Saying YES to solving youth unemployment
Tashmia Ismail-Saville is CEO of Youth Employment Services (YES), a business-led collaboration with government and labour to create work opportunities for unemployed youth
It’s partly a thinking role, where we put new lenses onto wicked old problems building inclusive models for transformation. With partners, we introduce stakeholders to a potentially new way of doing things with each other, working with companies to try new approaches, offer youth a chance and invite them to join other businesses. Then there are many hours spent with the team on building systems and processes to drive this nationally and get SA to make new jobs.
What advice do you have for young people looking for work?
Be real about yourself and what’s out there, available and in demand. Empower yourself — it’s your ship — and ensure you’ve aligned your value system to your career path. There’s always a way to transform your abilities into something practical. Don’t put undue pressure on yourself around that first job — take the work opportunities you’re given and remember that where you start is not necessarily where you’ll end up.
What should young people be studying after school to increase their chances of finding work?
Studying doesn’t mean getting an official certified degree. You can study by job shadowing, volunteering or completing a 12month work opportunity. It’s about picking up life skills and successful behaviours.
What do you find most rewarding about the work you do?
As a team, we work hard. It’s long hours; it’s physically and emotionally taxing. But when you present to a client and you see through their eyes what you’ve built with them and they’re fully committed with YES, it’s magic. The sweetness of getting it right after the long slog is beautiful, and especially when I see it reflected in the eyes of my team. The outcomes are immensely rewarding; the individual stories of lives changed with a job, especially in places like Mpumalanga where unemployment is so high.
What are some of the challenges you face at work that make your job stressful?
I wish we could just wave a magic wand and create new job opportunities for every unemployed youth in the country, but there are deep structural legacies in SA we have to shift. That is difficult to do.
What did you want to be when you were a child?
A writer and a fixer. I thought working for the World Bank in development or Médecins Sans Frontières would be exciting.
What piece of career advice have you found most useful?
The technical advice was around learning and knowledge. This started with my high school science teacher, Mrs Stevenson — the first female engineer to qualify in SA. She taught me that there is always another layer to the onion. The second piece of mentorship is more recent. It comes from Investec CEO Stephen Koseff. He likes cricket analogies. As someone who has survived multiple financial crises, he says: The trick is to keep your head low and keep batting. Build grit, staying power and delivery. Keep your eye on the ball. That simple advice sticks.