The Philippine Business for Education and Citi Foundation’s First Future Project unveiled a new learning platform to reach 4,000 Filipino youth without college diplomas and train them in the cultivation of leadership skills and the adoption of a growth mindset.
First Future 2.0, the second tranche of the First Future series, is a combined approach to support senior high school graduates and youth without college degrees to enter and progress in the workplace.
“While more companies were now open to hiring graduates from the K to 12 system, the playing field continues to be unfair for those without college degrees, especially as they try to progress in the workplace,” said PBEd chairman Ramon del Rosario.
“With this, the second phase of our partnership with Citi Foundation First Future 2.0 was born. Over the past few months we have worked with over 25 partners within the contact center industry to completely identify and articulate competency needs, and to develop skilling and upskilling programs that focus on building these competencies,” said del Rosario.
He echoed the worries and anxiety many socio-civic groups and organizations have for the youth from being unemployed to underemployed. The chances of being hired are as challenging as they were even before the pandemic.
“While youth unemployment becomes more and more commonplace, our reason for being becomes all the more relevant. We need to ask ourselves, are we doing our part in making the situation a little less insufferable. It has always been our dream in Philippine business for education to end unemployment,” he said.
Del Rosario noted the various loopholes and roadblocks in the education to employment pathway that prevents the youth from landing meaningful jobs. The data needed to make informed decisions are lacking while the quality of training is inconsistent across career stages and platforms to facilitate the school to work transition are sparse, he said.
When PBEd asked hirers if they were willing to employ young workers, only 20 percent of companies said yes, despite the fact that 93 percent of K to 12 competencies learned in school matched what companies needed.
Del Rosario said the situation was more of a perception issue where hiring was still heavily based on credentials, such as college diplomas. Instead of looking at competencies, PBEd launched the First Future 1.0 to bridge that gap and help senior high school graduates enter the workplace.
The first initiative was considered a success with over 100 companies that joined the project agreeing to open 19,000 entry level employment and 800 job immersion positions for the youth.
First Future 2.0 carries on the first initiative—to support young people without college degrees—but now it focuses on mainstreaming skilling, reskilling and courses that will allow them to quickly enter and/or progress in the workplace.
“We are excited because we all believe that putting a premium on individuals who are flexible and can work well with others is vital to developing the workforce of our country,” PBEd executive director Love Basillote.
The industry-vetted learning courses developed for First Future 2.0 are focused on building the capacities and competencies of the youth, making them even more employable and qualified for different industries.
PBEd has engaged an initial 25 stakeholders, 19 of which are private companies from the contact center industry, for First Future 2.0. These partners helped develop the training programs, establish the network in various industries and mainstream the courses online given the shift to online learning due to the pandemic.
The First Future website has two main courses on skilling, reskilling and upskilling: the Future-Ready CSR – Growth Mindset Training Customer Service Representatives and Beyond Expertise-Cultivating Leadership Skills in Subject Matter Experts.
Each course has four training modules. Some of these are the Self-Discovery Journey, Leading Self in Challenging Situations and Communicating Effectively as a Leader, which may be found on the First Future website.
The Growth Mindset training teaches skills that are deemed valuable by the industry, such as self-discovery, developing one’s own potential and abilities in preparation for further success in the industry. The Cultivating Leadership Skills course is designed to help subject matter experts transition to leaders by providing real-life opportunities, challenges and practices to help people develop basic leadership, management, and communication skills.
After the completion of the course, participants will be given a Certificate of Completion which may be part of their credentials once they apply for jobs.
“We hope to change the landscape where diplomas are the only acceptable currency in entering and progressing in the workplace, to where young people can access jobs freely, regardless of their education background, as long as they are equipped with the right skills,” del Rosario said.