03 Aug 2026
By Ashleigh McCulloch, Creative Director, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce
For some young people, exam results day confirms the plans they have been working towards for months. For others, it can bring uncertainty as the future suddenly looks different from what they had imagined.
Glasgow Chamber of Commerce supports the message that there is no single route to success. While qualifications can help open doors, careers are built through a combination of skills and opportunity. Increasingly, employers are looking for young talent and recognising that potential can emerge through many different pathways.
Engaging with thousands of young people each year, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce continues to champion initiatives that connect young people with employers, open doors to new experiences and help them develop the skills needed for the world of work. Whether that next step is university, college, an apprenticeship, training or direct employment, every pathway has the potential to lead to a rewarding career.
Across Glasgow, we see first hand the impact that meaningful employer engagement can have through Developing the Young Workforce Glasgow. By bringing businesses and education together, young people gain insight into industries they may never have previously considered. They hear directly from employers, discover what different careers really involve and begin to understand the breadth of opportunities available to them.
The same principle sits at the heart of GROW, a work experience programme created by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce and DYW Regional groups funded by JP Morgan Chase. By creating opportunities for skills development, workplace exposure and professional growth, GROW helps young people build confidence and gain a deeper understanding of different sectors at an early stage. For participants, access to the right conversation or advice can be transformative, helping them see opportunities they may never have otherwise considered.
Some of Glasgow's most exciting career opportunities exist within sectors facing skills shortages, with construction being a prime example. Through Construction Aware, young people are introduced to an industry that is evolving rapidly and offers a wide range of rewarding careers. From traditional trades and apprenticeships to engineering, sustainability and project management, construction provides opportunities for a diverse range of interests and skillsets. For many young people, discovering the breadth of careers available within the sector can completely change the way they think about their future.
Ensuring that opportunities genuinely reach young people is also a key priority. Platforms such as yattle, launched by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce with support from Glasgow City Council's Glasgow Futures initiative, are helping reshape how young people connect with employment opportunities. Created with young people at its heart, and developed with their input throughout the process, yattle is designed to make recruitment more accessible while creating direct connections between employers and emerging talent. For employers, it responds to a challenge we hear regularly from our members, highlighting the difficulties in reaching young people and attracting the next generation of talent. For young people, it helps remove barriers, making opportunities easier to find, understand and access.
At a time when many young people are making important decisions about their future, creating simpler, more engaging routes into employment has never been more important. The success of initiatives such as DYW Glasgow, GROW, Construction Aware and yattle demonstrates what can be achieved when employers, educators and young people work together.
As young people across Scotland receive their results, they should be encouraged to look ahead with confidence, whatever those results may be. Glasgow's business community remains committed to supporting the next generation with opportunities to learn, develop and succeed.
