REAL CENTRE FOR RESEARCHING EDUCATION & LABOUR

Transcription

1 REAL CENTRE FOR RESEARCHING EDUCATION & LABOUR RESEARCH SERIES Working Paper No. 8 JumpStart: Understanding what makes for effective Youth Practice Carmel Marock June 2015

2 Case Study: JumpStart Understanding what makes for effective Youth Practice Prologue I was sitting at home after completing my Marketing course at PC training when my sister told me about Get On skills training institution and they told me about the different courses they have and advised me to take a course on cashier training. After I completed the course they told me about the JumpStart programme. We received training for 4 weeks after that they told me to go to Mr Price for 1 week placement. I then wrote a test after completing the 1 week placement and they contacted me after about 3 months to come work in the store as a casual staff member. I did this for about 8 months, and then I became permanent. The most important thing a person needs to know is information on the kind of work you will be doing; you need to have customer care and a good attitude towards your customers. 1. Introduction The JumpStart Programme is an initiative of the MRP Foundation. Participants are unemployed, have a Grade 12 certificate and are mostly under the age of 30. The project funds around 40 hours of employability skills training for these participants and then provides them with 6 days of work exposure in a retail outlet. Those that successfully complete this initial workplace exposure and pass the requisite entry assessments, are given the opportunity to be placed in employment in a retail store where such placement opportunities exist. Primarily, participants to date have been placed in MRP Group Stores, but more recently MRP Foundation has partnered with the SPAR Group and the Smollan Group to expand placement opportunities. 2. Research Methodology JumpStart was specifically selected as a case study as it provides a model which exploits the job creation potential of the retail sector, by bringing together supply and demand, while simultaneously contributing to strengthening and improving the NGO training sector. The methodology utilised to develop this case study included: Review of documentation Interviews with staff members, Interviews with participating NGOs Interviews with participating employers Interviews with participants of the programme

3 Interviews with individuals that have been employed in these companies but that did not come through the programme 3. Overview of the Programme The JumpStart programme seeks to bridge the gap between school leaving and first time entry into employment. Given the poor output of educated youth from the schooling system, the programme is premised on the logic that facilitating life skills and providing work experience opportunities will greatly increase an individual s employment potential. However, JumpStart also facilitates the demand for these skills. By virtue of its positioning in the retail sector, Mr Price has the capacity to unlock placement opportunities and then to determine how the participating NGOs should train to meet the demand. This allows them to specifically tailor the training to meet the entry level requirements of the retail environment, and thus enhance the likelihood of youth being successful when they enter the workplace. In 2009, the programme was enrolling around 220 candidates per annum, and reported that it had enrolled 344 youth since 2007 with a job placement rate of 40% (137). While the programme had received a positive response from internal stakeholders, it remained a small-scale programme. In 2009 MRP Foundation sought to scale up and expand the programme as part of its CSI strategy, in order to reach more NGOs and more youth. A network of NGOs was created, facilitated by a large KZN NGO (World Changes) and a local consultancy (Catalyx Consulting). The national expansion of JumpStart started in 2010 as the Foundation extended its reach beyond KwaZulu-Natal. In 2011, the Mr Price Group, through MRP Foundation, was requested to host a group of students for experiential training in their stores for an NQF level 2 W&R Seta Operation qualification. This initiative became an extension of the JumpStart programme. The 100 delegates were recruited from non-profit partners in Gauteng, Pretoria, KwaZulu-Natal and George that provide life skills programmes for the youth. The delegates underwent a tight recruitment process that included a preemployment assessment and interviews by Store Managers. 48% of the delegates assessed were unsuccessful while 52% of the group passed the assessment. From the 100 unemployed that were recruited, Mr Price achieved 94% retention in jobs. By 2012, MRP Foundation reported that it had enrolled 4540 people into its JumpStart programme. 4. The Evolution of the Programme 4.1 The genesis of the programme The MRP Foundation, initiated the JumpStart programme in 2007 to address skill shortages in the Mr Price Group, with the belief that this would have wider benefits for the industry. Initially the programme was conceptualised to give 6-days work experience to large numbers of unemployed youth who had completed lifeskills training with an NGO, and the anticipation was that between 25-50% would be taken up into employment. The JumpStart programme literally aimed to provide a "jump start" to young people from low income communities, who had achieved a Grade 12 certificate,

