‘Use your skills to help citizens and work for the fulfillment of needy people” is the call to action which Barclays employees have responded to with their initiative on ‘Make a Difference Day’ 2014, celebrated in October.
This year, it was the employees of the Human Resources department who took the lead with their program.
The team composed of 8 members went to the ‘Maison familiale rurale du Nord’, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) engaged in the education and training of young people aged between 14 to 18 who have difficulty in adapting to the traditional school environment.
The members of the HR team have facilitated several workshops which aim at improving and developing the skills of these teenagers.
“The workshop that we led with around thirty young people of this NGO was mainly centered on writing a proper Curriculum Vitae, how to better present their personal information as well as project the self esteem and confidence that is essential during an interview,” said Dev Sewgobind, who heads the Barclays HR team.
“Our work does not end here. We remain at the disposal of these young people to answer any of their questions and provide them with advice if needed,” said Sewgobind.
“We are conscious that the recruitment exercise is generally a stressful moment for every job seeker. That is why we chose the ‘Maison Familiale Rurale du Nord’ to provide the youth here with the necessary skills to get through this challenging exercise with confidence,” he added.
For his part, the director of ‘Maison Familiale Rurale du Nord’, Thierry Runga, expressed his pleasure with the dedication displayed by Barclays employees towards the NGO’s students.
“Our students have a range of work experience, which differs from one student to another. For example, one of our students, Gilles, often gives a helping hand to his parents in their restaurant, whereas, another, Gregory, has mastered the basics of automobile mechanics and is on an internship in a company,” Thierry Runga said.
“As soon as they reach the minimum age of being hired, our students alternate between courses and company internships. Hence, it is very important for them to learn how to sell their skills,” he added.
“Besides, it is a very good learning for our students to interact with bank executives and benefit from their advice. For that, we welcome Barclays`s initiative and congratulate the team members, who have moreover extended an open invitation to us to request for their support whenever we need it,” he concluded.
“Every year at Barclays, October is reserved for community commitment activities. Through this initiative, we wish to offer underprivileged youth a slew of trainings and consulting sessions in relation to their needs,” said Renuka Jacquette, Community Investment Manager at Barclays.
“It is also an opportunity for our colleagues to share their experiences and to understand the challenges that these young people are confronted with,” she added.
Make a Difference Day is an annual international volunteering campaign initiated by the Barclays Group.
Under this initiative, employees from Barclays, whether based in Mauritius or in the rest of the world, dedicate their time and skills, rather than their money, for the benefit of their local communities through NGOs, with beneficiaries aged from 10-35 years.
For this initiative, Barclays employees get together in teams to identify the NGO which they want to help, before forging ahead with concrete measures.
Image (Barclays) : Eight members of the Barclays Human Resources team went to the ‘Maison familiale rurale du Nord’, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) engaged in the education and training of young people aged between 14 to 18 who have difficulty in adapting to the traditional school environment.
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