At the start of the year Fespa UK embarked on a series of Next Generation Networking Days for the print industry’s 18-30-year-olds, and subsequently formed a youth committee. So what are the expected ramifications for the sector’s youth, their employers and the industry at large?
Suzi, I assume you decided the run these Next Generation Networking Days because Fespa UK felt the large-format sector wasn’t getting the most from its youth - nor the youth from the sector in which they work. Is that accurate?
The hard facts are print and signage in general, not just wide-format but all the related sectors, have an ageing workforce and the young people working among us are too few and far between, which is why we think it is imperative to support companies who want to invest in their younger team members. By offering not only events solely for the next generation, but by forming our Next Generation committee we can try to understand their point of view and, hopefully, bridge the gap between the old and the new.
Have the networking days so far delivered what you expected?
The first two networking days in January were trial days and on each we had a maximum of eight attendees so that we could really get to know the them and spend time learning what they think to their roles, the companies they work in, and what they want to achieve for the future.
The days were a mixture of a presentation and then some hands-on vinyl application to get the delegates interacting with each other and just having a bit of fun. Thanks to the support of Adapt and CVI Group we were able to deliver two small events that were informative yet relaxed and everyone who attended felt they got something from the day.
At our larger event on the 15 March we welcomed over 40 delegates from both member and non-member companies, and we were lucky enough to have the support of Compass Business Finance, Vivid Laminating, All Print Supplies and HP. This networking event was solely for people aged between 18-30, the aim was to provide a safe non-competitive space to help the younger generation (who are often overlooked when it comes to networking events) to build their confidence, grow their network and hopefully take back some new ideas that they could implement into their own job roles and the company they work in.
The day opened with a motivational presentation from former ‘The Apprentice’ winner Mark Wright, then followed a Q&A session with our supporter panel, where delegates were encouraged to ask questions about how the supporters had developed their own careers. After lunch we had an amazing workshop with Colin Sinclair McDermott, aka The Online Print Coach, who as a previous print business owner had a wealth of business coaching experience to pass on to our delegates.
How important was it that you managed to attract the likes of The Apprentice winner as a speaker for that March event?
As with most of our events, content is key. There is no point having someone speaking who doesn’t understand the audience or can’t relate to them, so we were thrilled that Mark Wright agreed to come and offer such valuable content to our delegates, especially as he is in the same age range as most of them.
It’s not all about age though. Colin Sinclair McDermott worked with our next generation committee to create a personalised workshop that delivered an interactive afternoon that was thoroughly engaging and really gave people something to think about.
You hoped some of those attending the networking days would agree to sit on a Next Generation youth committee. Has that happened, what do you hope that committee will achieve, and in what kind of timeframes?
Following on from the first two days we were able to form our Next Generation committee, which will work as a sub-board of Fespa UK and be led by Jay Burfield, our creative coordinator. He’s aged 24, and will help to bring the young generation’s concerns and ideas to the front of the association’s agenda.
All eight committee members were picked from those on the first two networking days and were just incredible, so full of energy and enthusiasm to make a difference and put their stamp on the industry. They have so far been focusing on the 15 March event where they were meeting to have a discussion on future plans, so watch this space.
Have you been surprised by anything you’ve learned thus far - and if so, what?
The events so far have been fantastic and to have been fortunate enough to see so many engaged, enthusiastic and knowledgeable young people is just inspiring, however, there are two main areas that worry me. The first is the lack of employees between the age of 18-30 currently working in print and signage.
When we started planning the 15 March event we thought we would have over 80 attendees, but we soon realised that was never going to happen. Having spoken to the majority of our membership, and a fair few non-members, we realised that most companies just do not have the younger generation working for them - and that isn’t through lack of trying. It is very clear that there is a sever lack of young blood coming into the sector.
Secondly, there seems to be a lack of willingness from employers to invest in their team and help them to grow their own connections and their networking skills. I am not sure if this is because they are concerned about other companies poaching their staff (we all know it happens) or if they just don’t see the value in investing and supporting the younger employees in their business. Thankfully, we have some fantastic companies who are leading the way, actively looking for ways to recruit young people, sharing ideas and supporting other members looking to invest in the future.
I know you wanted to get input from the those at the first meeting of that committee before the Next Generation’s supporters (such as Compass Business Finance, Vivid Laminating Technologies, HP UK and All Print Supplies) confirmed other events and webinars in the programme. How’s that schedule progressing?
Jay [Burfield] will be using the event to meet with the Next Generation committee to plan the next set of events, both online and in person. He has plans to pre-record several webinars throughout the coming months through to August to highlight the ideas and thoughts of relevant topics from a younger generation’s perspective. These dates will be announced once the committee has a plan of action.
This new initiative is aimed at those already in the print industry. Is there scope/are there plans to widen the remit and try to reach potential recruits?
This initiative has been created to support the next generation already working in print and signage, but the ultimate goal is to develop content and ideas that are focused on what young people today want from a career and what makes an industry interesting to them.
We believe that the only way we are going to achieve this is by asking the younger people already working in print to guide the way and talk to others outside the industry who are their own age. This isn’t a project that will solve the issue overnight, it’s a longer commitment to work towards a better future.
If the question was posed to any of us today “Why would you work in print or signage” what would the answer be? How would it connect with young minds? How would that answer inspire? This is what the Next Generation committee and Fespa UK as an association will be working on going forward, along with the support and input from the more proactive members of our community.
To be able to encourage new people into the industry, we need to understand what young people want from a career, how to reach the different personalities, how to show them the diversity roles within print and signage, and we need to do this as a collective not as individual businesses. Working together we can reach a much wider audience and start to make a much need change.