4 and help them gain skills to access the job market. The youth would receive a certificate from Mr Price Group on completion of the 6-day workplace experience, outlining practical skills obtained, but would not be guaranteed employment. Where stores had openings, and where store managers were impressed with the performance of particular candidates they might be offered a position in the store as a front-line store assistant. The Foundation also intended to develop a database to house all necessary information about the candidates, which would be promoted to other businesses, so that they can have access to these candidates. The Foundation initially worked with Dream Builders, a KwaZulu-Natal based NGO, and further local NGOs were brought in along the way. It remained a relatively small CSI initiative, focusing primarily on the workplace experience aspect of the programme without being prescriptive about the selection or training content. 4.2 Description of the programme The process flow, as captured by MRP Foundation, is as follows: Assessment and filtering of applicants Information loaded on Joblinx (Management Information System) Training of successful applicants/unemployed youth Contact JumpStart to arrange work experience for candidates Receive certificates and distribute to all candidates NGO's JumpStart Schedule work experience with Employment partner stores. Ensure brand appropriate shirts are at training stores Receive feedback from stores after work experience is completed (POS where available) Keep Joblinx database of all names who completed work experience up to date Issue certificates and send them to NGO's Host candidates for a week of work experience Give feedback to JumpStart on candidates who completed the week Recruitment office to be point of call for stores that want to recruit from the Joblinx database Sharing information with NGO's on criteria needed for employment Employment Partners 4.3 Selection and recruitment of participants During the period of implementation, the Foundation developed more rigorous recruitment and selection criteria for JumpStart candidates. This took into account the increased literacy and numeracy requirements for entry into jobs within Mr Price Group. The NGOs were required to do more upfront screening of literacy and numeracy. NGOs had the option of either recruiting candidates with the required math/literacy skills or to equip the candidates with the appropriate skills to pass the Mr. Price Group assessment test before they could be placed.

5 4.4 Growing the implementation capacity of the programme In order to facilitate its expansion, MRP Foundation began to expand its network of NGOs that were running life skills/character development programmes. Regional networks of NGOs were also set up in the Western Cape and Gauteng, along with regional coordinators from the Foundation, aimed at facilitating collaboration, sharing of resources and common advocacy. By 2012, the Foundation was working with 20 NGOs nationwide, which they report had been identified through a comprehensive scoping and research exercise. Despite this increase in NGOs and increased enrolments, and despite the emphasis on Maths and Literacy, the Foundation continued to experience significant challenges with respect to these NGOs. In the first instance, they were unable to supply sufficient numbers to meet the employment requirements of Mr Price Group. Secondly, many young people that had been trained by these NGOs were unable to pass the entry assessments required by Mr Price Group, in particular the Maths and Literacy requirement. Therefore, the Foundation needed to find measures to address the capacity weaknesses in the partner NGOs and to strengthen the curriculum, particularly with respect to Maths and English. 4.5 Growing the employer pool In 2012, with the assistance of its local partner, MRP Foundation successfully applied to the Jobs Fund, to place 6000 youth into jobs in Mr Price stores over a 3 year period. The MRP Foundation had already indicated to the Jobs Fund that it would not be able to place all these youth unilaterally and that partnerships with other employers would be required. SPAR came on board in 2013 as an additional partner, offering a similar work experience programme for JumpStart candidates. MRP Foundation subsequently brought the Smollan Group on board and is actively seeking other retail companies that can offer places to surplus candidates. The Foundation based its targets on staff turnover rates for the past three years. The Foundation estimated that they would need to train to get a 50% placement rate, which had been the trend. There was also an expectation that at least 50% of those placed (3000) would achieve a better a better job position within three years of placement, either in Mr Price or elsewhere. This expectation was premised on the belief that the lifeskills training will motivate youth to embark on lifelong learning and career development. The Jobs Fund intervention therefore brought about a range of further refinements to the programme, primarily because it now placed a greater emphasis on the successful placement of participants in jobs. Given the relationship with SPAR and subsequently the Smollan Group, there was increased pressure to ensure that the training provided was suited not only to Mr Price stores but also to the two partners, and others to come, to ensure successful placement. The Foundation continued to expand its number of partner NGOs in order to meet the

