The Rt. Hon. David Blunkett MP was the keynote speaker at the first GTI Breakfast News of 2015, held at the Anthologist in London today. The theme was ‘meaningful connections with the Millennial generation’ and the event also included an inspirational presentation from Kate Robertson, Global President of Havas Worldwide and co-founder of One Young World, about how the most connected generation can contribute positively to changing businesses, and the world, for the better.
David Blunkett drew on his own experiences to assert that the Millennial generation was interested in social responsibility, reputation and the purpose of potential recruiters and if they felt good about themselves at work, and felt good about being at work, they would be more productive, creative and effective. But recruiters need to understand what young people want and respond positively, by offering advice, listening and mentoring to demonstrate their value to the organisation. Recruiters must also show sensitivity to the basic issues that NUS research shows to be important to this generation, like where they live, their commute to work, the working environment and their need to be empowered and involved.
GTI Breakfast News, now in its eighth year, is sponsored by Havas People and organised in association with the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR). It takes place five times a year, in London, in front of an invited audience of over 200 senior recruiters, agency professionals and university careers advisers. It’s an inter-industry conversation that continues and reverberates in workplaces in the UK and beyond, through face-to-face, telephone and social media to include not just the lucky 200 at the event but the wider national and international community who share the same interests and challenges.
David Blunkett is the latest big name to present at GTI Breakfast News, following Tessa Jowell, Ken Livingstone, Michael Portillo and General Sir Mike Jackson.