The meeting was held on March 18th at FEA’s offices in London. Led by Natalie Courbet CFSP and Greg Archer MBE, the event aimed at determining how NextGen will engage with school leavers, students in colleges and universities and industry newcomers.
It covered a diverse range of topics, from the variety of day-to-day work to ways of engaging with potential recruits to the industry. Amongst the next steps agreed were:
- The production of a ‘Day in the Life of Our Industry’ video
- Market research to understand what school and college leavers want to see
- Exploring collaboration with industry charities that already champion our sector
- Creating careers information packs
NextGen aims to build a skilled workforce in the industry in a number of ways, including showcasing career opportunities, strengthening engagement between education and employers, and supporting early career development for new employees.
Isabelle Harvey, of Food Service Equipment Spares, is one of the new leadership team. She said: “I think the NextGen initiative is a really inspiring idea. When I left school, I had no clear idea of what I wanted to do.
“If the food equipment industry had been presented to me as an option back then, it’s definitely something I would have considered. It offers so many different pathways and opportunities. I hope we can portray the food industry in a much better light and promote it as a genuine career choice, rather than something people simply fall into.”
The members of the FEA NextGen leadership team are:
- Alex Burley, Electrolux Professional
- Natalie Courbet, Exclusive Ranges – chair
- Eider Gajate Emazabel CFSP, Unox
- Liam Green CFSP, Forest Catering Equipment Ltd
- Isabelle Harvey, Food Service Equipment Spares
- Kyle James, WAM Engineering Services
- Niklas Moore, Hupfer
- Claire Moss, Kre-ate Ltd
- Chris Noble CFSP, Falcon Foodservice Equipment
- James Peeke, Tricon
- Leigh Rayson, Catertherm
- Chris Stevens, Quintex Systems
- Luke Taylor, MKN
- Joshua Troth, Parts Town
- Alexandra Waring CFSP, Foxton Budd
FEA has announced the first NextGen Masterclass, which will take place at the Century Club in London on April 22nd.