How businesses can unlock opportunities for young workforce

Business leaders have agreed bold and innovative action is needed to help prepare young people for the changing face of work.

An annual event hosted by the Global Business Coalition for Education during the United Nations General Assembly in New York discussed how corporations can play a critical role and show leadership during a youth skills crisis.

Titled From Uncertainty to Opportunity: Unlocking Workforce Potential from Gen Alpha to Gen Z, the event brought together leaders from business, government, and community-based organizations. It was held against the backdrop of a rise in artificial intelligence, economic policy shifts, trade wars, and a burgeoning youth population creating a new global employment landscape.

Sarah Brown, Executive Chair of the Global Business Coalition for Education, opened the event by saying: “We’re all operating in uncertain times and facing rapid technological advancements and shifting workforce expectations.

“But we’re looking to find opportunities to work together across sectors to ensure that young people are equipped with the skills that they need to succeed in the future. As leaders we have the opportunity and the responsibility to equip the next generation to thrive.”

Justin van Fleet, CEO of the Global Business Coalition for Education, told the event about new polling carried out by the organization among young people aged 18 to 24 in the United States, United Kingdom, Spain, South Africa, Brazil, and India. The survey – which will be published later this year – revealed significant challenges and shifting expectations that are critical for business leaders to address.

In general, youth want business-led, hands-on training over traditional academic routes. Van Fleet added: “When we asked young people who should be filling the training divide, many think it’s the responsibility of business to train them for the jobs that they’re walking into.”

More than half of the young people polled said they feel “mostly prepared” to start work in their chosen career. But while Gen Z represents nearly a third of the global population, a vast majority of employers – more than 75% in most countries – report difficulty in finding skilled talent. The result is that youth face an unemployment rate four times higher than the average worker.

On the topic of AI, van Fleet said: “We found there is a lot of fear in some countries and a lot of optimism in other countries.”

He introduced a panel discussion featuring business leaders championing youth development and fostering business success through innovative approaches to social impact and the workforce.

Jill Huntley, Global Managing Director for Corporate Citizenship at Accenture, was asked how the company’s training programs are translating into jobs.

She said: “We do have a very ambitious set of goals. It is a long-term investment for any business in talent and future workforce. We focus on skills where there is a clear industry demand, so for us as a technology company that’s obviously in the digital industries.”

Huntley told how Accenture is also working with partners to concentrate on skills for other areas of expertise. She gave an example of the hospitality and travel industries in India where there is a shortfall of skilled staff, adding: “We are working with organizations and non-profits to find pathways to jobs for those from disadvantaged communities.”

With AI rapidly transforming the jobs landscape, Lydia Logan, Vice President, Global Education and Workforce Development, Corporate Social Responsibility at IBM, spoke about how to ensure the training matches the skills that will be needed.

She said: “It’s a constant race. Jobs are changing very quickly and we talk about the half-life of skills – and how what you’re learning today may or may not be what you need to learn a year from now. So, we do look at job market data regularly and we do a lot of work with nonprofit and government partners to ensure the jobs and skills are aligned.”

Logan added that she has been working with university faculty and leaders who are “trying to figure out what is the four-year degree in this environment and how they keep pace with industry. Everyone is feeling the change.”

Naria Santa Lucia, General Manager of Elevate at Microsoft, spoke about the corporation’s new global initiative which aims to train 20 million people in artificial intelligence skills. She said Elevate is also focusing on education, philanthropy, and workforce development. She said: “Our mission is to empower every person in every organization on the planet to achieve more. We are bringing together education business, as well as our skilling efforts and policy work for those who potentially may be left behind in this AI transition.”

She talked about forming partnerships with teachers and teaching unions in different countries, adding: “If we can teach educators how to use AI, the benefits will live on beyond that one classroom. We are also trying to get the teacher voice into how we are thinking about our product design. Who better than those who are in the classroom?”

The voice of youth came from Theirworld Global Youth Ambassador João Davi de Morais Barbosa Saraiva. He said: “I was born and raised in one of the most vulnerable communities and lack of professional experience is one of the main challenges that youth face. At university we often do not develop the softer skills like communication – maybe business would be the best area to teach them. We also need to rethink how companies can train young people in how to apply their knowledge.”

Talking about entry-level job opportunities, he said many required prior experience – but students at public schools and from disadvantaged backgrounds often lack that exposure.

The youth advocate also talked about the need for AI literacy to be taught in schools and universities, saying: “We cannot stop the technology revolution but we need to adapt, reshape and rethink our education system and empower students with the skills and AI literacy which are going to be core like mathematics or reading.”