Supporting young people entering the world of work
People don’t realise how sophisticated a business like ours is. Firstly, we’re a really big business. We’re all about scale. We think in the millions – whether that’s in terms of customers, online deliveries, the money we spend or invest every week or the products we stock. And that scale creates a lot of opportunities for our people.
We’re also a visionary, creative, entrepreneurial, risk-taking business. And a very fast-paced one. Career opportunities at Asda are always changing, always evolving, because our business is. The roles we recruit today may be very different tomorrow, and that certainly keeps us thinking on our feet.
We think a lot about what we’re doing and where we’re going. Our culture is all about learning. We have a fantastic, and extensive, Learning and Development curriculum of both in-house and externally run programmes. We also encourage everyone at Asda to see different aspects of the business, broadening our perspectives and helping us to challenge one another about how we do things.
In fact, challenging us is one of the biggest reasons our Future Talent is so important to us. As digital natives, they have a better insight into how the world works now, and how it may work in the future. Artificial intelligence, machine learning, automation, robot pickers, websites and apps, data science, the Internet of Things. These are already familiar technologies at Asda. What comes next – well, that’s for our Future Talent to imagine.
But first and foremost, Asda is a people business. Everyone on our Future Talent programmes has access to an extensive network. Each programme is a community in itself, supporting each other professionally and personally. The professional support is also strengthened by a wider network, including direct access to the people at the top of our business.
Buddies. Mentors. The Future Talent team. Line Managers. Business Partners. We’re all here to help our Future Talent succeed. Together, we want to help young people define the next steps in their careers, whether that’s straight up or a side move.
Many of our colleagues have had five or six different careers with Asda. Our scale, and the diversity of roles within our business, offer that, and there are not many who can compete. But even if colleagues do find their dream role and never want to move away from it, we still encourage people to move around from time to time to get some new inspiration.
We believe that everyone should be uncomfortable when they get too comfortable, and that, whatever level we’re at, however expert or experienced they become, there’s always something new to learn. And we’re here to help our Future Talent do just that.