6 target numbers for training. In order to participate in the programme, the NGOS had to be: 1. Already running soft skills programmes (with possible exceptions) 2. Operating in areas where there is demand for labour with Mr Price Group Stores. 3. Have capacity to expand 4. Have appropriate organisational systems in place (reporting, financial, HR, etc.) 5. Willing to comply with minimum requirements for training 6. Able to accommodate that training costs fit within budgets. Many of the NGOs were not covering their operational costs, thus having to subsidise the training through donor contributions. This is due to the high demand from youth from poor communities who were unable to afford high fees. Get On Skills, a well-established NGO based in Pretoria, is an example of a NGO that meets many of these criteria. Get On provides training in Basic Computing, Office Administration Skills, Point of Sales systems, Bake for Profit and Waitrons. Students can combine Basic Computing with one of the other three programmes if their computing skills are not intact. Get On Skills has not had to adapt its programmes for JumpStart, as it had already been focusing on both lifeskills and business skills. All its programmes include relevant business skills, and the centre is run to simulate a working environment, so students have to arrive on time, work according to a work schedule and dress and behave appropriately. Get On Skills seek to build job readiness and infuse English and Maths into the curriculum. They also seek to instill discipline and effective work habits in the classroom and beyond. However, the organisation had adjusted its selection criteria to cater for the Foundation s entry requirements, given that it operated off a basis of open access for young people to its programmes. Therefore, a portion of its enrolments, particularly for Office Administration and Point of Sales training, must have a Grade 12 certificate, and these candidates are earmarked for JumpStart. The JumpStart coordinator is involved in the entry assessment of literacy and numeracy, and then conducts the final screening to candidates before they go to work experience.. In 2013/14 this translated into 200 of 503 students being earmarked for JumpStart and a further 200 of 700 is targeted for 2014/15, with a further 200 targeted for placement in other partner companies. Get On Skills has relationships with a range of other employers in addition to Mr Price Group, including Jam Clothing, Edcon and the Foschini Group. The JumpStart requirement is that the programme must run for 40 hours and may be run over 1 week fulltime or two weeks part-time. Get On s programmes exceed the 40 hours requirements, extending to 4 weeks for Point of Sale and 10 weeks for Office Administration. The students pay between R100-R350 and the remainder of the actual cost of the programme (R3800-R4800) is subsidised. The Foundation pays each NGO R1,270 per student for the training. This cost structure has changed previously the Foundation used to pay R2,700 if the student was both paid and placed, but this was removed, given the challenges around controlling placement, the delays associated with placement, as well as the Jobs Fund requirement for evidence of placement. Therefore, the Foundation now only pays for training. While this payment does not cover the full cost of the training (as evidenced from the total cost identified by Get On Skills) they are

