Future Leaders: Cohort 5
Planet Professions
For our application phase of the Future Leaders Programme (FLP), we created an account on TikTok called Planet Professions.
Our vision was to bridge the skills gap and help raise awareness among younger generations of the career paths and jobs available to combat climate change.
We wanted to bring these skills and jobs to life through people’s personal experiences without filters: highlighting the different routes, roles, skills and opportunities young people can aim for. Our mission was to create a TikTok account that brought these experiences to life, without corporate interference or influence.
We launched a competition for young professionals working in sectors affecting the Net Zero transition to create a video showcasing their role in an engaging and creative way.
The prize for the two best videos (judged as per a predetermined criterion) was a place on the FLP9 cohort. The aim of this being to increase the scale and impact of Planet Professions, as well as offer two young professionals the opportunity to benefit from the FLP experience.
We strongly support the FLP and the opportunity for our platform to offer fellow young people committed to making a difference, the opportunity to be equipped with the skills and experience we have gained was a no brainer.
Key objectives of the project:
1
Launch and market a TikTok account with our brand ‘Planet Professions’
2
Create at least five videos to upload onto the TikTok platform
3
Sponsor two candidates for the next FLP programme
4
Practice and implement the leadership skills learnt during the Foundation Phase of the FLP course
Why Planet Professions
Decarbonising the built environment by 2050 will require a significant scaling up the current and future skilled workforce. We cannot rely on reskilling alone to meet this demand and must attract new people into the sector. As the ‘future workforce’, school leavers are an important group to attract into the sector. This challenge is two-fold:
Firstly, despite 80% of Gen-Z being concerned about climate change, they do not know much about the career opportunities involved in delivering Net Zero, nor are they aware of the qualifications or pathways available to become skilled and employable in relevant fields.
Secondly, these jobs are not always seen as particularly attractive, considered high-skill or well-paid. Recent research found that Gen-Z students are increasingly using social media to find out more information about certain careers. Therefore, our project sought to address this challenge by raising awareness of these careers and pathways through channels where more of the target audience are present.
The outcome
We achieved all three objectives of our project and more. We produced seven videos for Planet Professions, exceeding our original target. The two winners of our competition were Olivia Hullah and Alex Handley, who both submitted engaging and creative videos. They will both be participating in FLP9, and we are so pleased that they will be able to benefit from the course as we have done.
Whilst we were all passionate about the project and the topic area, it was also a fantastic opportunity to implement the freshly learnt skills that we had acquired in the Foundation Phase of the course. Learning the tools to make capacity, be self-aware, and foster positive accountability has been invaluable for us and are skills that we all intend to use in our professional careers and personal lives. Successfully completing a project alongside the commitments of a full-time job tests one’s ability to make capacity, have accountability and practice self-awareness effectively. It highlighted the fact that mindfulness and an attitude of intentionality with these practices is key for developing leadership and teamworking skills. These competencies are not simply mastered in a three-hour workshop, but instead should be habitualised and form the principles of a healthy working philosophy.
The challenges
Undertaking the project phase was an enjoyable and interesting experience. It also presented several challenges that can be divided into three key areas:
1 Accountability
Leaving the strategy retreat was exciting and left us feeling that anything is possible. Given the application phase is largely voluntary with minimal touchpoints, establishing a drumbeat of consistent activity was challenging. While presenteeism or keeping an eye on colleagues active MS Teams status is somewhat archaic, the inability to see each other’s diaries, annual leave dates or workloads meant that it was difficult to assign tasks or hold each other to account. This lack of transparency can be mitigated through honesty, trust and contracting. However, not having a hierarchy can make roles unfamiliar and while this was enjoyable to step-up at times, it wasn’t always natural or didn’t feel organic in taking up specific roles in the project. This meant we didn’t always play to our strengths. As a group we will admit that our eyes were sometimes bigger than our metaphorical stomachs for the project (noting lots on each of our personal and professional plates… food metaphor ends now). Upon reflection we should have set clearer deliverables from the outset, as deadlines undoubtedly drive performance.
2 Tangibility
Not having a clear deadline or end date made the project difficult to define and changing the vision and mission meant selling involvement in the project (to video participants/organisations) was at times tricky. We could have been better at making capacity individually to think about these challenges, prepare for meetings and deadlines. In addition, leadership cannot always be seen but it can be felt. Leadership is about environment creation, and we could have been better at thinking about problems laterally and playing to each other's strengths and ensuring everyone felt included and engaged. Instead, we fell into the trap of busyness – no longer checked-in/out of meetings and didn’t always split the floor equally for discussion. Furthermore, the project lacked clear goals or milestones to celebrate success. Upon reflection, we should have broken up the task and incentivised each other with a reward scheme or acknowledgement aspect. Being unable to see or touch the project in the early stages was demotivating and we could have navigated this better.
