A Chat With: Kim Byford at Talent Accelerator
By Donna Fielder and Sarah Cronk
Kim Byford, Talent Accelerator lead, met with us to introduce this programme which aims to get young people across East Sussex passionate about and into work in our thriving creative industries. We wanted to find out more from Kim, whose enthusiasm for the project is infectious!
Chalk: Kim, can you tell us a little bit about the Talent Accelerator program?
Kim: “The Talent Accelerator program exists to help young people into the creative industries, from the age of 5 to 25 across the whole of East Sussex. We want to level the playing field for work experience and volunteering. It shouldn’t just be those with contacts that get the opportunities.
“I attend a lot of careers events, talking about the different roles in creative and digital. We support early career artists, support skills development for young people, and work very closely with employers to help them adjust their vacancies to suit young people, or help them to make an apprenticeship scheme work.”
What motivated you to move on from teaching and lead the Talent Accelerator programme?
“I always taught post-16 students, and over the years, I have taught thousands of them. I noticed that the students who are successful in the creative industries are not always the ones you think will be. A number of people over the years who could have been great in the creative industries didn’t end up there. They went and did something else as it didn’t quite work for them.
“There is a big gap after leaving college or uni and getting into work. A lot of my previous role was community liaison, developing how the college in Bexhill could affect the evolution of the town. So when the Talent Accelerator role came up at the De La Warr Pavilion, it was ideal for me as it fitted that niche. I saw it as a way to make real change and help to bridge that gap.”
What do you think are the biggest challenges when it comes to young people accessing career opportunities in the region?
“The workplace is hidden; this is a common challenge in all industries, but particularly with digital and creative roles. Young people usually interface with hospitality or retail in their first jobs. Some other roles they can also easily understand because they have come into contact with them - doctors, nurses, retail, for example. It is easy to have an idea of what the job entails and what you will be doing. However, there are so many other jobs that young people don’t know exist, and we need to uncover these.
“There is a lot of talk about young people not being “employment-ready” when they finish their education. But what does that mean? Young people can’t identify and define the transferable skills they have.
“Another challenge is that the skills taught in education do not match those required by the industry, especially in the digital field which is constantly evolving. This can be difficult for educators as they try to keep up with the fast pace - qualification changes can’t move that quickly.
“We need to get the message out to young people that all the extra-curricular, enrichment activities and volunteering activities they do are as important as their qualifications. Unfortunately, careers activities are often considered an add-on in schools - not because schools and colleges want it to be that way, but they have to focus on getting the children exam-ready.”
How would you like to see educators and businesses working together in the future to provide more opportunities for these young people? What does the new way of working look like?
“We need to get more people from the industry involved and wanting to help with activities that support young people. Industry champions, work placements, enterprise advisors, open doors events. We need people to join the conversation and connect with schools. I think a lot of people think it’s difficult and will be a lot of work. But there are so many options to make it manageable.
“Open Doors events, for example: You stipulate how many children can come and visit your workplace and for how long. There is a booking system. You invite them in at that set time, show them around and talk about your profession.
“Mock interview sessions are another option: You can go into a school for even just a short amount of time and hold a few interviews. This really helps students to understand their skill sets and what employers are looking for.”
What has been the feedback from employers so far when you presented Talent Accelerator?
“A lot of creative businesses are micro businesses, so they find it hard to offer young people experience. But we can help match people up where they have a need.
“When it comes to work experience, it doesn't have to be a full week from 9-5. Instead, students could do a couple of days here and there, working on smaller projects and perhaps with more than one employer. This way, they can gather a variety of experiences across a number of locations.
“Another approach is setting some freelance work experience that students can do at school or college. For example, an employer could give them a brief and set the context, and they can work on the project as a group. This way, students can apply their skills to a real-world problem and gain valuable experience.
“I used this approach with Talent Accelerator. I needed a logo so I put that task out to schools. They came up with colour palettes I never would have imagined myself and I now know the logo is one that will appeal to my target audience.
I've found this approach to be effective in many ways, and it can be tailored to suit the needs of the business. Employers could even record themselves giving information, which could form part of a work placement week or an ongoing project during term time as part of the career-focused curriculum."
Have the needs and aspirations of young people approaching the end of their formal education changed in recent years?
“The fallout from COVID is that younger people are taking longer to go into traditional adult life.
“Youth Employment UK carry out a census every year and give advice on how get young people into your business. From this, the overall feeling is that young people think that the workplace doesn’t want them, has concerns about them and what they can bring. There’s a disparity between generations, much of which is created by the media.
“The growth in hybrid and remote working means that you can stay local to the people that you love but work with any company - even working for a company in LA, for example! Or young people can choose to travel and work as digital nomads.
“The world of work is so far from that ‘going to a place from 9-5’ idea, so we help young people to connect to those opportunities.”
How do we, as employers, need to shift our thinking when it comes to supporting young talent?
"There needs to be a shift in the way employers approach supporting young talent, and a commitment to making that change.
“There needs to be an understanding that getting younger people on the team can be a big benefit. They bring vibrancy, energy, and are digital natives in a way that older generations are not. They know how to work to a deadline and a set of specific parameters, and they have a different take on the world. This can be useful in helping to move the business forward and continue to be relevant.
“There is also a social responsibility to develop people to populate the jobs we need. It is about adjusting those entry-level opportunities to suit young people. Talent Accelerator can come and help by looking at a job you are trying to fill and identifying the skills that young people don’t have when they come to the company. We can then build a pipeline to fill that job.
“If there is a role that companies are repeatedly trying to fill, we suggest they strike up a partnership with FE colleges to help develop the skills. Companies can also put some freelance work experience forward to help young people build those skills."
If there is one thing our Chalk members could do this month to make a difference to young people and their career journeys, what would it be?
“Sign up to the schemes that are out there. Sign up for open doors events. Let people come in to see your workplace.
“The younger the student, the more effective this approach can be. Capture their interest early and let them see what is out there.
“Get in touch with me. I am more than happy to help you find the best approach for your business.”
Find out more about:
…and get in touch with Kim directly if you’d like to discuss the Talent Accelerator programme further: kim.byford@dlwp.com
