Research reveals the skills learnt in your first job are the most important you’ll learn during your career

• •Over a third of people feel that their first job helped them prepare for their future careers¹
• •Employers state the most desirable skills they seek are those inherent within the hospitality industry²
• •Costa gives 110 young people their first step on the career ladder each week³ and is committed to promoting over 13,000 team members to the next level⁴
• •Costa has launched #MyFirstJob workshops to inspire young people into work

Whether you once worked in a local restaurant, swept hair at a hairdressers, or served coffee in a coffee shop, a new study carried out by Costa reveals the important impact that skills gained in our first job has on our future careers.

Over a third of people feel that their first job helped them to prepare for future roles⁵ by providing them with a good grounding in the vital skills of communication, team-working and customer-services which they still use to this day⁶. The skills employers look for in new candidates marry with these, with 69% of employers wanting to ensure their new hire can work well as part of a team and that they have good people skills⁷. Having a likable personality was the third most looked for trait in a potential employee⁸ highlighting that it’s important for job seekers to be themselves and be strong face-to-face communicators.

It’s the people you work with who make your first job so memorable, with 44%⁹ saying having fun with their colleagues was the aspect of the job they remember most fondly. In fact, nearly half of Brits are still to this day in touch with people they first worked with¹⁰. What’s more, nearly half of people surveyed would love the opportunity to meet with their first boss again and show them how they have progressed¹¹.

Priya Farish, Global Talent Director at Costa, said: “With over half of our store teams consisting of under-25s, we’re proud to offer opportunities, training and an environment that encourages the development of many of the traits future employers look for in young people across the country. At Costa we give more than 110 young people every week their first step on the career ladder ³ and as team-working, customer service and people skills are vital in our industry all of our team members have the opportunity to build these skills which stands them in good stead for any future career.

The research showed that both employers and employees unanimously agreed that if they could give themselves one piece of advice when starting their career, it would be to be more confident¹² and with over half of those surveyed agreeing they would be interested in career advice sessions,¹³Costa will pilot free workshops dedicated to helping young people gain confidence in their own abilities and provide coaching on the key skills that employers seek.

Priya Farish continues: “For some young people working with us at Costa is on a part-time basis to support their studies. We hope that not only will they have a lot of fun, make some great friends and memories and learn some fantastic coffee expertise but that the essential skills they learn with us will set them up for whatever they go on to next. However with university tuition fees rising¹⁴ a career within the hospitality industry should not be dismissed. At Costa we want to nurture young talent and will promote over 13,000 of our store team members to the next level of seniority in the next four years⁴. Joining us as a part-time barista and developing in our business to Regional Area Manager or a management role within Support Centre is not unusual. In fact, our very own Master of Coffee once worked part-time in our Gatwick airport store and now oversees the quality of our coffee in over 3,000 stores across 31 international markets.”

You can follow the conversation online by following @costacoffee and #myfirst job

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Study of 1,500 UK employers (aged 25+) and 2,500 employees (aged 16-25) carried out by OnePoll on behalf of Costa

1. ^{1.34.20% of employees surveyed answered, “It helped me prepare for my future career” when asked “ What did you like best about your first job?”}
2. ^{2.When asked, “ Which of the following traits do you look for most in a potential employee?” 68.93% of employers answered “works well in a team” and 41.67% answered “good people skills”.}
3. ^{3.Costa Data: number of new hires recruited to the business during the full year of 2015 – 2016 aged from 16 – 24}
4. ^{4.Costa Data: Internal development target of baristas to Barista Maestro, Barista Maestro to Assistant Manager and Assistant Manager to Manager}
5. ^{5.34.20% of employees surveyed answered, “It helped me prepare for my future career” when asked , “What did you like best about your first job?”}
6. ^{6.When 1,500 employees were asked “Which of the following skills have you learnt in your current job that you think will be most helpful in your future?” 49.27% answered Communication, 38.40% answered teamwork and 32.53% answered People skills}
7. ^{7.When asked “Which of the following traits do you look for most in a potential employee?” 68.93% of employers answered “works well in a team” and 41.67% answered “good people skills”.}
8. ^{8.When asked “Which of the following traits do you look for most in a potential employee?” 39.47% answered “having a likeable personality”}
9. ^{9.When asked “What do you remember most fondly about your first job?” 44.93% of employers answered “having fun with my colleagues”}
10. ^{10.When asked “Do you keep in touch with any colleagues from your first job?” 8% of employers answered “yes, many of them” and 38.8% answered “yes, some of them”}
11. ^{11.Of the 1,500 employees when asked if they had a chance would they like to “meet your first boss and show them how you have progressed in your career” 2 out of 5 people wanted to with 12.33% answering “yes, definitely” and 26.6% answering “yes, possibly”}
12. ^{12.Open feedback from 1,500 employers when asked “if you could meet yourself when you were just starting your first job, what advice would you give yourself?” the most common piece of feedback was to have more confidence.}
13. ^{13.15.40% of employees said “yes definitely” and 38 % said “yes, probably” when asked if they would be interested in free workshops where they could learn about interview techniques, customer services and communication skills.}
14. ^{14.Source: BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/36322654/heres-why-university-tuition-fees-will-probably-go-up-in-2017}