The New Graduate Apprentice – Emily Williams checks in…

A week after starting as the Graduate Apprentice and I’m starting to settle in. I was really quite nervous the night before my first day in the office, but I had no reason to be! The people that I’m working with are really nice, and are happy to help me with the many questions that I’ve got! I spent a couple of days in London, doing an induction, and then my first couple of days in the office were mainly training based. But now I’m doing more work, and I’m enjoying it. There’s a lot to learn, but I look forward to the challenge that it brings me.

As I’ve only been at Deloitte for a week, and am concentrating hard on getting to grips with everything, I haven’t had much time to think about the next placements. But it will be very interesting to see how the different organisations work, and what role I have in each of them. It’s definitely going to be an exciting year!

I feel proud to be the Graduate Apprentice, especially at such a difficult time. I really want to give it my all, have an open mind whilst at each placement, and get the best from it all. I don’t know what I’ll be doing this time next year, but I know that whatever it is, I’ll definitely have an advantage, having been the Graduate Apprentice. The experience and skills I will gain, I am sure will be vital to me, for the future. I have been told, and can well believe, that the year will fly by. However, as much as I want to learn from it, I also want to enjoy it, and I have already seen that there are plenty of people on hand to help me do this. Let’s hope it goes well!

The search is on for BYPY’s 10th anniversary sponsors

The Birmingham Young Professional of the Year committee is beginning its annual search for sponsors with even higher stakes than usual, as Birmingham Future’s flagship event will celebrate its 10^th anniversary in May next year. BYPY 10 is set to be the biggest awards ceremony on the business calendar and the committee will be pulling out all the stops to make it the most memorable BYPY to date.

This year the awards, which recognise the achievements of people from all of Birmingham’s professional sectors, saw more than 650 guests gather in the ICC’s largest hall, and the committee is confident that even more people from Birmingham’s thriving business community will join them in 2010.

To help the event make a splash BYPY has always welcomed the support of its sponsors, which last year included main sponsor Cobbetts, as well as AWM, Deloitte, Matthew Boulton and Sutton Coldfield College, Mace Group, Pertemps, West Bromwich Building Society, Wesleyan, Brefi, Harvey Nichols and Common Purpose.

Darren Walker, chairman of the BYPY committee, said sponsoring the high profile event, particularly in its 10^th anniversary year, would be a great way for businesses to raise their profile.

“Sponsors of BYPY 10 will not only benefit from the exposure and publicity linked to the event itself but also from a close association with Birmingham Future throughout the 10^th anniversary year,” he said.

“This is a unique opportunity to be part of the celebrations to mark BYPY’s ten year commitment to recognising and rewarding the wealth of talent in the city.

“We are currently looking for a main sponsor as well as sponsors for each of the awards categories, which include legal, financial, property and construction, recruitment and HR, communications and entrepreneurial.”

Anyone who is interested in finding out more about the sponsorship opportunities available should contact Isabel Drabble in the Birmingham Future office on 0121 632 2204 for further information.

Future Focus with Andris Nelsons of CBSO…

1) What was your career path before becoming Music Director at the CBSO? I have played piano, trumpet and sung from a very early. I started my career by playing trumpet for the Latvian National Opera Orchestra and began to study conducting at 16. I became Principal Conductor of Riga Opera when I was 22 and held tenure as Principal Conductor of the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie in Germany, as well as making guest appearances with other orchestras across the world.

2) How important do you think it is for young professionals to have access to the arts and specifically classical music? I think it is extremely important. Art is food for our souls. We take care of our physical body by doing sport and eating the right food but we must not forget about our souls – we need to feed them with music and culture. I think it is also important that this is encouraged from the highest level like governments and councils and that we take care to educate people from an early age about looking after their inner worlds.

3) How do you normally prepare for a concert and wind down afterwards? In preparation I always read up about the piece and the composer. I analyse it technically, professionally and emotionally. I have to think about how I will present my ideas. Then we start to rehearse with the Orchestra and work on sections together. Before the concert I make sure I have had enough sleep and that I relax. After a concert I analyse and criticise myself. I think this is important, particularly when you are repeating a programme – it is how you learn and often it happens automatically without you thinking. After that, to switch off I sometimes start to look at a new score or maybe watch some TV.

4) What are you particularly looking forward to the next season? During the holidays I was really looking forward to getting back to work and seeing everybody. This season is very busy and exciting with lots of touring. I’m looking forward to meeting our audiences and seeing new and familiar faces. All of the concerts next season are going to be great so I couldn’t single one out.

5) What advice or recommendations would you give to a first-time concert-goer – are there any particular works you could suggest they saw? Just don’t be afraid. Don’t worry about what to wear or how to act. Take a friend and talk about the music afterwards. Make an evening out of it. Music is about everyday life and human beings so don’t be put off. The musicians on stage will open up to you so don’t be afraid. It can be a very emotional event so be prepared for that and cry if you want to.