7 typically dependent on subsidies or donations and would not ordinarily have charged for the programme. The payment for training assists in covering some of the costs in the organisations. 4.6 Emerging programme characteristics As indicated above, with the onset of the Jobs Fund funding, the Foundation became even more stringent around the structure and content of the training and sought to standardise it, with the assistance of World Changes. The programme requirements, as provided by the Foundation to the NGOs, were as follows: a. The core purpose of the training programme is to equip candidates to have the appropriate mindset and attitude, along with some basic job skills, in order to function well in a work environment. b. Each candidate must receive 40 hours of training in the following topics, with the minimum number of hours described below per topic (1 hour minimum if not otherwise specified): i. Career guidance (2) ii. Communication/Presentation Skills (3) iii. Conflict resolution iv. Customer Service (2) v. Finances vi. Goal setting/planning vii. Healing of the Past (2) viii. Sexual health/romantic relationships/hiv/aids (3) ix. Job preparation skills (2) x. Physical health and safety xi. Rights and responsibilities xii. Time management xiii. Vision/Purpose c. The following topics may be covered within the above topics or separately and thus don t have 1 hour minimum requirements: i. Life-long learning ii. Motivation/Self-esteem iii. Personal Development/Character iv. Work ethics v. Emotional maturity vi. Problem solving/decision making Generally, the participating NGOs were not running accredited training programmes, and it was not a requirement of the Foundation that the programme be accredited. In fact, accreditation was generally viewed as a prohibitive factor for the organisations concerned, given the administrative burden involved. However, it was a requirement that the NGO trainers have experience in providing lifeskills support and education and draw on this experience to enhance their offering. There also remains no objective assessment of the competence acquired through the programme, although this may be introduced once the curriculum becomes standardised. Therefore, each of the NGOs use their own assessment mechanisms, most based on feedback from students, and provide students with their own certificates of attendance. The Foundation relies on the credibility of the NGOs, and will only pick up the

8 effectiveness of the training when the Mr Price Group entry assessment is conducted. Given this, students generally will not fail the training, and the drop-out rate from training is marginal. This was confirmed by the Managing Director for Get On Skills, who indicated that while there is a weekly test to measure competence, the students do not pass or fail but if they fail they will get a Certificate of Attendance, whilst if they pass they will get a Certificate of Competence. However, for JumpStart, the organisation has required students to achieve a minimum 70% on Point of Sales assessments. Due to the particular target group and culture associated with each of the NGOs concerned, it is likely that each will take a slightly different approach to the training. In general, however, the NGOs are all concerned with changing lifestyle behaviour rather than simply providing skills. The key implication of the JumpStart programme is that the NGOs now have to strengthen the link between their training to employment, and will be measured as such, which has not necessarily been the case in the past. While there may have been a work readiness element in the training, this has now been more explicitly linked to employment. This has allowed NGOs to get direct feedback from the employers on the quality of their training. The Foundation Manager reports that there is better quality output, although the NGOs continue to operate in survival mode which impacts on the manner in which they are managed. 5. Overview of the Programme s Achievements 5.1 Number of participants To date, Mr Price has absorbed a total of 719 participants into part-time and full-time employment of the total 3266 participants that entered into the project. Prior to the onset of the Jobs Fund funding, the programme was enrolling 220 candidates per annum and placing approximately 40%. The injection of funding from the Jobs Funded raised the targets for placement to 6000 over three years. These targets were laid out as follows: YEAR TRAINED TO BE PLACED Year Year Year Total The targets and timeframes for the latest phase of the project have shifted with delays in the startup of the programme and some disruptions (2 months of suspended activity) due to the introduction of new labour regulations in 2013 which required Mr Price to revise the terms of employment of employees. By the end of 2013, MRP Foundation reported to the Jobs Fund that it had trained 4142 students, and had placed 2672 students in workplace exposure. It further reported that 344 students had been permanently employed by Mr Price Group and its partners, while 371 students were employed with employers beyond the project partners. While the number trained had exceeded the targets for the period, the number placed in permanent employment with project partners was well below target (344 placed in project partners compared to a target of 450 in the project plan). However, this was offset by the additional 371 students that were employed beyond the project partners.

