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Health and Wellbeing | HR Strategy | Learning and Development | Upcoming Webinar

The Lost Generation – the challenge and opportunity for HR

Date: 19 Aug, 2026

Time: 12:00:00

Duration: 45 Minutes

Location: Online

Host: Simon Kent: Head of Content, The HR World

Sponsor: Springpod

The Lost Generation – the challenge and opportunity for HR

Register now

A recent report from the UK government has claimed the education, health and welfare systems are no longer fit for purpose in preparing young people for adult life. Declining opportunities, technology – both in the workplace and in recruitment – and a growing youth mental health crisis means one in six young people aged between 16 and 24 could be out of work, education or training in five years time.

What does this mean for HR and what can you do to help with this challenge? How are employers changing their attitude towards the management of early careers? Is there an opportunity here for employers to reinvent early careers to tap into the talent that exists, or is this a matter for Government – to create better pathways into the workplace and ensure young people are properly prepared and guided to make their contribution to society and build their own careers?

Join The HR World and our partner, Springpod, as we examine the evidence, debate the issues and identify a way forward for employers and HR.

Meet the Speakers:

Sam Hyams, Founder & CEO of Springpod

Sam Hyams is the Founder & CEO of Springpod, the UK’s leading platform for virtual work experience and career exploration. Springpod has helped 1.5 million young people explore careers through immersive, employer-branded programmes across 4,000+ schools in the UK, Ireland and the US. Employer partners include the NHS, Amazon, Airbus, Jaguar Land Rover, Barclays, Rolls-Royce, Accenture and the RAF.

Work experience has always been about who you know. If your parents have the right connections, doors open. If they don’t, they stay shut. Sam built Springpod to change that: to give every young person, regardless of background, the kind of career exposure that was once reserved for the few.

Lieutenant Colonel Philip Gill FCIPD, Workforce Planning, MOD

Lieutenant Colonel Philip Gill is a strategic HR and workforce transformation leader with 30 years of experience operating at the intersection of skills, security and capability across UK Defence. He has led global HR and strategic workforce planning functions, advised Ministers and Senior Defence leaders, and served as the principal interlocutor with the Armed Forces Pay Review Body. His recent work has focused on addressing critical capability gaps in highly constrained security environments, including the design of ZigZag Career Pathways to diversify and accelerate access to scarce skills, and the scoping of a Defence Skills Passport to enable trusted skills recognition and mobility across Defence and industry. His work increasingly explores how AI can be applied responsibly to HR functions, balancing immediate operational delivery with long‑term resilience in complex, fast‑evolving environments.

Jill Gates, Vice President, Culture and People, Europe and Asia, Ensono

Jill Gates is Vice President, Culture and People, Europe and Asia at Ensono, a leading end-to-end managed services provider that helps organisations modernise and optimise complex IT environments. Since joining Ensono in 2017, Jill has played a key role in shaping the company’s culture and employee experience across Europe and India. She is a passionate advocate for inclusive leadership, talent development and creating environments where people can thrive while delivering business success.

Before joining Ensono, Jill spent a decade at CenturyLink, serving as Vice President of HR International, where she led global HR initiatives across multiple markets

Details

Date: 19 Aug, 2026

Time: 12:00:00

Duration: 45 Minutes

Cost: FREE

Spaces: Limited

Location: Online

Register now

Sponsor Details

About Springpod

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Springpod helps employers, universities, and communities design and deliver career-connected experiences at scale – from subject spotlights and work placements to micro-internships, employability skills, and interview coaching.

Find out more about Springpod

Host Details

Simon Kent: Head of Content, The HR World

Simon Kent has been a freelance journalist in the field of HR and the workplace for over 20 years. He cut his teeth travelling the country asking people what they did for a living for The Guardian and developing an interest in how work and employees are managed.

He has written extensively for the national press, business and professional publications dedicated to general and specific HR functions, taking in HR tech, pay and benefits, legal, training, recruitment and more. He has edited HR and public sector magazines, digging out the best stories and liaising with senior level personnel and high-profile public sector leaders to bring great content to readers.

He has written books, blogs, white papers, features, profile, case studies and more. He has chaired round tables and brought high quality coverage online to a diverse platforms as electronic media has evolved. He continues to be motivated to find the stories and subjects that matter most to readers and ensure they deliver value every time.


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