Perhaps it’s because people are once again looking to the future as confidence continues to creep back, or maybe it’s a simple necessity after a period of recruitment restraint.

Either way, it’s great news.

Before the recession there was talk of the sector facing the “ticking timebomb” of an ageing workforce, with statistics at the time variously suggesting the average age of workers in the sector was anywhere between 49 and 52.

While as far as I’m aware, there are no up-to-date stats available, I can’t help but think after the past few years that the average age is finally starting to head south.

Admittedly, some of that shift has probably been driven by the recessionary belt-tightening that has forced some tough decisions.

But more recently, as the industry starts to recover and target growth, it’s most likely being driven by employers either looking to add new data-driven skill sets to their teams or a need to simply boost their workforce with new apprentices or trainees.

And that seems to be going hand-in-hand with a growing interest in developing the skill sets of existing staff, the most obvious example being the success of the BPIF Graduate Management Programme, which has just produced its first
graduate.

For too long training and apprenticeships have been at the bottom of the priority list for many businesses, but the fact that it’s once again rising up the agenda has to be another positive sign that the industry is not only healing, but proactively making itself fit for the future.