Last Thursday, we met with key business leaders, educational providers and top employers as part of BusinessLDN’s roundtable. The discussion was focused on how to tackle the challenge of hiring a diverse workforce and on discussing new ways of creating accessible routes to market for all.
At Just IT, we’ve always believed that people’s journeys into work are unique, and the way we support them must reflect that. With partnerships across more than 80 organisations, including councils, community groups, and employers, we take a hyper-local approach. This means getting out into boroughs where challenges are most acute, raising awareness, and building solutions in collaboration with the people who know those communities best.
Our support is offered via multiple routes of travel:
- Community coaching and partner referrals for those who need additional help.
- Unique journeys for each individual candidate, it’s important to take individual approaches towards a learner journey.
- Barrierless recruitment practices, no CVs, just portfolios that demonstrate real skills and capability.
What ties all this together is a focus on removing barriers and meeting people where they are. Every candidate has their own story, and we want employers to see their potential, not skills and experience noted on paper.
Insights from other Businesses
We had the privilege of listening to other organisations on similar journeys, and these were some of the points raised within the roundtable:
Thames Water
Thames Water highlighted the challenging operational environment in which they find themselves, but an inclusive agenda remains a key priority despite this. They have also positioned their skills agenda to fill talent gaps; they are currently working with prisons to hold interviews that shift the balance. This echoes their message on the importance of removing barriers and building partnerships to successfully keep inclusivity a priority.
Battersea Power Station Development
Battersea Power Station Development Company highlighted how inclusive practice is built into their development agreements and partnerships. Through their BASE programme, they act as a job broker, ensuring vacancies are shared with the right groups and supported with tailored preparation. They touched on focusing on building an individual’s confidence and how it is all about getting someone into a role first, then helping them grow their skills further.
Talent Beyond Boundaries
Talent Beyond Boundaries works to match displaced persons with jobs they have the skills for; this includes outsourcing from countries experiencing crisis and utilising the skilled worker visa route.
They support refugees in applying for jobs in a safe country, thus taking pressure off the asylum system to house and support them while they await further processing.
Shared Challenges and Opportunities
Across all organisations, some themes were clear. Funding remains a barrier to enabling underrepresented groups to engage with opportunities, and many attendees shared the difficulty of convincing commercial businesses of the value of inclusion.
We also discussed the importance of community presence being visible, building trust, and creating partnerships that amplify impact. Insight days and pre-employment courses were praised for their ability to break down the intimidating aspects of work environments, while offering valuable networking opportunities.
This roundtable conversation has highlighted the importance of ensuring that businesses are offering ongoing engagement to underrepresented groups through group strategies and touchpoints, as well as how important it is to keep the skills gaps and diverse talent conversations alive within the business.
We’d like to thank everyone who attended the roundtable and to Victoria Armstrong, Jamia Jackson and Mark Hilton for organising this event with us.
If you are interested in participating in a similar round-table discussion with your business, we would love to speak with you.