9 While targets for the latter were not included in the project plan, they are captured as part of the reporting to the Jobs Fund. 6. Comparing JumpStart Graduates with Other Employees Mr Price has now found that, due to the successful preparation and matching of youth, some store managers will only recruit from the JumpStart group. The effectiveness of the programme in the workplace is indicated in the feedback from the various stakeholders in the project. The HR Manager (Apparel) for Mr Price Group reports that store managers have indicated improvements in work ethic and level of engagement of JumpStart candidates when compared to those that they have generally recruited, especially in major centres. Similarly, the HR Development Manager for SPAR Group indicated that, through the two pilots they ran with 5 stores, the managers reported a high level of satisfaction with the recruits and feel the programme has added significant value to their recruitment process. The recruitment specialist for the Smollan Group was more emphatic in his response and indicated that the applicants are above average, passing the assessments above the minimum requirements and their attitude and understanding of the work place is very impressive. He further indicated that teaming up with the training partners assisted with sourcing people who were work ready, presentable and well versed in English with a passed matric. Also, the numeracy and literacy assessments normally had a pass ratio of 30%, but with the JumpStart applicants the pass ratio is 90%. At a store level, the effect of JumpStart on the participants was reported through interviews with Mr Price store managers and employees at two Pretoria branches. One JumpStart graduate that had completed the Get On Skills programme reported that: They trained me on being a cashier and they gave us work readiness training. I learnt that I needed to be committed to my job, I should always be eager to learn more, follow the guidelines in the store and have lots of respect and know what to expect in a workplace. A person needs to have good customer service, must always be prepared to learn on the job and always ask if you don t understand anything. One must dress properly and follow the work procedures and have respect towards your supervisors and your colleagues. (JumpStart graduate, Mr Price, Pretoria CBD) In this job at times you get to deal with very difficult customers and receiving the good customer service skills from the programme has really helped me to be successful in my job. I got skills and knowledge like how to handle customers, how to behave in the workplace, how to dress in a workplace and most importantly how to respect my Manager and customers. (JumpStart graduate, Mr Price, Irene) The lack of effective preparation for those who had not gone through the JumpStart programme was expressed by employees from the Mr Price store in Pretoria CBD: In order to be successful one needs to have customer service skills, handling of accounts, working on the till. I did not know what customer services was all about I had to teach myself here in the store how to deal with customers especially

10 the difficult ones so I feel they could have trained us before on what customer service is all about how to behave in a workplace etc. It was a challenge to learn on the job but they did give us training to work on the till. I think it would help if the training they gave us was not only about working on the floor it would have been better to also have some work readiness skills on how to behave in a workplace how to deal with pressure in the workplace and not feel like quitting the job. The training at Get On Skills Development, combined with the workplace exposure, appears to have provided JumpStart candidates with a greater level of readiness to enter into the retail environment, thus making it easier for Mr Price Group stores to absorb them and place them on the shop floor. For those that did not participate in JumpStart more intensive induction and on-the-job training is required before they can engage with customers. The two store managers confirmed the high amount of relative preparedness of JumpStart candidates when compared to their usual recruits: What I like about the JumpStart group is they are already equipped with work readiness skills when they come into the store they come already with tax numbers, bank accounts, proper CV s, dress up correctly and appropriately for the work and they come prepared enough for the workplace. They have a clue of what customer care is all about how you approach the customers, what it means to work as a cashier. So we don t hire from outside anymore we received a memo that we should only hire JumpStart participants. People who are not from JumpStart don t really have an idea on what retail is about, they don t know how to dress and they are shy etc. (Store Manager, Mr Price, Irene) The JumpStart participants are the best because they are already briefed when they come into the store. Especially with communication skills - they are able to communicate well with the customers. They are able to dress properly and they already know how to draft a CV and they understand what to expect in the workplace how to behave etc. The only issue is passing the assessment for some. Those who are not from the programme have no clue what retail is all about and they are not very reliable. The group from JumpStart are hardworking and reliable and having technical skills is not really a prerequisite because the cashier till is very simple to use and with enough training they are all able to master the till. The other group that s not from JumpStart they are not that reliable they quit and once they go on lunch they disappear and not even notify us when they decide to leave their jobs. They have no clue on what retail work is all about. Though they are punctual and their attitude is okay but when they are under pressure they just disappear. (Store Manager: Mr Price Irene) The store managers do, however, raise some concerns regarding the JumpStart programme: They are hardworking, they are very reliable and always eager to learn more; but when it comes to writing the assessment at the end of the 1 week placement they

