Monthly Archives: June 2021

Business Advice, News

How to maximise your influence in business meetings

Written By Ga Lok Chung, Toastmasters International

Many of us have come out of an important meeting kicking ourselves because we thought something but didn’t actually say it. Perhaps you said something in a meeting, but it didn’t come out the way you wanted, and as a result your view wasn’t taken seriously. Give the importance of many business meetings you want to be in a position to get your message across and make an impact.

So, how can you have the most impact and influence?

 

Connect with your audience

When making a contribution, a common mistake is to focus on exactly what you plan to say. Consider what the audience needs to hear, and how much they already know about the topic first. By understanding your audience and explaining your ideas in a way that connects with them, they can then experience and visualise the impact of the message.

For example, if the meeting is a budget review, and the objective is to reduce costs, you need to explain how your idea will make a difference to outgoings and the overall budget.

 

Build on previous speakers’ input

Why do people talk in a meeting? The answer is usually to be heard and understood. Generally, they listen to the person who heard and understood them first. Building on what someone else has said creates continuity that makes it easier for others to follow what you’re adding to the discussion. Paraphrase what the person said that relates to your point. Mention their name if this point was made earlier in the discussion and include a pause in case they want to clarify.

 

Seek explanations

Imagine, you’ve just heard something that you think is incorrect: 4 + 3 = 6.  ‘Idiot’, you want to shout, ‘it’s 7’. Whilst you are logically right, you should consider how to diplomatically correct them.  Start by letting others know the value you received from the discussion, it validates the contributions of others. It’s also rare, so people appreciate it. ‘I think I’m clear about you’re saying’, and ‘I see it differently, could you clarify it further’.

When you disagree, say so, as others might be thinking the same think but are afraid to point it out. Introduce your comments in a way that helps the other person hear your view. Whilst ‘I don’t get it’ is direct, ‘could you explain that to me again’ indicates your support and encourages better discussion.

 

Adapt your body language

If you’re hunched over, or speaking softly, people may not take notice of what you say or they may not take you seriously. How you position and move your body not only affects how you speak; it also affects how you come across.

When speaking, set yourself up so that:

  • You are sitting up and forward. Practice leaning in slightly and not using the chair’s backrest
  • Smile and make eye contact with everyone around the table as you make your point. Online, remember to look into the camera, not at your screen
  • Start with your hands on the table. Then bring them up to use open hand gestures to emphasise points. In online meetings, position your camera so that people can see your hands making gestures.

 

Your state of mind

Making an impact is about more than what you say and how you say it – although both are important. It’s about your mentality. And nothing detracts from making an impact like undermining yourself.

Remove apologetic language like ‘I’m sorry, I might be completely wrong here.’ Tentative language won’t work when you’re trying to be perceived as decisive and an expert.

Use pauses. You can say, ‘Let me think,’ or ‘I’ve a suggestion,’ while piecing your thoughts together. These phrases buy time until you’re ready to present the ideas and they get people ready to listen to you.

Whether you’re responding to someone else’s presentation or answering questions after yours, practice with your trusted colleagues, friends or in places such as a Toastmasters clubs that provide a safe environment to practise in.

The skills to make impactful contributions at business meetings are vitally important. By putting them to good use you’ll demonstrate your credibility and composure. This in turn will lead to the impact and influence you need for success.

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ga Lok Chung is a member of Toastmasters International, a not-for-profit organisation that has provided communication and leadership skills since 1924 through a worldwide network of clubs. There are more than 400 clubs and 10,000 members in the UK and Ireland. Members follow a structured educational programme to gain skills and confidence in public and impromptu speaking, chairing meetings and time management. To find your nearest club, visit www.toastmasters.org

 

News

Hampshire digital marketing agency, MRS Digital, sees record growth while creating jobs

Leading digital marketing agency MRS Digital has reported its best year for growth yet, increasing revenue by 54% in just one year amidst a number of major contract wins.

The Hampshire SEO agency has seen an unparalleled boost to its revenue, clients and team, leading to it reporting a record-breaking year. Despite lockdown affecting many businesses and their operations, MRS Digital has continued to grow in line with the ongoing expansion of the digital sector, securing its biggest client contract in the first lockdown, swiftly followed by an even bigger contract in its second lockdown. Existing clients have also remained, with the number of retained contracts growing by 46%.

