MBTI® and Strong® at heart of 'so wired for WORK' pilot
New initiative helps school-leavers make sense of the workplace.
OPP’s latest case study showcases ‘so wired for WORK’ (SWFW), a business that helps young people fully explore the alternatives to university.
In the case study, founder Nigel Barton talks about the pilot scheme that set the foundations for SWFW. Part of the programme centred on the MBTI and Strong assessments, in a session delivered by OPP consultant Lorraine Mills.
The purpose of SWFW is to address the widening gap between the world of school and the world of work. 'Generation Z' school leavers often have little idea how they should conduct themselves in the workplace, and yet employers expect them to arrive fully prepared for the various demands of working life.
“It’s two very different worlds colliding”, says Nigel. “so wired for WORK is all about bridging the gap in those first few months. It can be very intimidating, and we wanted to give young people a means of making the transition. That was the origin of the enterprise.”
The original format of the programme was a residential school. After a radical rethink at SWFW, the plan now is to take it to as wide an audience as possible. The course material will be adapted for two specific channels – a suite of modules for schools, and an online service.
“We hope to stick with the shape of the programme as defined by the pilot scheme, with its course developers and partners", says Nigel. "The big changes will be in how and to whom it gets delivered.”