HR Wise empowers the youth through EDGE Summer Program

HR Wise has found an innovative way to remedy one of the social ills our society faces today. That is, to gradually improve work ethic among the spring chickens. This was the principal aim of the Empower, Discover, Grow and Excel summer program that ended last Saturday at their graduation. The human resource management company held an intimate yet jovial gathering to celebrate the first class of the EDGE graduates. E.D.G.E focused on providing the participants with the information that they need to effectively manage their transition from a school setting to the workplace.

The 3-week summer program sought to improve knowledge, clarify workplace expectations and build stronger work ethic among our young adults. The main expectation of the program is to ensure graduates will stand out and be easily recognized as individuals who have received the E.D.G.E. Training. The intention of the organizers is “to establish E.D.G.E as a premiere induction program that will be recommended for all graduates by both employers and educators.”

The program utilized a structure of having mentors and mentees relationships, keeping the summer initiative in a realistic, close-knit manner. The minutes were 16-21years old, from various walks of life and across the island, from as far south as Canaries. However, the mentors were from a very select group of young adults.

Mentor positions were first advertised via social media. The applicants were shortlisted and interviewed against a set profile. They went through several training, brainstorming and team building sessions, in order to ensure the program matched the ethical and professional standards of HRWise.

E.D.G.E has two components: a three-week summer workshop (which was just concluded) that covers topics ranging from career planning, communication, workplace etiquette, customer excellence, employment essentials, personal brand, interview skills, social media and attitude, entrepreneurship, among others. Among invited guest speakers at the graduation: Miller Charles, who focused on Entrepreneurship & Self awareness; Karim Sifflet, who advised on Financial Budgeting and Kwency Griffith, managing director of Vibes Radio.

The second portion of the EDGE program will be in the form of an Internship initiative from September to November for graduates who are ready to enter the workforce. Goretti Paul, managing director of HR Wise, said the program had suffered a few hiccups, among them limited sponsorship and lower turnout than expected.

The Human resource company intends to host the initiative as an annual summer program indicating that they “will start advertising in the schools and request sponsorships earlier,” Paul reiterated.