Becoming A Digital Talent: Rona's Journey
Digital Talent was a training course for 16-24-year-old Londoners, aimed at plugging the growing skills gap being experienced in the tech sector. The Digital Talent initiative was made possible by London Youth, The Chase and JP Morgan, with the aim of supporting young people to navigate their way into the digital industries through offering access to training, qualifications and work experience.
Participants enjoyed an immersive two-week programme, that showcased industry roles, introduced them to a network of professional mentors, and developed essential skills in order to progress in their next steps. We showcased Marketing & Advertising, Film Production, PR & Events, Digital Marketing and Branding. Following our inspiring programme, attendees received six months of employability support to continue their progression into paid employment, work experience and mentoring.
The programme featured an array of fantastic organisations and industry-themed workshops including digital marketers from John Doe, SEO specialists from Blue Array and creatives from Good Nugget. Our special thanks and appreciation goes to all participating professionals for sharing their employment journeys, setting excellent challenges and building our young participant’s confidence and communication skills.
Once we had developed an understanding of the sector and the many opportunities available to young aspiring tech professionals within it, our Digital Talents received one-to-one support and guidance to support their access to employment opportunities across the sector. They were able to search for internships and vacancies, attend networking events and inspirational talks, including Black Tech Fest, Visa and Natwest initiatives. Every Digital Talent received a free laptop to celebrate their completion of the programme, and to support their continued learning and development.
Hear from digital talent Rona
Rona is a Kingston University graduate who joined us for the ride and is now an Intern at John Doe! Key highlights included designing packaging with creative agency, Good Nugget, experiencing XR ( Extended Reality ) with company Disguise and designing a sports campaign with John Doe.
Rona's favourite part of the mentoring process was the one-to-one support she received from Spiral Skills mentor, Shelby. Through the support she received during her sessions, she was able to confidently pursue opportunities to support her next steps and skills development. She believes mentoring can have a great impact on young people’s lives and thinks it is a youth service that should be more readily available to others.
During her mentoring, Rona was connected to a week of work experience placement at John Doe. Her experience across the Digital Talent programme boosted her confidence and prepared her to get the most out of the placement. Her time with John Doe particularly broadened her horizons and understanding of the employment options to pursue in her future. When thinking about what she would like to do as a career in the future, Rona expressed;
We would like to congratulate Rona on her incredible engagement and growth across her Digital Talent Experiences, and hope she is enjoyed her internship with John Doe, a PR company, as an Executive Accounts Intern. Spiral Skills would also like to extend our gratitude to all the Digital Talents, organisations and professionals who supported young people across the programme.
It’s been great having young people in the office and introducing them to creative agency life. We’re passionate about our industry, but know it’s one that can often seem daunting or confusing as many aspects of the business are not taught in schools or colleges. Everyone who joined us in the office has so much to offer in terms of creative thinking, curiosity to learn, and passion, each had such different and creative ways of tackling the briefs, it was great to see! -Grace Davies-Redmond, Account Manager, John Doe
London Youth and JP Morgan Chase Foundation are proud to support Spiral Skills as part of this exciting Employability programme to support underrepresented young people in London to develop their personal and professional skills to support positive career pathways in the Digital and Tech sectors.