Driven by its approach to deliver tangible, straight-forward results, MRS Digital was recognised with five new awards in the past year, including two national accolades; a Biddable Media Award and UK Search Award, cementing its position as one of the UK’s top rising SEO agencies. Other business awards, ‘Best Business’ at the Best Business Women Awards, and the ‘Leadership Award’ at the Surrey and Hampshire’s Biz Awards, celebrated the dynamic family management team. Topping off an amazing year, MRS Digital was also recently shortlisted for ‘Large Integrated Digital Agency of the Year’ at the UK Digital Growth Awards, recognising the best digital agencies in the UK.

Adding more than just industry accolades to the business, MRS Digital has also welcomed 12 new team members in the past year, with nine joining just in 2021 alone. The investment into local talent will drive the agencies ongoing commitment to its clients and ambitions to become the biggest and best digital marketing agency in the South East, all while remaining entirely self-funded. They are also on the lookout for even more new team members, including roles in outreach, PPC and web development, to propel its strategic outlook.

In response to client demand, the agency has introduced three new services; Conversion Rate Optimisation, enhancing the customer journey with a data-led approach, Video Creative, to create compelling client visuals, and Digital PR, to generate client outreach through creative storytelling. These build upon the agency’s existing SEO, PPC, content and social media marketing offerings.

Adam Blackford-Mills, digital sales and marketing director, said: “The online marketing landscape has significantly changed in the past year, and I’m proud our team has continued to push the boundaries of what’s possible in digital marketing strategy. Delivering amazing client wins is the essence of MRS Digital, and our increasing list of clients demonstrates why companies choose to work with us – to get the results they want for their business. We are filled to the core with a passion for everything digital, and I can’t wait to see the amazing growth and stellar achievements we’ll continue to make this year.“

Established in 1999, MRS Digital has been helping businesses utilise the web to create success for 22 years, swiftly adapting to the dynamic online marketplace while remaining passionate about digital strategy through digital marketing, web design and development. It delivers impactful digital marketing strategies to drive real growth for its clients and break through the crowded online commotion.

MRS Digital works with a variety of local, national and international businesses across a range of sectors and sizes, including Phyllis Tuckwell, Just Kampers and Foxhills.

Appointments, News

Workhuman® strengthens its Executive Leadership Team with three new appointments

Workhuman®, pioneers of the human workplace, announced today that Scott Dussault has been named the company’s new Chief Financial Officer. Dussault will be based out of the company’s Framingham, Massachusetts offices. Dussault joins Workhuman with more than 20 years of operational and financial leadership experience and a track record of success in both public and private technology companies. He was previously Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Demandware, Inc., (NYSE:DWRE) the category-defining leader of enterprise cloud commerce solutions, where he saw the number of employees grow from 120 to 500+ and annual recurring revenue increase from $8 million to $150 million. Dussault led the company through its initial public offering and follow-on offering, which raised approximately $300 million and resulted in a market capitalisation of over $3.5 billion. He has been a leading executive and board and advisory board member at other leading technology companies, including StorageNetworks (NASDAQ:STOR), BigCommerce (NASDAQ:BIGC), Desktop Metal (DM), and Oracle/Dyn.

“Scott brings more than two decades of success in various leadership roles across our industry and has a proven track record of leading complex financial teams globally,” said Workhuman CEO Eric Mosley. “We started off the year with tremendous growth and energy, and the rest of this year looks incredible. Scott’s experience and deep understanding of the financial landscape allows us to continue on a positive path forward.”

Workhuman also announced the hiring of Chris Campbell as Senior Vice President of Product. Campbell spent the previous five years as the Senior Vice President of Product and Technology for Angie’s List (NYSE: ANGI) where he was responsible for the company’s product development efforts. Over the last five years Campbell delivered a turnaround for Angie’s List, achieving impressive YoY revenue growth for the first time in close to a decade through substantially evolving their marketplace product. Most recently, Campbell was a leader in the merger of three subsidiary products into one consumer experience and relaunched Angie’s List as Angi.

