Seeking Safe Spaces: Graduate Transitions into a New World of Work, Dr Lorraine Ryan

The 2022 KBS Spring Series continues Tuesday 8th March at 1:00 pm with a seminar by Lorraine Ryan.  The seminar format is informal and interactive facilitating discussion and Q&A this will take place on MS Teams Click here to join the meeting     The title and abstract are below.

Seeking Safe Spaces: Graduate Transitions into a New World of Work

The convergence of the digital and human world created by Industry 4.0 has led to a fundamental shift in how organisations operate. Digital transformation significantly increases the collective dexterity and individual density of skills needed in organisations today (Kieran et al, 2019). This presents challenges for everyone in the organisation as they learn to navigate their new environment. One employee group which emerges as being particularly impacted by the pace and reach of digital transformation are Graduate Entrants - employees entering the organisation directly from college within the previous 5 years. Drawing on data from our research commissioned by ICBE Advanced Productivity Skillnet, we explore key issues in relation to graduates’ experience of employment in the digitally transformed workplace. We examine whether graduates are ‘skill-ready’ for the transition from higher education; what organisations can do to create ‘safe spaces’ for graduate development; the importance of informal learning, coaching and networks in hybrid or virtual work environments and the changing graduate career path. Our findings show that graduates are transitioning quickly into more advanced tasks and activities which demand higher levels of skill in today’s digitally transformed workplace. However, there are some critical skill gaps that need to be addressed as well as concerning findings in relation to burnout and social skills gaps. The study directly responds to higher education, policymakers and businesses seeking to better understand today’s graduate needs as they transition from college into the workplace by providing novel insights into graduates’ own perceptions, experiences, and expectations of work.

All are warmly welcome, further information on the KBS Spring series can be found at https://www.ul.ie/business/research/research-events