A competition to identify the top talent among public sector HR managers has been so successful that it has not only become an annual event, but the same model is being used to find the best young apprentice working in public services.
Rising Stars is a two day event organised by the Public Sector People Managers Association (PPMA) to help discover the profession's future leaders. HR managers, nominated by their employers, take part in a master class in key skills before delivering a presentation around the theme of creating a sustainable workforce. Three finalists are selected and the public is invited to vote for the winner who is awarded the Rising Star crown.
The PPMA has now used a similar style of competition in an event for 16- to 19-year-old public sector apprentices.
Leatham Green, talent lead for the PPMA who is behind both initiatives says, "We have selected 18 apprentices from more than 30 applicants, who will attend an assessment centre where the judges will be last year's Rising Stars cohort. This is all about securing a pipeline in the public sector and supporting apprenticeships and to help show that the public sector is a credible choice for young people."
The two top apprentices chosen from the event will go on to the annual PPMA conference in May where the overall winner will be announced.
Green says the competition model works "because it is built on learning and development and allows personal and professional reflection which people either don't have the time to do or don't do."
He says: "What we are hoping to do is motivate people to achieve what they want and what they think is possible. It isn't about making people brighter it's about what can you do with the tools you possess to make yourself as successful as you can be in the job which you have chosen to do."
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