A new report from the UK’s Department for Education claims that over half of adults in England (52 percent) would consider developing a portfolio career if they had more confidence in their own abilities. The figure rises to 71 percent for those working in HR, and 45 percent of workers would do so if they suffered less from so-called imposter syndrome. The research comes as the Department for Education launched a new campaign earlier this year calling for skilled workers to pass on their valuable experience by teaching in further education (FE). The campaign promotes the flexibility of teaching part-time in FE, enabling industry professionals to ‘change lives without changing careers’ by passing on their work-based skills and knowledge to the next generation of learners in their field alongside their current job. More →

Two thirds of professionals under the age of 24 claim to have a ‘side hustle’ – with 74 percent stating it is ‘too risky’ to focus on just having one job as they may have done pre-pandemic. In a poll – of 6,000 white-collar professionals – undertaken by recruitment consultancy Robert Walters; 54 percent of young professionals expressed a desire for a ‘portfolio career’ – the concept of monetising your skills in several ways and having multiple income sources, rather than a single job at one company. More →

New research from ECI Partners, a private equity firm, suggests that HR leaders believe the most prominent hiring challenge they currently face is a lack of technical skills and knowledge. Nearly a fifth (18.3 percent) of managers said this was their single biggest obstacle, highlighting the growing concern over the UK’s skills gap. The current labour shortages prompted by a range of factors including Brexit and Covid-19, appear to have further widened the skills gap for recruiters. More →