Purpol Marketing Limited, Chippenham, Wiltshire, United Kingdom: Unique application of the metaverse to develop young people's career path choices

Company: Purpol Marketing Limited, Chippenham, United Kingdom
Company Description: Denise O’Leary MBE is the founder of Purpol Marketing who are bid writing and marketing strategy experts holding an impressive 90+% win rate with £3.8bn opportunity secured to date. Her book WINNER has been an Amazon No1 bestseller. Denise measures her success on how much her clients win and is sharing knowledge as an author, mentor and speaker. Purpol coach on how to win awards, grants and bids.
Nomination Category: Business Development Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Business Development Achievement of the Year - Media & Entertainment Industries
2023 Stevie Winner Nomination Title: Unique application of the metaverse to develop young people’s career path choices
  1. Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes, explaining the nominated achievement since July 1, 2020, OR written answers to the questions? (Choose one):
    Written answers to the questions
  2. If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video. If you are submitting written answers to the questions for this category, provide them in the spaces below.

    Written respoinse

  3. Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):

    Total 195 words used.

    Denise O’Leary MBE, founder of Purpol Marketing has 30 years of experience as specialist bid writing and digital marketing strategy expert. Since 2014 Purpol holds an impressive 90+% win rate (industry average 40%)  with £3.8bn opportunity secured. 
    Awarded an MBE by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for Services to the Construction sector and Entrepreneurs in January 2022 Denise specialises in supporting utilising digital training such as online courses, zoom and webinars to train young people.
    Denise engages with the UK Government at No10, the Cabinet Office and the House of Lords to share knowledge on how regional construction businesses can win critical bids as well as marketing their brands to win business. She helps charities win much needed grants (£400k+ to date) and speaks nationally and internationally showcasing effective marketing and branding.
    Denise is passionate about training the next generation and has provided 300 internships and work placements, spoken to schools on career development and provided interview training. She has mentored worldwide especially for women in construction and young people developing digital marketing careers.

    “Denise is second to none. Her knowledge is evidently polished and dedication to others is duly admired.” Aidan Bayford 

  4. Outline the nominated achievement since July 1 2020 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):

    Total 246 words used.

    Whilst businesses struggled during Covid-19, Denise pivoted Purpol to provide remote digital training.
    Since July 2020 Denise has
     
    • Increased Purpols revenue by 467% and doubled net assets since 2020
    • Employed 229 young people on 6 month placements
    • Mentored 45 start and scale up entrepreneurs,
    • Spoken to 600+ school children on career development 
    • Awarded an MBE honour in January 2022.
     
    Written for young people, by young people. ‘Kickstart My Career’ is an online course created by Purpol to be commercialised via government frameworks, employers, and education establishments. Aimed at 16-24-year-olds looking to start their career, the course is being evolved into a self-service app perfect for those seeking new employment opportunities, or looking to improve their employability.
     
    The course combines video-based learning with worked-through examples and practical exercises to help young people ’kickstart your career’. They learn how to confidently apply for new roles and be a success at interviews. Each topic improves employability and understanding of what makes the ideal candidate. It provides tools to optimise individual experiences so building a professional profile to get noticed.
     
    Utilising the metaverse - The ‘Kickstart my Career’ gamified app will be an agile intuitive, real-time learning tool that enables young people of limited work experience to learn and earn points,  developing career progression skills in a no risk environment, selecting an avatar and a job role to progress and improve employability. Building in the virtual world to provide commercial benefit in the physical world.
  5. Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):

    Total 131 words used.

    Attachments include:

     Kickstart my Career website https://www.kickstartmycareer.co.uk

     Kickstart my Career online course https://purpol-marketing-academy.thinkific.com/courses/Kickstart-my-career

     ·         Kickstart my Career App development - confidential

    • Denise Oleary Media coverage
    • Testimonials from Students 2020 - 2022
    • Kickstart Internship Completion Form 0703 -020922 CS
    • Kickstart Internship Completion Form 0703 -020922 DP
    • Kickstart Internship Completion Form 0703 -020922 EG
    • Kickstart Internship Completion Form 0703 -020922 PT

    Information can be seen on the www.purpolmarketing.co.uk website and are detailed below:

    Investiture at Buckingham Palace for Denise O'Leary MBE - Purpol Marketing

    £1 Can Really Help A Charity, Win A Purple Designer Handbag And Other Purpol News! - Purpol Marketing

    Purpol Marketing - Kickstarting My Career 1 year on! - Purpol Marketing

    Purpol passes 160 Kickstart placement milestone - Purpol Marketing

  6. Explain why the achievement you have highlighted is unique or significant. If possible compare the achievement to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):

    Total 248 words used.

    As “the metaverse” is essentially “cyberspace.” i.e. it doesn’t really refer to any one specific type of technology, but rather a broad (and often speculative) shift in how we interact with technology. We also recognise the possibility that the term itself will eventually become just as antiquated, even as the specific technology it once described becomes commonplace. We assume “the metaverse” can include virtual reality—characterised by persistent virtual worlds that continue to exist even when you're not playing—as well as augmented reality that combines aspects of the digital and physical worlds. By developing the ‘Kickstart My Career’ online course into a self-service app we are seeking to help those who want to help themselves improve their employability – an essential factor where the worlds economies are looking for more staff after the great resignation, specifically those with digital skills.
    Key attributes of app are matched to the seven stages of the online course:
    1. Finding a job and navigating through search engines and job sites
    2. Writing your CV and cover letter, using relevant information and proper formatting
    3. Develop skills that can benefit your CV and increase employability
    4. Navigating through the application process effectively
    5. Being a strong candidate in interviews through great conversational skills
    6. Dealing with denial, practicing positive mental health and keeping a positive mindset
    7. Achieving the goal of getting your job and learning how to prepare yourself for it

    This media development for Purpol takes us into new markets

Attachments/Videos/Links:
[REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]
Unique application of the metaverse to develop young people’s career path choices