Attaining transferable skills is the key to success in a fast-paced, sometimes cut-throat, job market. Here at MYP, we know this which is why we’ve recently launched our fantastic mentoring program which aims to help people focus on improving important skills and ensuring they feel confident in the job market. In today’s blog, we’ll be chatting about, and to, Pearson, who have recently launched their new ‘Career Courses’ which has a similar aim of helping young professionals in Manchester. We’ll also be looking at the changing job market and how a young professional today has a vastly different experience to their older counterparts.
For more information about our mentoring programme, or anything else we do here at MYP, be sure to check out our website, or get in touch with us by phone on 0161 327 1385 or email us at info@mcryoungprofessionals.com.
The World Of Work Then And Now
Ask your mum and dad about their career progression, chances are they joined a firm, company, or organisation, at a relatively young age, and worked their way up and stayed as an employee there until it was time to collect their pension and enjoy a life of pruning hedges, and listening to Radio 4. Now, go and ask your best mate, in all likelihood, it will be a completely different story involving multiple jobs at different businesses in different roles.
The world of work has changed drastically over the last few years and it’s not uncommon for people to spend a couple of years in a job before getting itchy feet and moving on. Which is why, in 2021, the need for you to learn and develop your core skills while in work is so vital.
Stats About The Job Market
Multiple organisations have undergone surveys in the past to do with people’s careers, their lack of time spent at one company and why job-hopping is so common. What follows are some of the most eye-catching statistics that we found when researching this article:
- 47% of people surveyed in a London Business School poll wanted to change their careers.
- According to Total Jobs, because of the pandemic, a fifth of people have realised their current role isn’t for them.
- A study by insurance firm LV showed that UK workers change employers every 5 years, on average.
- The aforementioned London Business School Survey showed that 21% of people were looking to career hop in the next 12 months.
- The Association of Accounting Technicians underwent a study in 2018 that found that the average British worker considers changing their career 10 times a year.
What these stats highlight is that the job market is as fluid as it has ever been and, to succeed, people must be consistently working on their skill set to have something that stands out when the time to job change comes.
How To Find These Areas To Self Improve
What do these skills look like in practice? Well, they are certainly many, varied, and all depend on your individual career history and future path. Skills can be as varied as learning how to master a new piece of software, to something deeper and fundamental such as learning how to communicate with people more confidently.
It’s all about looking inside yourself and discovering what things might need a bit of fine-tuning. Another good way of doing this is by having a mentor, developing this kind of unique relationship with someone in a similar industry, or who is ahead of you in experience, allows you to see yourself in the future and understand what needs to be done in order to achieve the goals they have already achieved.
Our Mentoring Programme And Pearson’s Career Courses
As you can tell, we’re passionate about mentoring and self-development. We recently launched our programme, to great success, and are looking forward to hearing the stories and wisdom that are shared by both the mentors and mentees throughout the programme.
Another company that is passionate about these topics is Pearson, who have, as we mentioned, recently launched ‘Career Courses’ which are billed as ‘Self-paced courses featuring real-world projects and a dedicated mentor to get you the experience you need in 4 weeks or less.’
Essentially it’s offering you the chance to work with a mentor and hone those valuable skills over the course of a month – sounds good right? We thought so too which is why we spoke to Tom Laidlaw, from Pearson, who explained this exciting opportunity in a little more detail:
“At Pearson, we researched the skills people need to stay employable in the face of change, and how to support those skills, to inform the development of Pearson Career Courses.
“Perhaps unsurprisingly, the skills that allow people to weather change are the so-called human skills.
“These include self-management, communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking, all of which are hard to automate, making employees who can demonstrate them even more valuable.”
Tom then referred to a recent global survey that Pearson commissioned and published: “Respondents to the Pearson Global Learner Survey were clear that education doesn’t stop at university and that people need to keep learning or re-training throughout their career to keep their skills up-to-date.
“86% of those surveyed in the UK agreed that this was the case. However, what was worrying was that only 24% of UK respondents had undertaken any post-university learning in the last 2 years, compared to 76% of respondents from India and 67% of respondents in China. In a world of global talent, you can’t afford to get left behind.
Explaining the new courses that Pearson are offering, he said: “In our courses, learners work with a mentor – someone a few years more advanced in the same profession – to identify opportunities for experiential learning.
“The mentor then provides specific, actionable feedback; and the learner reflects, not just on what they’ve learned, but on how they could demonstrate their skill development – in an interview, for example, or to a manager responsible for their development.”
He added: “Being paired with a mentor who has experience in the profession means our learners are getting a work-like experience. Learners get to apply skills in practice, experience authentic tasks and get the benefit of a mentor already using these skills in the given profession.
“This gives the learner a sense of what it’s like to work in that industry. Overall, the result is a course that’s only about 25% traditional learning, and 75% applying that learning.”
Want To Find Out More? Get In Touch
Whether it’s our mentor programme or Pearson’s Career Courses, you’re sure to improve yourself and make 2021 your year! If you’d like to know more about our plans this year then be sure to check out our website or get in touch with us by phone on 0161 327 1385 or email us at info@mcryoungprofessionals.com.
