployed young people into work.

Youth unemployment remains a challenge in the UK. The national youth unemployment rate was 11.4% in May-July 2019*, compared with 3.8% for the whole population**. In London, 13.3% (121,000) of young people aged 16-24 are currently Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) according to latest figures***.

Since BT launched its Work Ready programme in 2014, around 3,000 young people have graduated from the scheme. More people took part than ever before during 2018 with 982 starting the programme and 77% of those completing it.

The Movement to Work charity focusses mainly on young people who are NEET. More than 50% of those who have completed a placement have gone into employment or back into education.

James Ashall, Movement to Work chief executive, said: “Congratulations to all the young people who have graduated from the BT Work Ready programme and we wish them all the best in their future careers.

“Brilliant employability programmes help businesses build a workforce that represent the communities in which they operate. This ultimately drives diversity, promotes social mobility and, crucially, supports individuals to fulfill their potential.”

Notes to editors

* Source: Parliament UK Research Briefing, September 2019 https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN05871

** Source: ONS Labour Market Overview, UK: September 2019 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/bulletins/uklabourmarket/september2019

*** Source: NEET Statistics Annual Brief 2018

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/neet-statistics-annual-brief-2018