“Chris’s passion for technology and his desire to succeed has led to a track record of unmatched excellence in execution,” said Mosley. “Our company’s ability to thrive against a backdrop of huge uncertainty for the world has further demonstrated the need for our solutions in the workplace. His track record of building solutions with adoption at scale is aligned with our strategic plans of continuous innovation and our commitment to delivering exceptional experiences and outcomes.”

Additionally, Workhuman has announced the appointment of Charles Kane as the newest member of its Board of Directors and Chairman of the company’s Audit committee. Kane has been Audit Chair at 15 technology companies, including  Demandware, Real Page, Progress Software, and Netezza. Earlier in his career, Kane served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of RSA Securities, Informix, and AspenTech.

As companies emerge from the pandemic and remote workplace environments, culture is more important than ever. Workhuman’s business has accelerated over the past year due to its award-winning Social Recognition® and Continuous Performance Management solutions, which are becoming mission critical tools to deepen the social fabric that leads to strong cultures within companies and organizations and helps to build communities of human beings within corporate environments.

For more information about how the Workhuman Cloud can help strengthen your workforce and drive better business performance, please visit www.workhuman.com.

 

News, Property News

Last chance for homebuyers at Wimborne development

Demand for new homes in Wimborne is outstripping supply, with just 10 homes remaining for sale at a new housing development under construction in the town.

Bellway is delivering 84 new homes at Badbury Reach, off Cranborne Road, including 60 homes for private sale and 24 affordable properties available for local people through rent or shared ownership.

With construction work progressing well, the final homes are expected to be completed at the end of the year – but if sales continue at their current rate, the site will be sold out much sooner.

Kim Caldwell, Sales Director at Bellway Wessex, said: “Demand is far outstripping supply at Badbury Reach as these much-needed new homes are proving to be popular with young, growing families looking for a prime location to settle down.

“There are now just 10 homes left to be snapped up, which is no surprise due to the high quality of craftmanship at the site and the close proximity to local amenities.

“Families are particularly happy to be located opposite a new primary school that has recently been built as part of the wider neighbourhood in Wimborne.”

There are currently 10 homes for sale at Badbury Reach in a range of three and four-bedroom styles. The final home to be released for sale will be the Bowyer showhome, a four-bedroom detached property.

Kim said: “Badbury Reach is in a highly sought-after residential area within walking distance of Wimborne town centre.

“The homes we’re building form an elegant collection of 13 different house types with a mix of two, three and four-bedroom layouts, offering something for a range of buyers.

“Following the success of the development so far, we’re now expecting the final homes to be sold soon.”

Prices at Badbury Reach currently start from £404,995 for the Millwright, a three-bedroom semi-detached home.

For more information about the final homes left for sale at Badbury Reach, visit bellway.co.uk or call the sales team on 01202 088290.

FInance, News

Navigate Commercial Finance launches to support UK SMEs

Birmingham-based Navigate Commercial Finance has been launched by experienced finance specialist Paul Varley to help UK SMEs to raise working capital to finance growth and working capital needs.

Navigte Commercial Finance acts as an outsourced commercial finance team to help businesses navigate the various funding options available and will work directly with businesses as well as a range of professionals including accountants to support their clients when seeking financial backing. The team led by Paul Varley will draw on over 40 years of experience in lending to provide access to tailored solutions including invoice finance, asset based lending and cashflow loans.

Varley previously worked as Sales Director at Liquidity Club and prior to this at Positive Cashflow Finance and Santander. He has over 19 years’ experience in the finance industry with specialist expertise in asset based lending and invoice finance.

Paul Varley, Managing Director Navigate Commercial Finance explains: “I have launched Navigate Commercial Finance to help SMEs raise finance that is best suited to their business needs and am delighted to work with an established network of specialist lenders. The pandemic has put strain on many businesses and for many it is hard to know what funding to choose and how to ask for help in approaching lenders. The last 12 months has affected the business landscape considerably and although there are pockets of confidence across many industries the level of debt created  by the pandemic has led to balance sheets swelling.  Now it is even more important than ever to speak to professional advisors who can help your business to survive and thrive, becoming more resilient to future challenges.  Our role is to make the experience of seeking finance easier for both the business and the funder.  Drawing on our experience and established professional network we can deliver well informed options that are communicated clearly and directly. This relationship approach forms part of our core values and commitment to helping businesses tap into the best solution.”

