With young people likely to experience seven careers in their lifetime, travel needs to fight to keep the best talent, says Travel 2 managing director Andy Freeth
This year, Prince Harry turned the ripe old age of 30 (just a few years younger than me, I might add!) Harry is part of a generation that is predicted to experience up to seven different careers in their lifetime – not just moving jobs, but changing industries too.
Gone are the days when you stepped into a business after school, worked your way up the ranks and retired at 65. It happens, but not as often as one might think, and it’s certainly changing.
With this in mind, the travel industry, now more than ever, needs to ensure it is doing all it can to keep hold of talented youngsters. There I go, showing my age again. . .
Hone those skills
In our industry there are many opportunities for young people to really hone their skills and build up a strong set of key skills that can be transferred across a number of disciplines – this is particularly true in the digital world of which we’re all now a part. Key to bringing on young talent is selecting the right people for the job, making sure the skill set is there, and also making sure there’s a cultural fit.
I’m a firm believer that once you get a new recruit through the door, especially if they are entering the travel industry for the first time, they need to be able to see a clear career path ahead of them – something to aim for and aspire to.
I’m sure many of you who manage teams will agree that seeing your recruits grasp the sector, increase their knowledge, grow in confidence and walk the path of a successful career not only leads to a successful team but makes your own job much more rewarding.
Inspire and engage
At Travel 2, our Passport to Success scheme does just that. The scheme works because of the partnership we have with local colleges. It allows us to tap into fresh talent and a section of society keen to learn and gain experience.
If we can inspire and engage young people at these key life stages, we can help point them in the right direction career-wise and hopefully encourage them to ‘think travel’ as they start to make some of the biggest and most challenging decisions at the start of their working life.
Although we still find ourselves living in a difficult time economically, our challenge is to encourage and inspire the younger generation and provide them with the opportunities needed to ensure job security and a long career in travel.
Prince Harry might not be following the same path as most 30-year-olds, but even he has found a need to develop his talents, nurture his career and clearly demonstrate the prospects available to him.
We need to ensure the same applies to the next generation of travel industry professionals.