Nigel Tutt Chief Executive of Priority One

As we head into the second half of the year, many BOP students and their parents will begin looking into career options, and it is a good opportunity to consider what the future may hold for their lives post-secondary school.

In 2022 this is particularly important; despite a diminished economic outlook we still have very low unemployment, and we expect that to remain the case for the foreseeable future. The number one issue for businesses is being able to get people.

For economy-wide reasons, we need to be really good at using the talent we have available in this area, and it's also important for our people coming into the workplace to get the best job possible – we traditionally lag in earnings statistics. Getting our own people into high value and meaningful jobs is the best way to fix this.

The employment market has changed markedly over the past few years. Gone are the days when our economy would simply grow by importing people – we now face a return of the brain drain, the great resignation and the war for talent.

Employers are responding by fighting hard to be attractive, providing better conditions and by taking on people that may not had a chance in past years. The opportunities for school leavers are more varied and plentiful in a low unemployment market, and we are fortunate to have some fantastic local employers.

There are plenty of opportunities, pay and employers in areas like mechanical engineering, technology/IT, hospitality and truck driving. Often entry level roles in these sectors provide particularly good pathways into future roles.

Furthermore, advanced robotics, autonomous transport, artificial intelligence, machine learning and genomics are already transforming the way we live and work. The future of work is changing, and research even suggests that by 2030, up to 85 per cent of the jobs that will exist haven't been invented yet.

So, how do we prepare our rangatahi and get our community familiar with the opportunities available here? We should encourage them to investigate the wide range of opportunities out there, teach them about the various sectors on offer, and support them to gain higher skills and qualifications. We are fortunate to have the University of Waikato based right here in our city.

The 2022 edition of the Canvas careers expo will be held on August 12-13, 2022, which is a great way for students and job seekers to get an idea of the careers, industries, tertiary study opportunities and employers available right here in the Bay of Plenty. This free expo is held at Bay Park and is an interactive event where many employers and training providers will offer hands on experiences into what they do and the innovations of the future.