A Powerful Partnership

Skills Builder's Career Insights sessions have proven to be a transformative experience for hundreds of students, providing a tangible connection between classroom learning and real-world applications.

Last week, we were thrilled to run our second Corporate Career Insights Week in partnership with Weil, Gotshal & Manges (London) LLP. Building on last year’s success, last week we had 124 volunteers from 26 businesses, dedicate 1,240 hours to speaking with over 1,300 students from 23 of Skills Builder’s partner schools.

In just five days, we ran 52 sessions, during which volunteers shared valuable insights from their corporate careers with the aim of de-mystifying some of these roles for students who might previously not have been able to see themselves in a corporate setting.

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Bridging the Gap Between Classroom and Career

In each virtual session, employee volunteers from a range of corporate businesses, shared their insights and experiences with eager students. These conversations sparked curiosity, with some brilliant questions being posed by the students, including:

Which skills do you use most/least in your job?
Who inspires you?
What qualities do you need to do your job?

One student also asked the question: ‘Are you good at your job?’, which prompted an interesting discussion around the value of feedback from others. One volunteer commented: "Feedback is so important - it helps me to know what I am doing well and where I can improve. Knowing this helps me to grow and do the best I can for my team".

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Highlighting the Power of Essential Skills

Over 120 employee volunteers from 26 businesses took the opportunity, not only to share what they had learnt in their careers so far, but also to reflect on essential skills that they have built along the way. As they shared their stories, answered questions, and provided advice, they demonstrated the practical application of skills like speaking, listening, and leadership. Volunteers emphasised the importance of taking opportunities to continue learning: “I'm always growing - I love to learn new things and this has really helped me to progress in my career, as well as opening up lots of jobs to me that I didn't even know existed when I was your age.”

When asked which of the essential skills they use the most in their current role, one volunteer responded: “I use all of the skills in my job! I couldn't do my job without them - I couldn't do any job without them. I can learn how to use a computer programme, or other knowledge I need for a role, but being able to do things like listen, work in a team and problem solve are the most important things! I use all of the skills every single day, and am always learning how to improve them.”

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A Lasting Impact

Teachers were equally impressed by the engagement and enthusiasm of their students, noting the enduring value of essential skills in an ever-evolving job market. At the end of one of the sessions, one teacher took the opportunity to thank the volunteers personally, and emphasised the impact that these sessions can have: “I just want to thank all the volunteers for giving up their time to speak to our class. Our school motto is 'Unlocking Futures', and we try really hard to show the children all of the different opportunities they have open to them in the future. Being able to speak to you all today has been an amazing opportunity for our pupils to see what's out there!”

In their feedback, teachers also stated that they valued the foundation that these sessions built for students, from which they could continue to build in class.

Volunteers also shared their positive experiences, one commented that they were:

“Inspired by the opportunity to support students who would otherwise not have the connections or school system in place to participate in something like this.

They went on to say that they “enjoyed the Q&A section the most as the students had really thoughtful questions and it was rewarding to see them so enthusiastic to learn about corporate careers”.

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A Committed Team

We are incredibly grateful to everyone who contributed to the success of Weil’s Social Mobility Week. By connecting students with inspiring role models, we are empowering young people with the essential skills they need to thrive in the future workforce.

Alongside 26 brilliant volunteers from Weil, Gotshal & Manges (London) LLP, we would also like to thank volunteers from: