[REACTIVE COMMENT] The Open University - More than half of employers facing skills shortages

New research from The Open University reveals more than half of employers are experiencing skills shortages, while one in five organisations have reduced recruitment over the past year. Reacting to the findings, Alex Fenton, Group CEO of recruitment firm The Legends Agency, says rising employment costs are making it harder for businesses to hire and train young workers, leaving employers short of talent while a generation struggles to get a foot in the door. Alex Fenton, Group CEO, The Legends Agency, says: "The UK cannot solve skills shortages while making it impossible for businesses to take a chance on young people. The first rung of the career ladder is disappearing as employers rein in recruitment and rising employment costs make hiring in Britain increasingly difficult. "This is how we've ended up with businesses struggling to find the skills they need while an entire generation is left on the sidelines. Too many young people are being shut out before they've even had the chance to start." Alex is available for further comment if this is of interest. I have included Alex's bio below. Best wishes Annagreta // [Title: A person smiling at the camera AI-generated content may be incorrect.]Alex Fenton, Group CEO at The Legends Agency Alex Fenton is a serial entrepreneur and fintech leader with a track record of founding, scaling, and exiting multiple successful businesses. At 25, he founded GapCap, a fintech lender that provided over $500 million in funding to UK SMEs and was named Alternative Lender of the Year in 2019. GapCap was acquired by Growth Lending, where Alex served as Chief Executive, and he later led the roll-up and successful exit of ThinkWorkForce. Alex currently serves as Group CEO of The Legends Agency, which helps global firms build teams in South Africa, and oversees Funding Bay and FBX Capital, an SME lending group providing debt financing solutions across the UK. He has facilitated over £1 billion in funding to UK businesses and continues to drive innovation in SME finance through technology-enabled brokerage and boutique debt advisory services.

Annagreta Isabella Amadio | Senior Account Executive | Higginson Strategy Runway East | 2 Whitechapel Rd | London | E1 1EW Tel: 07895013602 Website | LinkedIn | Instagram |Podcast