3 Deadlines
The project did not stick to our defined timescale and the goalposts for our outcome shifted on several occasions. Arguably, our ambition was one of our greatest downfalls in delivering the project and thus not seeing good as the enemy of great in certain tasks would have been more optimal. Thus, being honest with ourselves can lead to being more realistic with the group. This is a learning curve and all insights that we can take back into future projects and tasks working with diverse sectors and characters. After all, organisations are just made up of people and thus getting the people component right is 90% of the battle. This point was raised by some more senior members of the cohort in the earlier stages of the project and thus getting guidance on the realistic nature of a project is important. This isn’t to hinder ambition and the greatest things in society are derived from thinking differently but this still requires SMART goals and group/individual incentives for accountability and tangibility.
What the team learnt from FLP
“I have gained valuable insight from each of the three pillars that make up this programme and I will probably be consulting my ‘blue brain’, aka snazzy notebook, for years to come. The Foundation part of the course was all about the practical tools and tricks to learn how to make capacity, practice self-awareness, and empower others. These are skills that I have already benefited from and intend to use for the rest of my career. The Application part of the course was a chance to practice these skills in real life and this was a lot more challenging, especially when it came to making capacity. The project taught me that learning these techniques is not something static, but something that I will have to continue to practice in order to make a habit. The Aspiration stage for me has been all about the people. I feel so grateful to have already met so many wonderful and empowering leaders through this experience. It has consolidated my belief that the net zero challenge is all about collaboration and bringing people together. I don’t consider my FLP journey to be over, but instead feel very proud to be joining such a forward-thinking, innovative network. I have confidence that together we will bring about the positive change needed to achieve net zero. To conclude, the most positive lesson from the FLP experience for me personally, is that leadership is not always about succeeding, but instead about having courage to put yourself out there, even when you could fail.”
Jenny Russon
“It is hard to put into words the skills being part of this course has instilled in me as a manager, colleague, mother, partner, friend and person that wants to contribute positively to those around me. In honesty the course is what you make of it, the knowledge and skills shared are second to none, but how this is implemented is fully dependent on you. For those considering or preparing to develop themselves and partake in this course, I would say be honest, be open and be willing and the change it can make is limitless.
Alongside learning some fantastic skills, you will also meet some brilliant likeminded individuals, some influential experts in their fields of work and the wonderful Rich who will blow you away with his wonderfully calming green energy (all will become clear on the course).”
Hannah Thompson
“I feel incredibly fortunate to have been part of the FLP 5 cohort. This program has significantly contributed to my professional development, and the invaluable lessons I've learned from Rich and the team will stay with me for life. I greatly appreciate tailored educational experiences, and this course excels in that regard. It not only offers learning opportunities but also emphasises the practical application of the skills taught. The course is remarkably inclusive, and Rich, along with the delivery team, excels at addressing the unique needs of each participant.
To truly benefit from this program, it requires a commitment of time and energy. It's incredibly important to set aside dedicated time to work on this project and course, as the effort you invest directly correlates with the impact you experience. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and don’t let it pass you by without making the most of it.”
Iqra Tabassum
““The FLP has profoundly changed the way I see the world and understand myself. The retreat was one of the most enjoyable few days of my life and spending most of it outdoors meant I almost forgot that learning and developing isn’t confined to a desk or classroom. Much of my professional experience thus far has come from working in hybrid environments due to Covid. This has meant I have defaulted to being slightly more cold and less personable due to the inability to engage in person and sometimes being completely remote.
This course has allowed us to engage via face-to-face and virtually and through vulnerable and enthralling sessions, I have learned immense amounts from the subject matter experts, from my course mates and buckets about myself. The FLP facilitates an open dialogue and combines theory and practice to understand what makes you and others tick. The ability to spot positive and negative patterns in others is useful but being able to understand this about yourself requires real humility and self-awareness and the course pushes this, especially via the emotional intelligence module. I struggled for time and capacity with the application phase, but the course has come at an important time in my development journey and equipped me with skills for life.”
Harry Bowles
“The privilege that is the Future Leaders Programme, stands out as one of the single-most impactful experiences of my personal and professional life so far. The course takes a ground-up approach to learning the skills of leadership and charts a clear and effective journey through the various modules and topics, which I found highly intuitive to follow. The content itself is both mind-bendingly informative and practical helped along by the inspirational anecdotes and vast experiences of course leader and extraordinaire, Richard Cartlidge.
No other training I have received has created as much of a personable and tailored experience as FLP does. From the regular contact with fellow course-mates and tutors, to the bespoke journey afforded to you by the course design, and cerebral learning of coasteering, ‘Lego Serious Play’, and many guided workshops, this course has nailed the outcome of value for time and money.
My experience from FLP has fundamentally changed the way I think about my life and approach my career. I have also made profound relationships with those I shared the time with. I believe that this level of insight and development through FLP should be a staple for any business not only looking to give its employees a head start on the journey to leadership, but also to grow more well-rounded and skilled people overall.”
Ben Copson
