Empowering Careers: Highlights from the Young Professionals Network Knowledge Fair

To celebrate Career Development Month, our Young Professionals Network (YPN) hosted a ‘Knowledge Fair’ to showcase different parts of the business to our colleagues. The fair was an interactive learning opportunity that gave teams a chance to share their latest projects, connect with likeminded individuals and build their networks.

The YPN is an employee-run group designed to empower young professionals within NATS by encouraging learning and development, amplifying their voices and creating a dynamic networking environment across the business.

Throughout Career Development Month, the YPN has hosted various training sessions such as ‘Flying High: Diverse Paths to Success’ – a panel discussion from people across the business on how they got to their positions, their career paths and tips for success; and ‘Step-up Club Workshop “The Attitude Advantage”’ – a workshop organised in collaboration with the employee-run Women’s Network focusing on optimism, self-leadership and social support.

At the Knowledge Fair, attendees were able to hear from various teams such as engineering, operations training, human factors, research and development, and HR. The marketplace stalls had interactive games people could join in with such as a giant Jenga game under the business assurance and risk team, and demonstrations of new technology we are implementing for new airspace users.

Our ‘giving back’ team hosted a stall providing more detail on our corporate charities and more information on team building funding. Visitors could find out more about Jon Egging Trust, a charity which looks to support vulnerable and under-confident young people to realise their full potential and Aerobility, a charity that provides flight training, simulators and group activity days for anyone with a disability who wants to experience aviation.

This was the YPN’s first event of this size and it was wonderful to see colleagues from across the business collaborate, network and learn together. As a network, we hope to continue developing events that build inclusivity and bring us together.