 

News

Business tourism woes: One in ten former flyers won’t fly for business post-Covid 

Business travel is set to take a major hit in the aftermath of the pandemic, with almost 10% of UK business leaders who travelled for work pre-Covid planning to take fewer business trips in the future, according to new research.

The survey, conducted by The University of Law Business School, found that almost half (44%) of the respondents who stated they won’t continue flying for business in the future said that this is due to the convenience of virtual meetings, which have been heavily relied upon during the pandemic.

A 10% decrease in business travellers will have a huge impact on the industry. With ONS data showing a spend of £1,045,000,000 in Q1 of 2020, this drop could see spending on business travel plummet by over £100m. With airlines already struggling to recover from being one of the hardest-hit industries since March 2020, business travellers opting to stick to online meetings will be yet another blow.

Of those who are planning to continue travelling for business, they are planning to do so less frequently than previously. Only 20% are now planning to travel a least once a quarter, a 7% decrease compared to the pre-pandemic rates.

Almost a third (30%) of respondents stated that the cost of air travel is prohibitive. Many businesses are looking to cut costs and recover from the pandemic, therefore it is no surprise that finances play a part in these decisions.

The research also shows that on average, people are planning on taking one less business trip a year once all travel restrictions are lifted internationally.

The reluctance to travel for business post-pandemic fluctuates depending on which sector people work in. Based on the average number of days respondents anticipated to spend travelling internationally for business, the industries likely to see the biggest decreases in international travel are:

  • Recruitment and HR (-5.2 trips)
  • Retail (-3.9)
  • Accounting, business and finance (-3.5)
  • Science and Pharmaceuticals (-3.3)
  • Public services and admin (-3)
  • Teacher training and education (-2.5)
  • Transport and logistics (-1.3)
  • Media and internet (-1)
  • Property and construction (0.9)

Those working in HR and Recruitment are now the least likely to travel overseas for business, having seen the biggest difference. On average, workers in this sector are now planning to take five fewer trips a year. Workers in retail were also high up on this list, with four fewer trips per annum.

Notably, 28% of decision-makers in Law Enforcement and Security flew abroad as much as once a week prior the pandemic. However, when asked about their predictions for post-pandemic, the number of respondents in this industry expecting to travel abroad for business less that once a year doubled from 14% to 28%.

Marco Mongiello, Pro Vice-Chancellor, The University of Law Business School, commented:

“Having operated virtually for more than a year, businesses have recognised the benefits that flexible, remote working can provide to both the business and their employees. We cannot deny that face-to-face meetings come with intrinsic benefits, but with technology evolving, business leaders and their employees are able to work from anywhere in the world, whilst still being able to communicate with their team and work effectively. Conducting virtual meetings to engage employees, stakeholders and business partners is the new normal.

“I anticipate that now, the key skills that employers will look out for will not only be digital literacy, communication and others that would be expected, but also the ability to navigate online conferencing platforms, and adapting to new technologies with ease.

“This could be a real driver of change for the business travel industry. Businesses which once spent thousands of pounds per year on international travel could cut that spend to zero, instead investing in virtual conferencing and meeting facilities, which have naturally boomed in popularity over the past year.”

For more information about ULaw Business School, please visit https://www.law.ac.uk/business  

 

News

Lead by example: Demand for ‘Inclusive Leadership’ coaching increases

Demand for ‘inclusive leadership’ coaching have increased, with 27% of executives citing it as an area for improvement

Inclusive leadership is climbing the business agenda and is now the most requested management coaching topic, according to the latest feedback figures from Talking Talent, a specialist coaching consultancy. While more than a quarter (27%) of business executives have requested more coaching on being an ‘inclusive leader’ there is still significant strides to be made to tackle diversity, equity, and inclusion issues within business.

Creating a truly inclusive workforce is one of the greatest challenges for leaders, and research from Gartner indicates that only 40% of employees agree that their manager fosters an inclusive environment. The behaviours shown by those at the top of a business filter through to the rest of the organisation, so it is essential that leaders give diversity, equity and inclusion due attention.

