Professional Services Academy sets talent challenge with employers

The Greater Birmingham Professional Services Academy (GBPSA), in association with Birmingham Metropolitan College (BMet) and employers including Deutsche Bank, Deloitte, GVA, Gateley Plc, KPMG, LaSerUk, Lloyds, and Wesleyan launched the pioneering new programme to the sector from the Academy’s new Birmingham city centre premises.

Working with the city’s professional and financial firms, the programme supports firms, to recruit and nurture young talent through delivering hundreds of internships, Apprenticeships, work placements and education-business partnership activity.

Industry leaders and employers attending the launch were urged to invest in the challenge by backing the “100 in 100” campaign: recruiting 100 Apprenticeships in 100 days – to support the emergence of a talent pool pre-equipped with industry experience and ready for the world of work.

Andy Argyle, GBPSA Chair and partner at KPMG commented: “The programme will ensure businesses fulfil their recruitment needs and tackle skills shortages across the industry. Investing in Apprenticeships is a great way to grow your own talent and provide diverse and exciting career paths for the city’s young people. There is a real commitment across the business and professional sector to source skills and talent more locally and recruit a more diverse group of young people who are really motivated to develop their careers in and across the city.

Suzie Branch-Haddow, GBPSA Director added: “Continued sector growth and international competition means it is more important than ever for our city’s employers to nurture and retain local talent. The work-focussed learning programme we offer tackles this sector’s skills shortages head on, because it is shaped by employers and aligned to their recruitment and training strategies

“We provide our young people with hands-on experience of working in business, so they come to employers with those ‘work-ready’ skills and a passion to succeed.”

The comprehensive Academy programme has over 30 employers currently working alongside students to develop their professional skills, deepen their knowledge of the sector, and raise awareness of sector-specific roles and career opportunities within business, law, finance and property.

Andrew Cleaves, Principal and Chief Executive at BMet College stated: “It is really encouraging for our young people to have an increasing number of job opportunities open to them in future. We need to capitalise on the sector’s continued growth by providing employers with a skilled workforce they can rely on.

“The GBPSA’s talent management programme responds to this challenge. It ensures our students gain the work ethic, education and skills that will lead to highly rewarding careers across Greater Birmingham’s business district.”

Apprenticeships eligible for the 100 in 100 challenge include business, accounting, financial services and IT. Businesses are also being encouraged to offer internships and work placements to young people in pursuing professional services and business-related careers.

The GBPSA’s key partners have already embraced the initiative by welcoming student graduates on to KPMG’s 360 Apprenticeship programme, Apprenticeships at LaSerUK’s and employment at GVA and Wesleyan, among other career opportunities.