11 don t perform that well. I think this is due to lack of numeracy skills and also they don t have the speed to complete the test in time. Also for some they don t have a clue as to how to go about excelling in the assessment and you would find that the other participants are quite good and work well but when it comes to writing the assessments they fail. I think the period they give them to be placed at the store is very short. They have to work in the stock room, they have to work on the floor and some of the participants are not fast learners and they take long to grasp the work and at the end of the 7 days we are asked to complete the logbook for them but then it is not fair to say a participant is not competent because really 7 days is too little to learn customer services, opening the boxes etc. For some they are very fast and we are actually able to employ those that are fast and take them on a permanent position. These concerns do not detract from the efficacy of the programme but do provide some indication of the areas of the programme that needs to be strengthened. 7. How has the Project Changed and Adapted Based on Learning 7.1 Selection and recruitment is a persistent challenge for the JumpStart programme MRP Foundation continues to struggle to find sufficient post-grade 12 s that meet their minimum entry criteria for Maths and Literacy. Previously, the Mr Price Group assessment, which focuses primarily on Maths and Literacy and is conducted after the work exposure and prior to placement, was the only form of assessment conducted. As a result, the lifeskills intervention has now been restructured to include a focus on Maths and Literacy, and a more rigorous assessment of Maths and Literacy is being introduced prior to the lifeskills training. However, Maths and Literacy remain a challenge that continually needs to be addressed and this remains a challenge for the capacity of NGOs concerned. The Mr Price Group test is reported by the NGOs to be highly challenging, particularly the barcode recognition aspects, and only 20-30% of candidates were passing the test previously. Furthermore, it was generally found that of those that passed the test, previously only 60% were found to be suitable (according to the Joe White from Catalyx). Therefore, the test was not necessarily a good predictor of suitability. The combination of appropriate behavioural/attitudinal attributes and cognitive ability is optimally required. Therefore, the Foundation began to introduce a further assessment of attitude and fit after the lifeskills training and prior to the work exposure. Previously, these softer skills had not been assessed. This would allow for further sifting of the most appropriate candidates. Early results from this additional assessment suggests a significant improvement in the quality of candidates as measured by their performance on in-store assessments during the work exposure. The programme experienced real challenges with respect to the capacity and performance of the partner NGOs, MRP Foundation sought to do the following as part of

12 its commitment to the Jobs Fund: - Assess the capacity of the NGOs to scale up activities - Standardise the curriculum and materials in order to introduce minimum standards to the training - Assist up to 50 NGOs to scale up their training activities - Assist these organisations to introduce business maths and communicable English into their curriculum - Further develop the Foundation s online tracking and placement system (Joblinx) to facilitate more placement opportunities 7.2 Enhancing the capacity of NGOs The organisations that MRP Foundation partners with are perceived as leaders in the NGO sector that deal with youth employment. Extensive research has been done to identify the relevant organisations across the country. MRP Foundation has placed increasingly more stringent entry requirements for the NGOs since the programme began and is trying constantly to capacitate the NGOs to better recruit and prepare youth to get a good match. There is an indication that this is working, given the positive feedback from the employers with respect to the work readiness and positive attitude of the participants. However, institutional capacity and quality remain key issues to the delivery of the training programmes. The deliberate decision for MRP Foundation to work with NGOs rather than training providers, reflects its commitment to building the NGO sector. However, it has presented an ongoing challenge in terms of shifting the culture within NGOs to be more demand-oriented. Invariably the NGOs will first and foremost be responsive to the communities they serve and only a portion of their training will be specifically geared to Mr Price. As with Get On Skills, much of their target group may not specifically meet the Mr Price entry requirements and therefore will have to be catered for through traditional programmes that are not necessarily employment oriented. Invariably, these organisations will need to balance off the relative demands of these different target groups. The Foundation has continuously sought to find ways to strengthen the capacity of these NGOs and ensuring its contribution is greater than simply providing additional revenue. This in itself provides a significant challenge if it is to lead to sustainable impact. 7.3 Training The early stage of the project also highlighted the need to better structure the training to ensure better success rates. MRP Foundation insisted that the lifeskills training had to include a core focus on personal mastery. In order to strengthen the programme, feedback was received from stores and passed onto the participating NGOs. 7.4 Preparing for sustainability The MRP Foundation has begun to look beyond the life of the Jobs Fund programme, and address issues that threaten the sustainability of JumpStart and to ensure that the NGO partners are not adversely effected by the inevitable change in availability of funding. In particular, in order to ensure the programme is optimized, the Foundation

