Tens of thousands of students around the country picked up their A level results in August, while many graduates are considering their first career move. These so-called ‘Generation Zs’ have suffered unprecedented disruption to their education.

Thanks to a global pandemic, most recent and current graduates have undertaken most of their significant learning remotely. Even when they could, many universities controversially did not return to teaching in person or holding lectures.

Meanwhile, this year’s A level and GCSE cohorts have also been in and out of lockdown and learning remotely for many months during a crucial period of their education. But it was not just classroom learning they missed out on – they missed out on the experiences of normal everyday living.

The pandemic may have had a positive effect on their exam results when it came to teacher-assessed grades in 2020 and 2021 – although 2022 students may not be so lucky as the first students since 2019 to sit the actual exams – it almost certainly had a negative effect on their social interactions.

I worked in a busy recruitment firm when I first worked in recruitment and it’s a great learning curve”

Literally shut away from contact with almost everyone apart from family, many young people have been left simply unaccustomed to dealing with people in person in a way that previous generations did.

It is almost certain that many school leavers and graduates looking for their first jobs will expect or want to move straight into the new world of work they have heard so much about – flexi or remote work – with most of their communication carried out online.

For sectors like recruitment, that could cause real issues. As we know, traditionally a new starter might learn on the job on a noisy and buzzing sales floor. But as school leavers and graduates pour into the market, I think there could be a problem attracting fresh talent to the industry unless we can make office working attractive again.

Perhaps one way is to focus on the genuine benefits of working face-to-face and working in a team at the beginning of your career.

It is one thing for more experienced staff to take on flexi or remote roles. This is of course commonplace, and expected, at more senior levels. But companies must work doubly hard for this to work well for junior staff, and junior staff are certainly missing out if they do not spend time with their peers and seniors. Indeed, how can young people in any industry – not just recruitment – become successful leaders of the future if they have not experienced the workplace?

On-the-job training is not something you can replicate online. Being in the office gives you the chance to be around experienced people and listen and learn.

I worked in a busy firm when I first worked in recruitment and it’s a great learning curve. How else do you teach graduates and school leavers to interact, build rapport and learn how to be part of a team and how to act appropriately in professional situations?

We all know that the early years in recruitment can be hard, but they can also be fun, rewarding, sociable and teach you a lot about yourself and others. Recruitment is a great industry for young people to consider and they will get to experience a buzz that they have certainly missed out on in the last few years.

David Hunt is CEO of Hyperion Executive Search

Image credit | Leon Britton