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By Dawn Moore
Dawn Moore has over 30 years’ experience working in Human Resources (HR), which she’ll be sharing at our upcoming panel session on the benefits of hosting T Level placements, alongside Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.
But if you can’t wait to find out what she has to say, then don’t look any further than, well . . . here! Because Dawn has written an article about the lessons HR professionals can learn from the musical Wicked – and how these lessons can be applied to hosting a T Level placement.
When you’re done exploring the world of Oz, don’t forget to register for the event.
Wicked: Part I has smashed box office records, and although it's been a few months since its release, it’s hard to ignore the thing that will likely shape the cultural zeitgeist of the next year.
For those who aren’t familiar, Wicked tells the backstory of Elphaba, a misunderstood young woman because of her green skin, and her unlikely friendship with the popular girl, Glinda. While at university together, they navigate politics, power, and societal expectations in the land of Oz. The lessons HR professionals could take from Wicked and the similarities between the often-misjudged early careers option, T Levels, and Elphaba are more striking than you’d think.
Skills gap sorcery
Wicked’s Elphaba takes a non-traditional path that seems unconventional to some but ultimately leads to powerful outcomes. T-Levels also haven’t had the easiest start in life. They are often hindered by the lack of understanding in comparison to apprenticeships and graduate programmes. What many don’t know is that T-Level students must choose an area of study, such as accounting, digital, or engineering, which means they need to have a clear understanding of their future career goals.
T-Level students that we’ve introduced to Murphy have shown that focused, industry-specific training combined with classroom learning results in highly competent team members with a great attitude to work. T-Levels are playing a crucial role in challenging decades-old thinking that academic qualifications, such as A-Levels or university degrees, are the only way to succeed. As many of us struggle to fill skills gaps, particularly for construction and digital jobs and in many other sectors that struggle to attract young people, hosting T-Level placements could just do the trick.
Mentorship magic
For those responsible for bringing new talent into our organisations as well as developing our existing employees, by taking a leaf out of Elphaba’s journey of self-discovery, we can support our employees to try new things that suit their individual talents and passions, such as management or mentorship. This is one of the most underrated benefits of hosting T-Level students.
As with any new starter, particularly in early careers, there's a certain amount of time and effort needed to manage them, which can be a deterrent. Unlike apprentices, who spend approximately 80% of their time in the workplace, or full-time working graduates, T-Level students spend about 20% of their time on their industry placement. This reduced intensity gives the student’s supervisor time to plan before a focused period of management and time to decompress, reflect, and learn afterwards.
An enchanting ethos
“T-Level placements create too much admin,” “the students aren’t here long enough to have a meaningful impact,” and “we don’t have suitable tasks for them to work on,” are just a few of the reasons often give by organisations as to why they haven’t taken on any T-Level students. Young people who choose the T-Level route face challenges and misconceptions day after day – does that remind you of a certain character in Wicked
But what connects HR professionals from organisations big and small is an ethos to create workplace culture where all employees feel valued, respected, and supported, regardless of their backgrounds or experiences. In recent years, we’ve seen a shift in mandating university degrees for certain roles, which opens entirely new talent pools and the opportunity to create a more diverse workforce. We’re always looking for ways to do that, and T-Levels are such an opportunity!
They’re going to make you popular
It’s important to keep in mind the influence we have as HR professionals in our workplaces when it comes to challenging traditional career paths and embracing non-conventional routes. Here in Greater Manchester, where Murphy has a significant presence, there is a huge emphasis on technical education thanks to the introduction of the Greater Manchester Baccalaureate (MBacc), an ambition of the Mayor, Andy Burnham. The MBacc aims to transform technical education in Greater Manchester by opening a clear pathway from school to high-quality jobs in the city-region's growing economy, with T-Levels set to become one of the most popular further education choices.
As the popularity of T-Levels grows (student numbers for the 2023/2024 cohort reached 16,000 across England), it will be the organisations who embrace this new route that are the first to benefit. From addressing today’s skills gaps to developing existing employees and building a diverse pipeline of future talent, T-Level students add a vital string in our HR bow.
Dawn Moore is Group People and Communications Director at Murphy. A Chartered Fellow of the CIPD with over 30 years’ experience working in Human Resources, Dawn brings significant leadership skills and senior HR experience to the Murphy business.
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