6.4.1 Case Study on Costa Rica's Youth Employability Program
DHL Group and SOS Children’s Villages GoTeach Partnership - 2017
6.4.1.1 1. Executive Summary
The SOS Children's Villages Costa Rica employability program was launched in 2013 and aims to support young people in shaping their future, fulfilling their potential and claiming their economic rights. The program targets disadvantaged young people in Costa Rica in general, not just young people in SOS programs. It builds on partnerships with several companies and NGOs and aims to develop young people’s employability skills and coach them in building their future lives.
In 2016 the program targeted 249 disadvantaged young people between 15 and 24 years of age. Over a period of 3 to 12 months participants receive ongoing individual support and get trained in life skills, employability skills (including gaining some work experience in internships), and job hunting skills. In this way, the program is not only a process of labor inclusion but also of personal development.
The success of the program lies in the intensive cooperation between all parties involved (young people, partner NGOs, public institutions, and corporate partners). This requires some resources but ensures real success in empowering young people and strengthening their employability.
In 2016, 249 young people received support and 13 corporate partners were involved. Across all participants,
- 37% found a job
- 34% went back to formal education
- 20% secured a new internship in 2016
- 5% enrolled in university
In 2015, SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica increased the scope of the program (from 40 to 70 participants per year), by setting up partnerships with other NGOs and servicing the vulnerable young people those partners work with. At the same time, corporate partnership development was intensified in a joint effort by the Program Development and the Fund Development departments. All parties benefited from this change:
- SOS could broaden the spectrum of corporate partnerships and manage them more cost-efficiently
- Corporate partners could meet the capacity of their programs with more suitable young people
- Young people received access to a broader variety of economic partners and sectors
6.4.1.2 2. About YouthCan!
YouthCan! is SOS Children’s Villages International’s “lighthouse project” when it comes to fostering youth employability among young care leavers. YouthCan! works together locally and globally with companies and other partners to support disadvantaged young people on their individual journeys towards decent and stable employment. Considering the individual situation, skills and interests of each young person, it aims at enhancing their employability and life skills by providing them with access to trainings and mentors and by exposing them to professional work environments.
YouthCan! was piloted in 8 countries in 2017 and rolled out to further countries around the globe in 2018 to 2020. SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica is one of the 2017 pilots and a true pioneer when it comes to developing youth employability programs in conjunction with partners. By examining the features of this successful, tried-and-trusted youth employability program within the SOS Children’s Villages federation, YouthCan! seeks to inspire and support existing and future YouthCan! pilot countries.
6.4.1.3 3. Evolution: from pilot initiative to independent youth program
2013: It began with two partnerships
In 2013, SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica’s youth employability program was launched to address a group of young people living in SOS family-based care (FBC): Their education level was low, they lacked skills to build their future adult lives. Many had dropped out of the formal education system and did not have a clear idea about their path to independence. As a consequence, they faced both low chances of finding decent employment, and a high risk of falling back into the poverty cycle. At this time, only young people living in SOS 4 FBC were targeted and the Program Development department was coordinating the program alone.
Back then, the program consisted of two pillars:
- A partnership with the Youth Career Initiative (YCI), consisting of 24 weeks of classroom and practical training programs in hotels to teach life and work skills. Through its efforts, young people were provided with valuable networking opportunities and the chance of entry-level jobs with the hotels in which they were trained.
- A partnership with DHL Group, through the GoTeach program. DHL Group employees provided support and guidance ranging from running weekend workshops to serving as year-long mentors for SOS Children’s Village interns at DHL Group.
2014: The need is greater
Within the next two years, it became clear that not only young people in family-based care were in need for this service. Rather, all young people between 18 and 24 years were struggling with limited access to the job market, especially when they have a poor educational background.
2015: Increasing the scope, the number of partners and the trainings offered
To respond to this situation, a new cross-functional program was launched in 2015, coordinated by Program Development.
More corporate partners were involved and they provided resources and internship opportunities. This allowed the program to reach out to young people participating in SOS Family Strengthening Programs (FSP) and young people referred by partner NGOs.
In order to reduce drop out and to prepare the growing number of participants to successfully start and complete their internships, a Life Skills Training was introduced in 2015.
SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica’s initiative was in line with several governmental programs to reduce poverty and to address youth unemployment (e.g., President Solís Rivera’s “Rescue Plan 2014–2018”) and with a trend in the private sector to take on corporate social responsibility. As a result, new resources were available from the government and from companies wanting to support initiatives strengthening youth employability.
