The younger generation - representing the future of business...

As the father of two teenage girls, one just about to go to university and another entering sixth form, I sometimes feel that young people are given a bit of a hard time by their ‘elders and betters’ – particularly those who seem to think that everything’s too easy for a generation of kids who have no drive, little ambition and almost nothing to offer prospective employers.

Maybe I’m lucky because neither of mine lacks that bit of get up and go which means one’s get-up-and-going to study medical neuroscience at one end of the UK or other (grades allowing!) and the other can’t wait to get-up-and-get-gone when her turn comes.

They do – and I’m sure will continue to – make me proud, but they’re not the only ones.

At PCS we’ve taken a strategic decision to encourage young people to join the business because what’s good for them is good for us.

We have a group of under-25s who represent the future of the business over a number of departments – whether that’s in programming and support; marketing and design; or even in accounting.

They come from a range of backgrounds and abilities, but we value all of their contributions. We’re not making it easy for them, they’re responding to a challenge.

Some employers might just think that ‘young’ equals ‘cheap’ – and let’s be fair, while they’re learning their trade, our young guns shouldn’t be breaking the bank financially. For us, actually, that’s not the point – although to be fair, it helps...

For us it’s a chance to bring people into the business to learn its culture and hopefully pick up good habits in terms of everything from customer service to an appreciation of what it takes to keep an operation like ours moving forward.

It’s an investment – and we can already see it beginning to pay off with some of the key contributions they’re making and have made. Some have come as apprentices or interns and we’ve been happy to convert them into full time roles.

Some of what they do is very visible – in our marketing materials or the way we present PCS to the wider industry.

Some of it is hidden, maybe within lines of code that users never see, but without which they couldn’t do what they do, and some of it is seen by only a handful of people when they call down for some hands-on support as a deadline approaches.

They’re all here for a purpose, working in important roles, developing their skills and, hopefully, helping PCS to grow.

I see no lack of drive or ambition in any of them. At some point that may come back to bite us when they perhaps want to put their skills into action elsewhere, but in the meantime we can only encourage their development, for their benefit – and for ours.