Chris Parke, CEO at Talking Talent, says, “Recognising and embracing employee differences continues to be a challenge within organisations. Not because people are negative or consciously biased, but because they are operating within their own cultural norms and are not necessarily aware that their own inherent thinking and perspectives influence their actions in ways that could be seen as exclusive. Those who have requested inclusive leadership coaching have taken an essential step, examined the state of inclusion around them and identified a problem, which is, of course, the first step in ‘solving’ the problem.”

Following the monumental events of 2020, where diversity, equity, and inclusion was cemented as a board level agenda item, Google searches for guidance on ‘inclusive leadership’ peaked throughout the year. Search queries of ‘diversity in business’ were up a huge 170% and demonstrates how pressing the need for coaching is. Inclusive leadership coaching aims to explore unique challenges for each business so that holistic and realistic solutions can be applied and will then affect the whole workforce.

Parke, adds, “Attitudes towards leadership are slowly evolving and 20 years ago it would have been a struggle to convince leaders to undergo this type of coaching. For me, looking inward and identifying areas for improvement is the mark of a true leader. While there is still a lot of progress to be made, it is encouraging that inclusive behaviours are now more essential within leadership.”

Inclusive leadership coaching has been conducting with a range of Talking Talent clients, after the sessions, a spokesperson from Mondi said, “I can implement these new leadership techniques in my own meetings, and I know how to be less passively inclusive. I also know to work on my own self-awareness and actively ask for feedback.”

A spokesperson from Siemens added, “The inclusive leadership awareness session left us with a lot of insights and thought-provoking moments. Further, it has strengthened our resolve to (a) reflect more intensively upon our actions (b) role model the desired behaviours and (c) keep moving forward with our aspiration of not just accepting & valuing inclusion but also actively combating exclusion.”

The ongoing effects of lockdown and events of 2020 highlighted the need for diversity, equity, and inclusion in business more than ever before. Terms such as ‘allyship’ and ‘unconscious bias’ were entering discussions in and out of the boardroom. Allyship in particular was a breakout query, with Google searches of ‘allyship meaning’ increasing by more than 5000%. Some organisations rushed to support causes, and with little inside understanding, the statements backfired. Being an inclusive workplace means being representative of the wider population which can reduce the risk of inaccurately representing experiences.

Parke concludes, “The water-cooler, or rather the video call catchup, moments of 2020 were about issues way beyond television and the weather. Instead, many were looking at our own behaviours and how they may impact those around us. From there we also looked at our places of work and the part leaders have to play in creating a place where people can openly call out exclusive behaviours and everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed. Conscious inclusion is about developing your culture through purposeful and intentional actions to support and uplift others, acting consciously and conscientiously to create real and lasting change, naturally this type of workplace is spearheaded by an inclusive leader.”

 

News

ESCP London Campus Hosts Virtual Summer Entrepreneurship Festival 2021

ESCP Business School’s London Campus hosted its annual summer edition of the JB Say Entrepreneurship Festival on 26th May 2021. The Summer Edition is run exclusively by the London Campus as part of the MSc in Marketing & Creativity (ranked 5th by QS World University Rankings) and MSc in Marketing & Digital Media programmes.

Led by Prof. Davide Sola and Prof. Christian Linder, the vision of this event is to unite students, alumni, entrepreneurs, investors and potential customers to exchange ideas and learn from each other.

The 2021 Summer Edition

Open to all, this year’s festival saw more than 132 attendees during the fully-virtual event. Guests joined from France, Spain, United Kingdom, Germany, Mexico, Mauritius, Côte d’Ivoire, Poland, United States, Brazil, Netherlands, Venezuela, India, Lebanon and Hong Kong SAR.

Nine innovative teams showed how entrepreneurial thinking and problem solving could be applied to the current market, building customer-centric and sustainable value propositions.

The event started with the teams showcasing their ventures at a virtual simulation trade fair. Customers, investors and other guests were then able to discuss projects one-to-one at virtual stands, and the first prototypes (MVP – Minimum Viable Product) of each business were tested. With around 50% of new ventures failing due to lack of validating the initial key dimensions of the project, the students were working through this vital step to ensure the success of their projects. During the competition, all nine ventures presented their pitches to a panel of entrepreneurs and executives.

