Employer Excellence in Careers Education Seminar 2
Outreach to intake: how can businesses maximise education outreach ROI by preparing young people for application processes?
Friday 9th May 2025 | 10:30am - 12:00pm
Join our second Employer Excellence in Careers Education Seminar to hear leading employers and sector representatives discuss:
Outreach to intake: how can businesses maximise education outreach ROI by preparing young people for application processes?
In this second of our national seminar series, you will hear from leading employers on how they have worked with educators to support young people to successfully articulate their skills and experiences during application processes.
Our Chair and panel of experts will share insights and practice informed by our latest research and quality frameworks. We will explore how employers can recruit talent and maximise the return on investment of their careers education activities.
By attending the seminar, you can:
- Gain insight into the innovative ways employers can have most impact in supporting young people to enter talent pipelines
- Develop a greater understanding of the role employers play in preparing young people for the transition from education to employment
- Understand the vital role employers play in helping young people navigate the ever-changing world of talent application processes
Employer Standards for careers education
Explore our free framework and self-assessment tool helping over 1,000 businesses of all shapes and sizes to close skills gaps and shape their future workforce.
Find out moreMeet the panel
Sareena Bains - Chair
Chief Executive Officer, Movement to WorkAppointed in Feb 2024, Sareena joined Movement to Work on secondment from Accenture, where she consulted leading financial institutions on change management and digital transformation. A strong advocate for equality, she has held numerous DE&I roles, spearheading initiatives to level the playing field and build workforces that better represent the diversity of our society.
Driven by her commitment to the next generation, Sareena is passionate about equipping young people with the skills they need to thrive in the jobs of the future, ensuring they are not just prepared, but empowered to lead and innovate in an ever-changing world.
Sharon Blyfield
Head of Early Careers, Coca-Cola Europacific PartnersSharon has been in the business for more than 30 years in a variety of functions and roles and now heads up Early Careers for Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) in Great Britain.
Having spent her career developing young talent, her current remit fits perfectly with her passion to create opportunities to support the next generation of young leaders. Sharon strives to work with strategic partners who challenge businesses’ approach to under representation of young people across all communities and works to create a level playing field in the recruitment process.
Sharon’s dedication to and outstanding leadership of CCEP’s apprenticeship programme has been recognised by CCEP’s leadership team, as well as peers and early career cohorts. Her awards and recognition include the Queen’s 2022 New Years’ honours list with an OBE for services to Apprenticeships and Skills.
Outside of CCEP she is an active board member for the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) and Vice-Chair of Youth Employment UK’s board and a Fellow of the 5% Club.
Ian Browne
Early Careers Lead, Lloyds Banking GroupIan Browne is Early Careers Lead for Lloyds Banking Group. Ian has built and oversees the execution of school and college skills building and work experience programmes, now reaching over 110,000 students a year – all aligned to the Gatsby Benchmarks and incorporating the Skills Builder Framework.
Ian is a strong advocate of CEC’s Employer Standards and the advancement of careers education. In 2024 he was recognised by peers as Early Careers Professional of the Year in the National Graduate Recruitment Awards.
Andrew Kilgour
Careers Leader, Derby Moor Spencer AcademyAndrew has nearly forty years of experience in education, having worked in various roles, including as a teacher, school leader, and Careers Leader. He is incredibly committed to helping young people thrive and succeed, regardless of their starting points - a focus that has been a consistent theme throughout his career.
Andrew is passionate about empowering staff across the school to establish successful and sustainable connections with employers. He has been instrumental in organising regular employer events, including employability workshops, mock interviews and mock assessment centres, and preparation for work activities, along with many other curriculum-based projects involving employers.
Amy Smith
Global Director, Recruitment & Outreach, FramestoreAmy has been working in talent related roles within the visual effects industry across both the UK and Canada for many years. In each role she has had responsibility for working with schools, colleges and universities to provide careers guidance and support educators with content. She is a non-executive Director of Access:VFX, an industry organisation working to improve the diversity of the visual effects industry. She is also part of the steering group of the Next Gen Skills Academy who, with industry, launched a Level 3 Diploma in Games, Animation and VFX Skills and she took responsibility for working with NextGen to develop, launch and promote VFX apprenticeships. Amy has also completed work as Chair of the T-Level panel for Media, Broadcast and Production. The panel was responsible for providing an employer perspective on the post-16 education landscape in the UK.
Hollie Whittles
Information Security & HR Director, Purple Frog SystemsHollie is an award winning TEDx speaker, author and Director of Purple Frog Systems, a global data analytics and AI consultancy. She is also a UK and US Director of Power BI Sentinel and FraggleWorks.
Alongside these roles, Hollie is the National Policy Skills champion for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), Vice Chair of the GTIA UK & Ireland Community Executive Council and sits on the Board for Digital Leaders, The Careers & Enterprise Company Employer Advisory Group and is a Governor at Telford College. In 2024, Hollie was presented with a Women in STEM award at the House of Lords.