13 has had to look at the relative inflexibility of partner NGOs in responding to training demands. As most NGOs were based at specific sites, with set schedules of training, they were not easily able to train more in response to higher demand, go to the places where demand was highest on short notice, or reduce training in response to lower demand (thus creating an oversupply in certain areas). MRP Foundation adopted a multi-stage approach to enhancing the effectiveness of the training. In the first instance they identified and drew in strategic regional training partners, who were more responsive to demand. The Foundation then ran a pilot with internal training (i.e. training provided by JumpStart personnel rather than outside NGOs), and this proved to be very effective in terms of demand responsiveness and also was very cost effective. Based on the analysis of the pilot, the Foundation determined that the best way forward was to establish a significant internal training component, where the managers of JumpStart also do the training of candidates. This has now been rolled out in KZN, Western Cape and Gauteng. This process is running parallel with the traditional NGO training partner model. However, post the Jobs Fund funding, the plan is for this to be the primary focus, with a few strategic partners assisting where required. The remaining 20 NGO partners will no longer be funded, but will still be able to refer their candidates to JumpStart for work experience and employment opportunities. The new structure of JumpStart has enabled it to be close to self sustaining, with contributions financially coming from MRP Foundation and likely from SPAR and other employer partners. The MRP Foundation estimates that 50% of the funding will come from the employer partners themselves post the Jobs Fund project, which ends in September To support the transition of the NGO partners beyond the Jobs Fund project the MRP Foundation is making use of the Network Empowering Unemployed, a vehicle where the non profits can collaborate and share opportunities for funding. Support is being provided by Catalyx for JumpStart partners to source opportunities external to JumpStart. For example, 18 NPOs, most of which are JumpStart partners, have participated in a National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) Expanded Public Works project whereby 400 volunteers of these organisations have been paid stipends on a monthly basis. Catalyx set up and manages this project. Another example is that 5 training partners have been recipients of funding from ABSA for life skills, a project that has been renewed several times which is managed by World Changers with the support of Catalyx. 8. What are the Broad Lessons Emerging from this Case Study The JumpStart programme has grown out of a small CSI initiative and has provided a model of how to engage the NGO sector to provide entry level skills for youth. Increasingly the programme has shifted from a narrow focus addressing the recruitment challenges of Mr Price to a broader model of how to facilitate access of large numbers of young school leavers into jobs that will then provide a first foothold in the labour market. The evolution and growth of this programme has generated a number of hard lessons for the MRP Foundation.