2016: An independent program
In 2016, it was decided that the youth employability program would run as an independent program, under the name of “SOS Children’s Village San José”. In 2017, with YouthCan! coming into action, SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica hosted the regional YouthCan! launch in Latin America, and took on a strong pioneer role within the project.
6.4.1.4 4. Costa Rica’s Youth Employability Program
Aims of the program
The overall aims of the programme are…
- …to accompany and support young people in building their future lives through an integrated approach. Different training modules enable young people to develop their life and employability skills in order to get fit for the labour market.
- …to look for corporate partners and civil society organizations which are committed to transforming the reality of the young population by creating and implementing strategies that enable young people to enter decent employment.
- …to generate inter-institutional, family, community and individual support for program participants.
Modules of the program
The program lasts between 3 months and 1 year and consists of three pillars:
The first pillar is a life skills training. The second is an employability training, which can be divided in a practical part (internships, work exposure in different partner companies) and a theoretical part (theory related to the respective field of work). The third pillar of the program is the follow-up: young program participants are given orientation in seeking a job and advice on training opportunities.
Participants can choose between different modules, taking several modules simultaneously or in an order that corresponds to their individual needs.
During all phases, there is ongoing individual support and follow-up by the youth coordinators.
- Life skills training
- Employability training
- Follow-up support
- Ongoing support
Policy framework guiding the program
The following internal and external frameworks, policies and guidelines were considered:
- Inclusive approach: Some participants need special support due to their mental state or severe lack of social skills. Focus on treating them equally, helping them to choose the internship according to their skills
- Life skills according to the WHO definition: The WHO developed workshops and activities to support young people to build healthy relationships and make the right decisions to develop their future lives
- National and international legislation is followed in all activities: Including child labor, internships, dual education and social responsibility
- Child rights and business principles (UNICEF), especially principle # 3: “Provide decent work for young workers, parents and caregivers”.
Program HR
The SOS Children’s Village San José team consists of 5 full-time employees with program and funding tasks - a director, an administrative assistant, and three coordinators, who take care of the partnerships with the corporate partners and the partner NGOs referring young people. During the setting up of the YouthCan! partnership, a professional advisor was also employed.
The tasks and responsibilities of the program:
- Psychometric tests, interviews with candidates, recommendation on necessary trainings and internship opportunities
- Coordination and follow-up of volunteers
- Preselection of students for different trainings and internships, communication with the company and organization of first interview
- Agreements with companies and partner NGOs
- Child safeguarding training for the company
- Guidance and support for interns and companies
- Link between the company and the referring organization or SOS program
- Regular meetings with companies and partner NGOs
- Coordination of final graduation of internships
- Recruiting of public and NGO partners, information sessions etc.
The team receives additional support from different areas:
Program locations:
The team is supported by one coordinator from each SOS Children’s Village program in Costa Rica who identifies new participants for the youth employability program and takes care of the follow-up. In each partner company, there is also one coordinator who takes care of the young interns and their mentors.
FDC department:
The search for and the acquisition of new corporate partners is handled by the FDC department, together with the program department. They also work together when it comes to making existing corporate partnerships sustainable.
Volunteers:
Furthermore, the program works with a number of volunteers (Social Sciences students, ten in 2017) who work 20 hours per week for one year and take care of the follow-up of young participants who do not come from an SOS program or a partner NGO, but from the communities (2-3 young people per volunteer). One PD co-worker takes care of volunteer coordination: recruitment and training of volunteers, very tight follow-up (monthly meetings) as the task is difficult.
The program’s young participants
Program participants are always young people at social risk/in vulnerable life situations, and may have the following characteristics:
- Age: 15 to 24
- Possibly experience of domestic violence, sexual abuse and physical or psychological harassment
- Young people who live in a single parent household, had or are teenage parents
- Young people who live in large metropolitan areas
- Young people who have lost parental care or are at risk of losing it
In order to reduce drop-out rates, talking to the young person about the shape their plans for the future could take is essential. Intensive support is key, as Jessica Fallas, program director, explains:
“If we want these young people to stay in the program we really have to take care of them, almost daily. We do this through the company they stay with, through our volunteers who contact them every week with a message or meeting – just to see how they are doing…”
Application process
Identifying candidates:
Young people eligible for the program are identified by staff at SOS Children’s Village programs, by partner NGOs that work with young people, or by people who know them (e.g., other young people who have already participated in the program).
Needs analysis:
Interviews are conducted to identify the characteristics of young people and if applicable, home visits are carried out to get to know the family and environment.