6) What do you think of the CBSO’s rehearsal and performance venues? CBSO Centre is a great place for rehearsing. The acoustics are much dryer so this helps with the more technical work and helps the Orchestra acquaint themselves with the music. When we move to Symphony Hall we can the experiment with the acoustics. Symphony Hall is one of the best concert halls in the world and definitely the best in the UK. It is a pleasure to perform there.

7) How do you feel about being voted Number nine in this year’s Power50? I am surprised and very happy. I associate myself with the rest of the team – the Orchestra and its management so I am very happy that people have noticed us. This is also great for culture and I’m happy that we are recognised as a part of social life in Birmingham and hope that we can encourage more people to be part of it.

What is your favourite thing about Birmingham? The Orchestra! And the CBSO family. Other than that I like the M&S Food Hall!

9) You spend a lot of time travelling, what do you miss most when you are away from home? It’s hard to say where home is for me. I think it is where you feel the most satisfied and for me that is usually when I am playing music. Although I’m from Latvia, I miss more the people from my home rather than the place.

10) Villa/City? I do love football and I used to play a lot when I was younger but I am not so good anymore so I would find it difficult to judge two great teams! I have to say that adrenalin from a sport is very similar to live music and the expectation you have before a match is like the start of a concert. The difference is you are not supposed to cheer and shout at a concert, at least not until the end!

Oxjam Brum 2009 – Get Involved

Do you have a passion for music?  Did you dream of making it as a rock star / concert pianist / celebrity DJ before the need to pay the mortgage and take a sensible job took over?

Then OxjamBrum, in aid of Oxfam’s ‘Here and Now’ climate change campaign, is for you.

Whatever you’re into – from club nights to classical, folk to funk – OxjamBrum is your chance to fight poverty with music and show your colleagues there’s more to your talents than simply getting to your desk on time and solving that spreadsheet conundrum.

Events will be taking place around the city throughout October but we need YOU to take part to make it a success. So why not pick up your guitar, dust down the DJ equipment or get that band back together and have some fun raising money for a fabulous cause?

If you’re interested in re-living the dream and performing at an event, please email elizabeth@encore-communications.co.uk for further information.

Alternatively, why not find out more about events taking place across the city, including the flagship ‘takeover’ event on Saturday 24^th October (featuring 40 bands and 15 DJs!) at www.oxjambrum.org.uk or www.myspace.com/oxjambrum2009.  

Inergration in Birmingham: The Young Professional’s View

Birmingham is one of Britain’s most diverse cities and in 2026 is due to attain plurality – this is where no one ethnic group makes up over 50% of the population. But how cohesive do young professionals and young business people think Birmingham is and does it affect or even concern them?
The Barrow Cadbury Trust, a charitable foundation, carried out comprehensive research and produced a report in May 2008 called ‘Beyond Pancakes and Popadoms’ which explored integration and diversity in Birmingham. The trust undertook a city wide poll and conducted focus groups from various ethnic and religious groups: Black-Caribbean, (Ladywood); Whites (Northfield); and Pakistani-Muslims (Sparkbrook).
On Wednesday 28 October 2009, at 6.00pm Birmingham Future’s Diversity Committee will be holding an event to discover Birmingham’s young professionals and business people’s attitudes and opinions. We will be pleased to welcome Pippa Lane from the Barrow Cadbury Trust who will also be providing an update on latest research carried out by the Trust.
We would like attendees to pose their own questions. However, we would also like your opinions on the following:
• Will the current economic climate lead to more segregation if people start to obtain jobs through who they know instead of what they know?
• Do you think increased diversity leads to more meaningful integration or more segregation?
• Thinking about the different ethnic communities that live in the city of Birmingham today how much would you say they have to do with each other in general?
• How often do you socialise with someone from a different ethnic background ?
In the Trust’s city wide poll, 61% of 25 to 34 year olds said that they socialise with someone from a different ethnic background on a daily basis. Also, almost two-thirds of people polled, living in Birmingham, met their friends from different ethnic backgrounds at work (64%).
However, the focus groups revealed there remain anxieties over access to public services and concerns over community cohesion which are often used as examples of growing conflict between diverse ethnic communities. For example, there were suspicions that money was being unfairly spent in parts of the city with large ethnic minority populations, concerns that local schools were becoming segregated and precluding children from mixing with those of other faiths; a perceived priority for ethnic minorities for social housing; concerns about the stereotyping of ethnic minorities and associated racial prejudice; and a fear of losing identify and becoming increasingly beleaguered.

Overall, the Trust’s report concluded that Birmingham had a great willingness among people to make their diverse and cosmopolitan city work for everyone and that relations between different ethnic groups have improved over time. The report also concluded that there were insufficient opportunities for different ethnic groups to mix and that government initiatives were failing. On a positive note, voluntary and community groups and social facilities (e.g. sports clubs) were most effective in fostering integration.

Also on the Panel to illicit and discuss views will be Aaron Reid, former Birmingham Young Professional of the Year finalist and Director of Birmingham Professional Diversity and Faraz Yousufzai, Senior Partner of Waterhouse Consulting Group and founder of the Muslim Writer Awards.

A fully copy of the report is available at http://www.bctrust.org.uk/publications/?page=2