The Keynote Speaker

Prior to announcing the winners a keynote speech was given by Pierre Battu, Founder at SELAVI and ESCP Alumnus (1999). After graduating from ESCP, Pierre discovered the world of entrepreneurship while working for an industrial paper company in New York City. Pierre created his first company with a business partner he met there; they acted as trading agents for French Textile producers, selling over three million French products to US clients in the first year. However, so-called “French-Bashing” in the wake of the 9/11  terror attacks and the lack of French political backing for the invasion of Iraq by the US government created extreme instability on this market. Many French suppliers were forced out in an already declining market.

At that time, Pierre realised there was an opportunity to re-enforce the social links in the growing French Community living in the tri-state area. Thus, what was meant to become an international “social” brand and an engagement platform for affluent Millennials was born. The business quickly extended globally, and Selavi, an activation agency in charge of “Selling” the aggregated demography to premium brands, was created to monetise this platform further. With offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Hong Kong and Jakarta, Selavi’s expertise focuses on content creation, education, experiential marketing and amplification strategies.

The winners of the Entrepreneurship Festival 2021 (Summer Edition)

Overall winner: MSc in Marketing & Digital Media – ‘MANING’

Sixtine De Misouard
Sally Jaeger
Priyanka Rambujoo
Marina Sanchez Gomez
Sara Tolardo

MSc in Marketing & Creativity – ‘For A Change’

Akshay Bhatia
Lea Bou Fadel
Antoine Malakhia
Nina Steinlechner
Isabela  Tenório

MSc in Marketing & Digital Media – ‘SelfOut’

Floriane Blanc
Mateo Burdairon
Domitille Chignon

Kelly Fakhry

Emma Finkelstein

Testimonials from the Festival panellists

Carolina Decastri shared: “Extremely thrilled to have been part of the jury panellists in this summer’s ESCP Entrepreneurship Festival! It has been a wonderful learning and growth opportunity. Absolutely amazed by all the great ideas and concepts presented by the students – loved the enthusiasm and discussions!”

Veronica Wera Kiejnich added: “What a great event! Congratulations ESCP! I learned a lot myself – always on the lookout for opportunities to grow.”

News, Property

Three-bedroom house opens for viewings at Kings Norton development

Visitors to The Oaks development in Kings Norton can now explore another property from Bellway’s Artisan Collection, following the opening of a three-bedroom house at the site.

The Oaks was the first development to feature homes from the Artisan Collection, Bellway’s flagship range of house types which combine traditional craftsmanship with modern construction techniques.

A four-bedroom detached Magnolia showhome is already open at the development off Parsons Hill, where Bellway is building 171 new homes.

Now, buyers in the market for a smaller property will be able to take a look around the Turner, a three-bedroom home with an L-shaped open-plan living/dining room, separate kitchen, en suite shower room, and family bathroom.

The viewhome has been fitted with flooring throughout and kitchen appliances to showcase the high specification of homes in Bellway’s Artisan range, but left unfurnished to enable buyers to appreciate the size and flexible living spaces provided by the Turner.

This property is currently on the market from £285,500.

Marie Richards, Sales Director for Bellway West Midlands, said: “Homes are selling extremely quickly at The Oaks, as demand continues to grow for these stylish Artisan properties in a desirable location within easy reach of Birmingham city centre.

“Kings Norton boasts a wide range of shops, schools and green spaces as well as its own railway station which has direct services to Birmingham New Street in just over 15 minutes.

“The Oaks features a variety of different property sizes and styles, from two-bedroom apartments to two, three and four-bedroom houses. The Turner viewhome will complement our Magnolia showhome, giving visitors at different stages of the property ladder the chance to explore the type of property they may be interested in.”

The Oaks is transforming a former industrial site in Kings Norton which was vacant for many years. Construction work began on the site in July 2018 and the final homes are due to be completed next year.

A selection of three-bedroom houses are currently available at The Oaks, with prices ranging from £285,500 to £301,500.

For more information, call 0121 756 2091 or visit bellway.co.uk.

