In 2021, the team at Coutts chose Future Frontiers as their Charity of the Year and have been supporting us for the past two years. As part of this partnership, 22 Coutts employees have kindly given their time as volunteer career coaches for young people in Year 10.
At Coutts’ most recent coaching programme, Kajus and his coach Warren, an Executive Coach at Coutts, chatted to us about their experience.
Kajus
“When I got the letter from school about the Future Frontiers programme, I thought it would be a waste of my time if I’m honest. Then I was encouraged by my parents to do it and it was a great decision.
If I didn't do this, I would have no clue what I’d be doing in the future - I just had never really thought about it before! My coach helped me to explore some jobs and I am now interested in being a Construction Site Manager.
Once I had an idea of the job I wanted to do, I was able to meet with someone who worked in that area and I heard more about what they do and how I could do to get into that job.
“If I didn't do this, I would have no clue what I’d be doing in the future”
Now I see that I could definitely put more thought into some of my subjects at school. Before, in some subjects, if I felt like I didn't know anything, I would just put my head down and not really do anything. Now, I think I will really try to understand my lessons and work harder.
I am feeling more clear now because I have an idea of what I am going to do in the future and I know what to do to get there.
Warren
“I’ve really enjoyed coaching - I’ve learned a lot. Coming into it, I was excited because, although I currently work as a coach professionally, I hadn't worked with young people before and so I was interested to see what it was going to be like and what the challenges would be.
I was also excited that Coutts had supported the initiative and given me the opportunity to help young people in the area.
“The creativity and thought that went into Kajus’ responses was really encouraging to hear.”
I think what is particularly fascinating is how much thought Kajus has put into it. Even though he didn't know what he wanted to do at the beginning, when I asked him questions he had a considered, thought through response to everything and that was really inspiring to hear. I think when I was 14 I couldn't have answered the questions like he did! The creativity and thought that went into his responses was really encouraging to hear.
I have definitely seen a change in Kajus - he has developed a degree of clarity in terms of being able to articulate his skills. He’s now able to demonstrate how his everyday skills and hobbies, such as basketball, translate into skills in a professional environment, like managing people and leading a team.
There is also a new sense of confidence, in that he now knows there are options out there and they are viable and he can identify the right steps to move towards them. Even today, he spoke about how it’s ok to change your mind - you might not be able to get the first thing you want and things might not work out but it’s ok, you can keep going and try something new and you will get there in the end.”
The Future Frontiers coaching programme is a unique way to develop your staff whilst also making a positive impact in your local community. Get in touch with our team today to find out how your business could benefit from partnering with us.
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