Registration and application:
To apply for the program, the young people first have to register online. Afterwards they have to submit their documents (psychometric test, motivation letter and CV) and attend an interview conducted by the team at SOS Children’s Village San José.
Individual planning:
The team analyses the results and recommends further processes and necessary trainings for the young person. The results and the proposal are sent to the SOS program or partner NGO, the participant and the company. Basic trainings like computer or language trainings are organized and carried out by SOS and partner NGOs/institutions. Afterwards, the young people go through a regular recruitment process carried out by the corporate partner. An internship plan is then developed in conjunction with the candidate, based on opportunities at the company and the needs of the young person.
Program partners
NGOs and public institutions referring young people to the program are recruited through public information sessions. When they decide to refer young people to the program, they nominate a coordinator whose tasks are to…
- …follow up with the students (motivate them to participate, fill in the registration form, gather necessary documents, inform the schools of potential absences, hold group sessions with young program participants, run individual coaching sessions and report about the progress, submit a final report)
- …act as a link between the young people and the SOS youth employability program team
- …participate in team meetings every 2-4 weeks
- …provide data on the young participants for the SOS Program Database
- …participate in the graduation ceremonies
Corporate partners supporting SOS Children’s Village San José are recruited by the Fund Development department or through personal contacts of SOS program directors in close cooperation with the PD department. Before the young people start working in the company, the companies participate in a child safeguarding workshop that lasts up to 4 hours and improves their knowledge about child safeguarding topics. According to Carlos Sibaja, National Director of SOS Costa Rica, particular attention is given to the work ethics of the partner companies:
“Bringing the students to top-class companies is very important… companies that have high standards for taking care of their employees. This ensures that they [young people] avoid going to companies that might take advantage of them.”
For medium- or long-term partnerships, 1 or 2-year contracts are signed with the respective company or NGO. In addition, the young person, SOS Children’s Village San José and the respective partner sign a memorandum that regulates the duties and rights of each of the partners: duration of the internship, exact schedule, agreed training objectives, responsibilities of each of the partners, legal documentation. The responsibilities of the partners are:
- Interviews with the candidates
- Coordination of child protection training within the company
- Participation in monthly meetings with the SOS Children’s Village San José team
- Reporting about the intern’s progress
- Follow-up of the interns
SOS Children’s Village San José works intensively with the partners, in follow-up calls and meetings every 1-3 weeks. If challenges occur, the team members support, as Jessica Fallas, the program director, explains:
“The companies are really willing to help. But they lack the experience of how to work with disadvantaged young people. So we have to help them with that. (…) We give all partners training on child safeguarding, specially adapted to the context of youth employability. But we cannot answer all questions with this one workshop; it is an ongoing process of finding individual answers to individual problems…. This is where all the resources of the program go.”
Program funding
Currently (2017), human resources to maintain the program are funded by SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica. Companies pay a fee per participant per program (approx.$300- $350) to cover costs for insurance, transport, food and accommodation, special needs (e.g., uniforms). It is up to the companies if they want to offer additional benefits (food, grants, additional employability-related trainings, etc.) or a financial remuneration to the students.
As SOS Children’s Villages Costa Rica is in a process of becoming financially self-sufficient and will have to work within financial limits in the near future, YouthCan! is seen as an opportunity to motivate corporate partners to finance overhead costs in future as well.
Most of the program participants live in the urban areas where the companies are based, so transport and housing are not a big challenge. In case young people come from very remote or highly rural areas they are offered an assisted living benefit, which consists of economic support for the period of training.
Program imact and results
Monitoring and evaluation of the program show that there is a low drop-out rate among participants. In terms of outcomes, securing employment is not the only desirable outcome of the training, it is also viewed favorably if they start another internship or return to education. Program participants were able to improve their self-sufficiency and social abilities, increase their educational level and develop their future life plans. Many participants obtained jobs or went back to the formal education system after completing the program. All in all, aftercare processes were improved. Young people who successfully graduated from the program now refer other young people: they spread the word and promote the service.