14 Firstly, despite the fact that JumpStart operates within the Mr Price Group, there is still often a delay in the placement of young people once they have completed JumpStart which emphasises the fact that it is not easy to neatly align training and placement. It is critical that there is a realistic analysis of the supply/demand interface so that there is sufficient capacity to absorb graduates into placement. To this end, MRP Foundation has brought the SPAR Group and Smollan Group on board to take on the additional numbers that Mr Price Group cannot accommodate and this has eased the burden somewhat, although it does introduce additional complexities in the management of the training and placement. Secondly, the entry requirement of Matric did not guarantee sufficient levels of Literacy and Numeracy, even for entry level retail positions. While many attempts have been made to support improvements in literacy and numeracy skills, it still remains a barrier to entry into Mr Price Group and other retailers. This is a significant risk factor for the programme as it means that many JumpStart candidates may complete the programme and still not get placed. The NGOs did not seem to be equipped to address this challenge in the short time available and the Foundation has now had to become far more prescriptive about what form the literacy and numeracy intervention must take. There is also an attempt to introduce a more rigorous assessment of Literacy and Numeracy prior to entry into the programme. The Foundation still has some way to go in addressing this and it is likely that it will effect the overall model of the intervention. This will also be a crucial part of the strengthening of the NGOs themselves, to ensure that they are equipped to properly address these skills. More generally, the Foundation has learned that the programme itself will have variable success if the type and quality of training provided is not more clearly defined. While the programme was originally focused on placing young people that had been through a lifeskills programme, as the programme evolved the Foundation has had to become increasingly prescriptive about the curriculum to ensure that the training is adequately aligned to the demands of the Mr Price Group workplace. Therefore, the NGOs increasingly have less flexibility with respect to the training they provide which does begin to impinge on the manner in which the NGOs conduct themselves and the kind of organisational culture they adopt. 9. Moving Forward Replication and Expansion Based on its achievements to date, the MRP Foundation is confident that the programme can be replicated and expanded widely within the retail industry. In order to achieve this, however, JumpStart faces two key challenges. In the first instance it needs to establish a sustainable funding model for the training component of the programme. To do this, the Foundation would seek to introduce a funding model whereby the participating companies pay for placement of the candidates, and this fee is used to cover the training costs. The second challenge relates to the need to bring more companies on board and ensure there are sufficient workplace placement opportunities available. The Foundation intends to use its JOBLINX portal to link successful candidates to opportunities and then charge companies a fee to access this data or have them pay a membership fee to be part of the portal.

15 From a programmatic perspective, the scaleability of the programme relies strongly on the strength of partnerships and the shared vision amongst the companies, particularly given the challenges of working with different NGOs and the associated costs of managing the relationships between the NGOs and the workplaces. For the Foundation, strong management of these relationships will be pivotal to the future of the programme as it grows and expands. 10. Conclusion The JumpStart programme provides a useful model for effectively facilitating the supply and demand interface in order to enable young people to access first-time entry into the labour market. While the programme does not necessarily create new jobs, it still seeks to meet the demand for jobs that exist in the retail environment. The case study illustrates the complexities of youth employment programmes, even where the conditions for success seem ideal. It highlights the weaknesses in the education and system and the level of effort it takes to bridge the gaps for young people that have made it through Grade 12, and emphasises the implications of this for addressing the skills crisis in the country. Its key challenge relates to the role of NGOs in this regard, and it is likely that this will continue to be a risk to the project as it evolves and grows in the future. Epilogue Bridget Nkopane has faced many challenges in her life having been married and divorced, lost her job and had to return to her mother s place with four children. When she first came to Get On she was a quiet and nervous lady, but as she progressed through the Point of Sales course, absorbing the knowledge like a sponge and showing great determination she found confidence and self-respect that opened the door to being placed for work experience at a Mr Price store, where she impressed her manager and was told that she would be offered employment. It took a while before the manager called her back and she started sewing uniforms for the church members while she awaited the call. Bridget kept hope alive, struggling with her four children at her mother s place, she was eventually called by the manager at Mr Price and they offered her a job. She worked at Mr Price from December 2013 April Bridget Nkopane started working at the Post Office of South Africa, on the 29th April 2014 as a mail packer. The job gives more security and benefits. Bridget is now able to find her own accommodation, pay her monthly expenses, and save some money at the end of the month for those unexpected bills and medical expenses that come with raising children as a single parent. Her mission when coming to Get On Skills Development Centre was to become self-sustainable, and provide for her family, she has done this and more, as she climbs the career ladder going from strength to strength.