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Entrepreneur pioneers new way to get Britain back to work
A leading Australian businesswoman has outlined her vision for getting Britain back to work at the official launch of her business in the UK.
Sarina Russo believes a more entrepreneurial approach is required to find people sustainable employment in the UK’s tough jobs market. Over 80 people attended the event in London where guest of honour Cherie Blair paid tribute to Ms Russo’s ‘can-do philosophy’.
Sarina Russo is well known in Australia, having hosted her own television show ’How to Get that Job’ for over 25 years, co-authored a motivational book ‘Meet Me at the Top’, and starred in both the Australian Dragons’ Den series and Dragons’ Den Around the World.
Her company, Sarina Russo Job Access, has more than 30 years experience in education, employment, training and job creation in Australia. Since October 2009, Sarina Russo Job Access has delivered employment services under the Government’s Flexible New Deal and recently under the Community Taskforce program.
Ms Russo said: “Our ‘entrepreneurial’ approach to skills identification, appropriate training, employer engagement and jobseeker mentoring has been proven to achieve results. We’ve succeeded in getting jobs for people including those with a disability, mature people, those from a non-English speaking background and the very long-term unemployed.
“With so much competition for each and every job currently, it’s important for job seekers to respond positively and take action to improve their prospects by improving their confidence and skills. We prepare them for employment, help find them work, then offer follow-up support and mentoring including psychology and occupational therapy services for highly disadvantaged jobseekers.
“Employers also benefit from our entrepreneurial approach because we allow them to concentrate running their business and refer them job ready candidates.
“Economic empowerment in this way not only helps the individuals concerned but also has wider social benefits by reducing crime, alleviating poverty, keeping families together and preventing mental illness.”
Cherie Blair told the audience: “Anyone who meets Sarina herself quickly comes to recognise her drive and commitment to providing opportunities for people. It is a drive which has built from scratch a business back home in Australia which is now worth some £40 million and employing over 1,000 people across the fields of education, training, employment and job creation.”
She said she was pleased that the Government was making such a determined effort to help people re-enter the labour market and bringing in new approaches and expertise was one way to do that.
She added: “I hope this will be a successful meeting of minds - a meeting between Sarina’s can-do philosophy which underpins this whole organisation and the can-do attitude of the UK people.
