Employability done differently

by Sinéad Magill

Date:

09 07 2020

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The jobs crisis we face today is more challenging than most of us have ever seen. In some sectors, it is a shock. In others, it requires a complete structural overhaul.

Even as unemployment levels begin to drop, as lockdown eases, we may see more ‘spikes’, as people come off of their furlough period. The post-pandemic world of work will look very different to what it was yesterday.

In tackling unemployment, we cannot assume that old solutions will address new problems. It’s time for a new approach. We need to design innovative local responses, using local expertise. We need to pilot new ideas, monitor whether they are effective, and quickly drop or adapt them if they aren’t. We need to work in partnership with employers and use the power of data to forecast future employment trends, and align these to job training and skills development.

We also need to pay closer attention to what works and what doesn’t to drive behaviour change, to help people move into the labour market and stay there. This requires a holistic understanding of what prevents people from changing track and of what motivates them, including those who have been left at the margins of society.

To be effective in our response, we have to use evidence of what works, from the UK and internationally. For over 50 years, Palladium has been working in countries that have been changing at a rapid pace and adapting to seismic shocks not seen in the UK for decades. We’ve had to try, adapt, flex, fail small, and succeed big.

I clearly see this, as the right moment to bring these lessons from our multinational work on economic transformation, employment, and health, to the unemployment challenge in the UK. We are more than ready to apply and adapt what we know about analysing local contexts, collaborating with partners, and implementing ideas that are rooted in evidence to deliver social impact in our home country.

Palladium was created with a strong sense of purpose and has evolved with a clear vision to overcome what to many may seem like intractable social and labour market challenges. We know that together, with our expert and localised partners, we can have a real impact on post pandemic unemployment. We have a clear plan to make a tangible difference to individuals’ lives, by building their resilience, creating employment opportunities, improving prospects, and transforming experiences of employment.

Please get in touch with us, to help us to achieve this together.

By Sinéad Magill, Managing Partner, EMEA Palladium

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