As one of the founding members, Diageo’s participation has been key to the success of Movement to Work to date. Their commitment to Movement to Work in the UK is part of Diageo Learning for Life, their global initiative which runs more than 90 programmes a year in more than 40 countries.

Diageo’s work placement model is delivered through its collaboration with the hospitality industry. Working in partnership with The Springboard Charity, Diageo’s Learning for Life programme offers six weeks of training as well as hands on work experience at a host of placement organisations, including hotels, restaurants and bars. Graduates gain a qualification at the end of the course with the chance of being offered an entry-level job afterwards. This allows for scale and reduces the reliance on one organisation’s talent need when working with young people. They are looking to expand this model in collaboration with other companies in their sector.

Diageo Case Studies

David Craig, 23, Glasgow

David was unemployed and unsure what he wanted to do as a career; having had a series of jobs which hadn’t been suitable for him, he was looking for other opportunities when his Job Centre Plus advisor recommended the Diageo Learning for Life programme. The hospitality focus of the course immediately appealed to David as he could see himself thriving in the hustle and bustle of that environment.

David got the lively atmosphere he hoped for with his two-week work placement at the Gin 71/Cup Tea Rooms in Glasgow city centre. The programme helped David define what he wanted to do and gave him the focus he had been missing. It also provided a real insight into the hospitality industry and built the confidence he needed to get a job in the industry after graduation.

Following his work placement David was offered a full-time role as daytime floor staff at Gin 71/Cup Tea Rooms, and a year later he was promoted to bar manager. In 2016 he represented Gin 71 in the World Gin Day international cocktail competition where he competed against five finalist bars around the world and was awarded the top prize.

David says: “It was the opportunity I had been looking for. The fact that we were constantly learning different things every day kept it really exciting. We then instantly put the skills we were learning into practice and that really helped me. With other courses, it can be a year before you’re actually in the job using the skills you’ve trained in. “It felt fantastic to come straight out the course, into a full-time job and then go on to compete in International competitions like the World Gin Day. The owner of Gin 71 took a chance on me and I’m so glad they did.”