2. Biz Network APRIL 2022 37-68.qxp_Chamberlink 31/03/2022 12:43 Page 60
FOCUS FEATURE
GENERATION NEXT
Young people taking the
Next step in business
The East Midlands is home to a diverse range of young people excelling as owners and employees of businesses, with many of these involved with the Chamber’s Generation Next network for 18 to 35-year-olds. Jasmine Thompson finds out their stories.
EMMA BAUMBACK FUTURE LIFE WEALTH MANAGEMENT When Emma Baumback became a qualified financial adviser towards the end of 2019, no one could have predicted the wave of uncertainty that would sweep through economies around the world just a few months later. As many people and businesses in the UK locked down for the foreseeable future, Emma was busier than ever with stock markets around the world plummeting. If starting a new role at Renishaw-based Future Life Wealth Management wasn’t enough of a challenge, she also had to adapt to new ways of working by managing her clients’ concerns over Zoom. “It is far easier sitting in front of people and advising them than doing it over a screen,” adds Emma, who is also the chair of Generation Next. “It’s much easier to read their body language to help establish a relationship based on trust and respect. "So, when the pandemic hit and the stock market reacted for a relatively short time, we immediately sought to provide total reassurance to our clients. Personally, I had to adapt more quickly than ever by fully getting to grips with my new job." Many office-based workers across the country will be able to relate to the changes in Emma’s circumstances, but arguably it will resonate most with the young workforce that found essential years of development in their early careers disrupted. Whether it’s entering into the world of work at apprentice or graduate level, moving on from a first job, or achieving a new promotion – all these steps require time to get used to change, something which the pandemic did not allow. But has this “lockdown generation” created a more resilient workforce for the future? “I spoke to someone not long ago and they said, ‘well, if you can start advising in a pandemic, everything else is going to be a breeze’,” says Emma. “Although I’m not quite 60
business network April 2022
Emma Baumback (third from left) and her fellow Generation Next board members at the 2021 Annual Dinner
NETWORK OPENS DOORS TO WIDER WORLD Generation Next can provide a stepping-stone for members into the wider business community, believes Emma. As chair, she regularly reports Generation Next activity to the Chamber’s board of directors and she believes there is a natural synergy between the two networks. She says: “You’ve got to enjoy what you do, and you should keep going until you find that passion. “That’s why Generation Next is so important because it can open doors to a network where you can access advice or connect with people in an industry you think you might want to pursue. “When I was starting out, there was no third party encouraging me or giving me the tools to create my own network of support outside my friends and colleagues. Having a broader network gives you that exposure to the regional business landscape and access to much more support. “Generation Next will just continue to grow, and eventually its members will feed into the main Chamber for support as well. “It’s a great mechanism and can act as a stepping-stone for young entrepreneurs to go on and use the Chamber as a resource to continue building their business once they leave Generation Next.”
certain I agree with all that statement, it has taught me lessons very early on to be adaptable. “It’s made me far more resilient in dealing with uncomfortable situations that you can encounter in your career. I’ve quickly learned how to become adjustable, which has made me better at what I do.”
FINANCIAL ADVICE WAS not a route 31-year-old Emma had always pictured herself taking. After leaving school in London, she enrolled onto a fast-track accountancy course, taking her on a well-trodden path suggested by her dad to “move to the City and get a job” in the UK’s financial hub.