Welcome to FAN!
FutureForce Action Network (FAN) is the ground-breaking initiative equipping employers to more effectively incorporate young people into the workplace.
FAN resources have been developed specifically for employers outlining excellent HR methods for effectively transitioning youth into the workplace via work experience, apprenticeships, internships, cadetships and jobs.
6 steps to successfully integrating youth into your workplace:
PLAN
MENTOR
SELECT
EVALUATE
INDUCT
COMMUNICATE
PLAN
- What do you, the employer, want out of the experience?
- What can you offer?
- type of workplace opportunity
- training
- time
- tasks
- projects
- pathways
- payment
- Who are you looking for?
- qualifications
- interests
- attributes
- Select a mentor to work with the young person
“ I would encourage every business owner and manager in the Waikato region to join FAN and, as a charitable trust, I also encourage funders to get behind this initiative – the future workforce is depending on it.”
Ken Williamson, Crombie Lockwood
SELECT
- Advertise the opportunity on FutureForce® Job Board
- Follow this up with your school or tertiary education contacts. Perhaps send them a link to the ad.
- Interview candidates based on your selection criteria
- Select the candidate with the best fit for your workplace
- Check references of potential cadets, apprentices or employees
- Negotiate terms including objectives, hours, payment and study conditions if applicable and retention strategies
- Include education provider in discussions where appropriate
- Complete prerequisite paperwork
Support Tools:
“I was quite nervous about taking on a Gateway student especially about what I was going to get him to do. It turned out it wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be and it was a really positive experience for everyone.”
Waikato employer
INDUCT
- Provide a background to your industry and business
- Cover any health and safety issues
- Treat the young person like any new staff member but remember they may need extra direction
- Discuss behavioural expectations such as appropriate phone and internet use, break times, what to wear and how to answer the phone
- Discuss what you and the young person hope to get out of the experience
- Encourage questions
- Direct other staff to support and interact with the young person
“Ultimately we’re keen to advance our people, helping them to develop their careers and fill senior positions within the business. We believe helping young people plan their careers is important on many levels. This should be a priority for all businesses and the training and commitment to this needs to start now.”
Leonard Gardner, Foster Construction Limited
MENTOR
- Choose a mentor to support the young person in your workplace
- A mentor should:
- Share their career story and talk about the young person’s aspirations, interests and options
- Brief and debrief the young person to create meaningful experiences
- Expose youth to as many different types of workplace experiences as possible
- Help build their professional networks
- Encourage questions
- Be available and supportive
“It is so rewarding to get the training we need to ensure our youth are well prepared for the workplace and for life in general.”
Te Kuiti Youth Worker
“I loved learning about tikanga and pepeha – growth mindset was practical and interesting.”
Māori Pasifika Trade Training
EVALUATE
- Provide regular and specific feedback
- Evaluate the performance of the young person and provide constructive feedback
- Evaluate the performance of the mentor
- Evaluate the experience and look for improvements for next time
“Ultimately we’re keen to advance our people, helping them to develop their careers and fill senior positions within the business. We believe helping young people plan their careers is important on many levels. This should be a priority for all businesses and the training and commitment to this needs to start now.”
Leonard Gardner, Foster Construction Limited
COMMUNICATE
- Communicate any issues gently and promptly with inexperienced youth
- Keep in touch with young people you would like to attract back to your business in the future
- Build and maintain networks with FAN contacts
- Offer another opportunity
Contacts
Access youth through:
- Secondary school Gateway coordinators, careers advisors and subject teachers
- Tertiary education providers
- Industry Training Organisations
- MSD Work and Income work brokers
“The FAN Quick Guide made the process of transitioning young cadets into our workplace psychologically less daunting as the simplicity of the tool made it seem easier.”
Waikato Employers reaping the rewards of engaging with youth.