Alec recently visited FDM Group’s Leeds Digital Skills Training Academy to learn about their work seeking to address the gender and skills gap in the sector. FDM are one of the UK’s largest IT graduate recruiters.
With women hugely under-represented in tech jobs, (they account for just 17% of the workforce), FDM is a leader in tackling the gender gap; 26% of its employees and around 50% of its management team are female.
It also recruits from those with non-tech related degrees demonstrating how the fast growing sector is open to a wide range of graduates who may not otherwise have considered IT as a career choice.
FDM Group opened its Leeds academy just under two years ago and has had over 13,500 applications for its digital skills training course. 649 students have been accepted for training at the Leeds Academy. There are almost 500 FDM Consultants placed with companies across the North, many working with Yorkshire based clients including, Sky Sports, HSBC, Yorkshire Building Society and DWP.
Leeds is one of the UK’s largest centres for the digital economy outside of London, with over 15,000 digital jobs.
FDM provides bespoke training to graduates and ex-forces personnel, equipping them with the technical and professional skills needed by industry before placing them onsite with clients. Headquartered in London, FDM has 16 centres globally and selected Leeds as the base for its second UK academy in recognition of the demand in Yorkshire.
Alec commented: “Leeds is fast establishing itself as a tech hub in the Northern Powerhouse and I’m pleased to see companies like FDM recognising the importance of retaining talent in the region to support local growth.”
Sheila Flavell, FDM’s Chief Operating Officer added: “The demand that we’ve seen since opening our centre in Leeds is a testament to the role that Yorkshire is playing as part of the UK’s digital development. Now is a really great time to get into technology as a career. It underpins every business, so it’s not just technology companies who need talented people, digital and tech roles exist across all sectors, from the public sector, financial services to health and social care, to name but a few.”