We were delighted to welcome students from Skinners Academy to the office in March to teach them about what life at Infinity Group looks like and the pathways to careers in IT.

The students were from the school’s Year 10 Computer Studies class, so we also took the opportunity to share on insights into the ever-evolving technology landscape, with an emphasis on AI.

This is part of our bid to give back to our local community, while engaging the future generation of technology and showing them possibilities for their careers.

What did the day involve?

The aim for the day was to give the students an idea of what it’s like to work in an IT company. This meant showing them what life in the office is like, alongside insight into the different roles people fill.

Once the students arrived on site, Rob Young, our CEO, did the initial welcome presentation. During the session, he spoke about his journey, from leaving school early without a GCSE in Computer Science to setting up his own IT company. He encouraged the group that it isn’t all about exam results, but being curious and exploring what you’re interested in.

He spoke about Infinity Group’s story over the last 20+ years and how we got to the point of being a Microsoft Partner of the Year.

Next, the students were shown a video of different people across the Infinity Group team, sharing what their roles entail and how they got there. This emphasised the different backgrounds and routes that can lead to IT careers, showing the endless possibilities available.

For the second half of the day, the shift moved to AI. Tristan Shortland, CIO, ran a build-a-bot session where the students could create their own Copilot Agents. During the session, Tristan gave an overview of AI, why it’s important in the current technology landscape and how we use it internally. Using Copilot Studio, they were able to get hands-on experience working with AI and bringing their bot ideas to life.

The final session of the day focused on AI prompting. Chloe Buswell, Housing Marketing Manager, led the session, teaching the group how effective prompts can positively impact AI output and everything that goes in to creating a masterful prompt. The group even got some examples of prompts they could use to help them research their homework!

What did the students think?

The feedback from students after the day has been glowing. They shared that they were hugely inspired by Rob’s talk, especially the sentiment that skill does not come purely from natural talent. They also appreciated the emphasis on not being scared to make mistakes or fear that it will prevent future success.

The group also shared their enjoyment of the AI sessions, with surprise at how easy it was to create bots in Copilot Studio. Many were not aware of the importance of prompting, so felt they had learnt skills they could take into their daily lives.

Feedback we received included:

• “I thoroughly enjoyed the talk with the CEO, and the interactive AI prompting session, with the tips from the AI prompting session being able to be utilised commonly in my day-to-day life.”
• “I liked how everyone was very positive during their speech. Your team has made it an enjoyable visit for me.”
• “It was cool seeing how AI bots work, especially how they can search their databases.”

Perhaps the best bit of feedback we received was from one of the Skinners Academy teachers, who stated: “As a teacher, I loved getting the students out into the ‘real world’. I found it a very inspiring afternoon and some of the students have said that they want to apply for an apprenticeship with you in the future.”

Part of our commitment to giving back

We believe it’s important to give back to local communities and the younger generation.

The idea for the day came from our Volunteering Employee Resource Group, which is allowing us to find new ways to support different causes and groups, and hopefully drive good as an organisation.

The day was our way of giving young people opportunities to discover more about careers in technology and hopefully consider what their future paths might look like, even in unconventional routes.

We purposely chose a non-selective school for the initiative to represent that different backgrounds that can lead to technology careers. The school shared they do not often get access to company visits, so we were delighted to share what life at Infinity looks like.

Louise Otton, Head of Talent and Culture at Infinity Group, said: “The feedback demonstrates what the students took away from the day. We were delighted to give time to these students to learn more about careers and technology. It was really nice to hear their questions, and be able to have conversations with them about their futures.”

We know from our personal experience that this knowledge sharing can be crucial to shaping careers. And in the long-run, we may even see some of the students making their way into roles at Infinity Group!

Find out more about how we give back as a company and previous initiatives we’ve undertaken here.