CAPTIONS –

  • Internal photography of a Turner house type
News

Employability hit hardest by lockdown according to UK students

More than half (54%) of UK pupils aged 16-18 believe the COVID-19 pandemic caused greater disruption to their employable skills-based learning – such as data analysis and communication skills – than to their learning of academic subjects, leaving them less prepared to enter the workforce, according to a new survey from Tableau, the world’s leading analytics platform (NYSE: CRM).

The nationwide research, which explored the impact of lockdown on the education of pupils in years’ 10-13, also found that less than half (47%) of students feel that their school education has prepared them for the world of work, while almost two fifths (38%) are unaware of the key skills sought after by employers.

A Royal Society report during lockdown suggested that school time lost because of the pandemic could harm the UK economy for the next 65 years due to its negative impact on the future skills of the workforce.

Discussing the results in relation to the UK’s data skills gap, Professor Pat Tissington, Academic Director of Employability and Skills at University of Warwick said: “To speed up the UK’s economic recovery, it is vital that educational institutions prepare pupils for the world of work and give greater focus to the skills that are becoming increasingly important for employers, such as data analysis.

“Data skills are relevant for a wide range of roles, yet the research from Tableau shows that almost half (47%) of students find the concept of data analysis a little scary. This precedes the pandemic; in the last two years almost half (46%) of UK businesses have struggled to recruit for roles that require data skills. More needs to be done to equip pupils with the digital skills they need in the workplace if the UK is to avoid a huge data skills gap.”

For UK employers, the need for digital skills has spread far beyond traditional IT job roles, with two in three (68%) job postings outside the technology sector seeking data-literate candidates and many lower-skilled roles demanding basic data literacy skills.

Meanwhile the lack of data-driven skills could have a severe impact on the UK economy – costing as much as £2 billion annually.

Commenting on the results of the survey, Dan Pell, General Manager and Senior Vice President for EMEA at Tableau commented: “Although lockdown disrupted skills learning, we know that there was already a problem with data skills education. This seriously limits career opportunities for young people right across the country, and those who aren’t able to demonstrate data skills will be at the back of the jobs queue.

“We’re not just talking about skills for jobs in the tech industry here; we’re talking about skills used daily in almost every job – the confidence to handle and understand data. Building back better is a unique opportunity for a resetting of priorities when it comes to ensuring our children are best prepared for life beyond school.”

As well as feeling unprepared for work, the study also found that 80% of pupils would like schools to work more closely with businesses to make education more relevant to employers.

Dan Pell added: “At Tableau, we know it’s not just the responsibility of schools and colleges to teach pupils the digital skills they need – but future employers too. For this reason, we have launched our free e-learning course for pupils in years 10-13, to help them learn the foundation data skills they need for the ever-evolving digital requirements of employers.”

The Tableau free e-learning course provides an introduction to data skills and is accessible from any device with an internet connection. Students who have completed the course can add it to job application forms and university and college applications.

Research methodology

The survey by Vitreous World, commissioned by Tableau, was conducted to gain insight into UK pupils and their understanding of employer wants and sentiment towards data analysis. The quantitative survey was conducted in May – June 2021, at a +/- 3.1% margin of error, and interviewed 1,005 students in the UK, with equal representation across years 10, 11, 12 and 13.

About Tableau, a Salesforce company

Tableau helps people see and understand data. Tableau’s self-service analytics platform empowers people of any skill level to work with data. From individuals and non-profits to government agencies and the Fortune 500, tens of thousands of customers around the world rely on Tableau’s advanced analytics capabilities to make impactful, data-driven decisions. For more information, please visit www.tableau.com.

About Salesforce

Salesforce is the global leader in Customer Relationship Management (CRM), bringing companies closer to their customers in the digital age. Founded in 1999, Salesforce enables companies of every size and industry to take advantage of powerful technologies—cloud, mobile, social, internet of things, artificial intelligence, voice and blockchain—to create a 360-degree view of their customers. For more information about Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), visit: www.salesforce.com

About Vitreous World

Vitreous World is a leading consultancy delivering global data solutions to marketing and media industry stakeholders. The core team currently has over 200 years of collective research knowledge and is the home of trusted data. The experienced team has founded – or joined – some of the industry’s leading accreditation schemes including being founders of the Public Relations and Communications Association Research Best Practice Committee, and a Market Research Society Company Partner. For more information, please visit www.vitreousworld.com.