2017: 22 partners in hotel, services, transport and IT sector
Preparation for work (2016)
- 80 young participants
- 9 projects
- 37% of participants found a job
- 34% went back to formal education
- 20% secured a new internship in 2016
- 5% enrolled in university
- 96% improved their employability
Life Skills (2016)
- 169 young participants trained
- Two times per year
- 91 young people in the process
- 86% participants graduated
- Half of participants improved social skills within 2 months (according to psychometric tests)
“We think that we benefit even more than the kids from the partnership. (…) We try to create this culture with our employees of how to help someone else, how to engage with the employees' community. (…) We all embrace them [young interns from the program], we know who they are and how to help them.” - Erick Barrios, training manager, Hotel Costa Rica Marriott
“Before joining the program I was at home with nothing to do, but then I got the chance of my life and I used it. (…) I recently got comments, suggesting if I continue working like that, maybe I can stay in the hotel to work. That makes me really happy. My advice for other young people: use the opportunity that you get, there might not be another one.” - Dany, intern at the Costa Rica Marriott
6.4.1.1 5. Success factors and lessons learned
For SOS Children's Villages Costa Rica, the key to the success of the employability program is, on the one hand, the follow-up given to young people. Care, guidance and support are provided in an integrated way, in order to strengthen and empower - and decrease risk factors. Only through intensive guidance and coaching can motivation levels be kept high and the risk of drop out avoided. Staying in the program is very difficult for the participants because they have not had contact with working life before. This is why co-workers and volunteers visit the young people and their families very often. They coach the young people to build their vocational life plans and to find the internship that corresponds to their talents and interests.
On the other hand, working with companies on the needs and characteristics of the participants is crucial. Companies involved in the program are usually very committed. However, the volunteer co-workers require training and support. SOS Children’s Village San José has monthly meetings with the corporate partners and follows up immediately if problems regarding the internships occur.
The following challenges have been mentioned:
Reaching out to the right young people: Not all candidates are eligible. Participating in the program requires some previous skills and some education to cope with the training situation. Quite a sophisticated process turned out to be necessary to reach the right candidates. Specific HR recruitment tools were used to identify the key characteristics that a young person requires to be successful in the internship.
In order to make sure the program reaches the most disadvantaged young people, it is important to know the participants’ profiles. However, this becomes a challenge as soon as participants from the communities are involved. WIth this in mind, SOS Children’s Village San José should build up partnerships with non-formal civil society organizations that know the people who are part of the community in greater detail.
Lack of human resources: With more young people attending the program and funding limits, SOS CV San José had to come up with new ideas. Working with volunteers from Social Science study programs has turned out to be a good solution. Providing the volunteers with a good training on the needs and characteristics of the target group and with intensive support is key to ensuring the sustainability of this measure. If SOS Costa Rica had more corporate partners it could expand the program and reach out to more young participants through new NGO partners and through communities. However, this would require a bigger team, which is not possible at the moment (the national association will become financially independent within the next years, financial resources are limited). Through YouthCan!, international corporate partners could come on board, providing the necessary funding for growth. Financial issues: Young people are ot paid for their work. This is a problem, particularly in longer-term internships. By reaching out to more companies and also to public institutions, SOS CV San José is trying to make the program financially sustainable and possibly also provide financial remuneration or other benefits (such as housing subsidies) to program participants.
Time constraints in companies: Companies have to be very committed and provide a lot of volunteer time to adequately support the young people in the program.
6.4.1.2 6. What can YouthCan! pilots learn from SOS Costa Rica
- Life skills training as a preparation for successful internships: Experience shows that many young people cannot cope with the challenging new situation of an internship/training without proper preparation. It is crucial that their needs are well assessed and a preparative training program is organized. A life skills training program can start at a young age (SOS Children’s Village San José starts with kids as young as 12) and strengthen skills that young people need in the working world.
- Developing a life plan, finding the right internship: Working on an individual career plan and a so-called “life project” helps the young people reflect on their interests and skills. This makes it easier to identify the right internship, thus avoid the risk of drop out.
- On-going coaching and support for young people and co-workers: SOS Children’s Village San José builds up coaching measures. Young people are coached before applying to the program, when they prepare for the internship, during the internship, when they apply for their first job, even after they have already entered the labor market and are facing other challenges. Co-workers and volunteers from SOS programm and partners are trained and coached as well.
- Commitment and adequate resourcing: A team of 6 co-workers and 10 volunteers is needed to take care of a network of 20 corporate and 30 NGO partners. Fund Development and Program Development work closely together and the National Director is highly committed. YouthCan! pilots, even if they are just starting out, need to have a committed driver, and support from all levels and functions of the association.
- A thorough selection and follow-up of corporate partners is necessary: By choosing corporate partners with strong work ethics and high human resource standards, young people get to know what a decent work environment means. This provides them with a benchmark for future jobs.
| Chapter lead | Susanne Novotny |
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6.4.2 Attachments
- Case-study-CostaRica-final.pdf -- Martin Schmid, 13 November 2020, 08:35
