Future Proofed: From Classroom to Career
The Missing Number: Social Value in Early Careers
What we know, what we're still working out, and where the conversation is going
Most early careers teams know, in their gut, that the work they do creates far more value than the numbers they're asked to report on. The problem isn't the work. It's the missing number.
Work experience changes lives. It builds confidence, expands horizons and opens doors for young people who wouldn't otherwise have a route in. But when your finance director asks for ROI, or your procurement team wants a social value figure, the honest answer from most organisations is: we don't have a number that does this justice.
This webinar is a space to talk about that honestly.
We're bringing together a measurement expert, an employer who's navigating this in real life, and the students at the centre of it all – to share what we know, what we've tried and what we're still working out. Because no one has fully solved this yet. And saying that out loud is exactly where a useful conversation starts.
Date: Wednesday 3rd June 2026
Time: 11:00am - 12:00pm
Platform: Virtual event on Teams
Why this matters now
Every early careers professional hears the same question: what's the ROI? And most of us feel the same tension: we know the real value is far bigger than the number we can currently produce. Cost per converted apprentice is a 12-month metric applied to a 3-5 year outcome. ESG reports don't capture confidence-building or expanded horizons. Procurement wants social value figures that most organisations have never tried to quantify.
The instinct is right. The work is more valuable than the current numbers show. But the conversation around how to prove it—across budget cycles, different teams with different priorities, and reporting frameworks that don't quite fit—is one almost every organisation is navigating alone.
This session asks: what does it look like to reframe that conversation? What tools exist? What are other employers actually trying? And where are we all still working things out together?
Who should attend
- Early careers and apprenticeship leaders
- Work experience programme managers
- CSR and social impact professionals
- Talent acquisition and recruitment leads
- Those defending early careers budgets against ROI scrutiny
What we will explore
The measurement landscape
Catherine Manning shares an honest picture of where the field currently is – what frameworks and tools exist, what they're good for, and where the gaps still are. MeasureUp as one practical, free starting point alongside other approaches.
An employer's real experience
How KPMG is thinking about this inside a large professional services firm – the questions they're grappling with, what they've tried, and where they're still working things out. Peer-to-peer honesty about internal pressures and what actually works.
Why it matters in practice
A student whose experience grounds the conversation in the human reality behind the frameworks – a reminder of why this work creates value that no current metric quite captures.
Reframing the conversation
A practical framework for how to take what you learn and use it to talk differently with your leadership team about the real ROI of early careers investment.
Complete the form below to secure your free spot today.
A recording will be sent to all registered attendees after the webinar.
Our speakers
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