We're on a mission to encourage young people to investigate digital, the options it provides as a career choice and to empower them to think about the opportunities it brings to our everyday lives. The aim of Digital Disruptors is to reach young people of all backgrounds, aged between 13 and 19, who would love nothing more than to have an opportunity to learn about this exciting and fast-paced industry and to understand how they can enter it.

The digital industry is making great progress in both diversity and volume of strong entry-level talent however we need to ensure we continue to provide a platform for showcasing new digital disruptive thinking. Inspiring the talent of the future is hugely rewarding; for us to give a little back and for the industry as a whole. The young attendees will learn new skills, meet new people and come away with many ideas and plans, whilst also experiencing a unique out- of-school activity.

From August through to October, the Digital Disruptor participants will attend workshops with some of the industry's leading organisations, learn a whole host of new skills, meet and work alongside new people, learn to collaborate on projects and respond to a challenge we set them.

As a concluding part to our programme, we run a 'Dragon’s Den' type pitch competition, asking our young people to work in teams to present their ideas to a panel of leading industry experts. Each year, the teams present their ideas on stage at the PMI Live conference event where the winners receive the Digital Disruptors Champion Award.

Impact

So far, nearly 100 young people have passed through this programme. It's led to ideas becoming reality, young people getting work experience with participating companies, other participants opting to go to university to study marketing because of the course, and a general excitement from those involved of what they can achieve.