Technology and learning specialists are urging employers to treat AI literacy and online security as core skills for young people entering work. They argue that human judgment and digital confidence now sit alongside technical knowledge for those starting their careers.

World Youth Skills Day has highlighted how AI and cyber risks are reshaping expectations for school leavers, apprentices and graduates. The focus has moved beyond narrow coding or software skills.

For Frank Jaquez, Head of Talent and Culture at learning company Skillsoft, the shift is as much about human strengths as digital tools. He points to the growing use of AI across roles and sectors, from office work to frontline services.

“World Youth Skills Day is a reminder that preparing young people for the future of work is about more than technical skills alone. As AI becomes embedded in everyday work, young people will need digital and AI literacy alongside the human capabilities technology cannot replicate – critical thinking, communication, collaboration, creativity and, above all, judgment,” said Frank Jaquez, Head of Talent and Culture at Skillsoft.

Jaquez said basic familiarity with AI tools is no longer enough. Early-career workers, he argued, must understand how to question outputs, check sources and weigh trade-offs when using machine-generated content.

He draws a sharp line between automation and responsibility.

“AI can automate routine tasks and help people become productive faster, but it still requires context and human oversight. Judgement matters. Young people entering the workforce need to know not just how to use AI, but when to challenge its outputs, how to apply their own knowledge, and where their perspective adds value that a model cannot,” said Jaquez.

The labour market remains difficult for many young people. Jaquez cited a recent PwC Youth Employment Index showing that one in eight 16- to 24-year-olds in the UK are not in employment, education or training.

“At the same time, young people are building careers in a rapidly evolving and tight labour market, with one in eight 16- to 24-year-olds currently not in employment, education or training. As AI accelerates change, the challenge is no longer simply learning new technical skills but continually developing both the technical capabilities and human strengths that drive performance. Employers have a real role to play here – strengthening the skills supply chain by giving young people clear pathways, honest conversations about how AI may reshape their roles, and stretch opportunities to build capability. Growth doesn’t always look like a promotion; sometimes it looks like a new project, a harder problem, or a skill that opens the next door,” said Jaquez.

Leadership behaviour also comes under scrutiny. Jaquez argues that senior staff must share their own experiences with AI tools so younger workers feel able to experiment and admit mistakes.

“Leaders also have to model the behaviour they want to see. When senior people share how they’re actually using AI – what worked, what didn’t, where they had to apply their own judgment – it creates the psychological safety for younger employees to experiment and learn out loud. And learning has to live inside the moments that already matter: working through a difficult challenge, presenting an idea, collaborating across teams, using AI to solve a problem, or stepping into a responsibility for the first time. When it feels like part of the work rather than added to it, curiosity and continuous learning stop being buzzwords and start becoming habits. That’s how we help young people grow alongside AI – and build careers that can keep evolving with it,” said Jaquez.

Alongside workplace skills, security specialists warn that everyday digital habits can expose young people to fraud and misinformation. AI, they say, now shapes both sides of the online safety equation.

Adrian Podkaminer, Head of Security at digital marketplace G2A.COM, said “digital confidence” is becoming as important as academic or vocational qualifications.

“Today, digital confidence is one of the most important skills young people can develop. World Youth Skills Day is not just about preparing them for future jobs; it’s about equipping them with skills to navigate the online world they’re already part of. From shopping online and using AI to study, create content or apply for jobs, to deciding what information to trust, being confident online is part of everyday life.

“AI is increasingly shaping how young people learn and create, whether that’s using chatbots to summarise revision notes or lecture recordings to generate creative ideas. But the same technology is also making online scams harder to spot, with AI-generated phishing emails, convincing deepfakes and fake messages that can appear genuine at first glance.

“That’s why being confident online today is about more than simply using technology. It’s about questioning what you see, protecting your personal information and building simple habits, such as using strong passwords and enabling multi-factor authentication, that make it much harder for criminals to take advantage.

“At G2A, we see firsthand how AI is transforming both digital commerce and cybercrime. As cybercriminals rapidly adapt to new tools and changing online behaviours, sharing practical advice is just as important as developing effective security measures. Informed users remain one of the strongest defences against online threats. The next generation won’t be defined by how quickly they adopt new technology, but by how confidently they can separate what’s helpful from what’s harmful,” said Adrian Podkaminer, Head of Security at G2A.COM.

People have been fighting for its future after it was forced shut in London Road because the building which it was in was going to be demolished.

Formerly inside the Co-Op, the Post Office closed on December 31 last year to make way for research and office space.

But now the Post Office has confirmed it will reopen at number 12 Windmill Road on September 15 at 1pm.

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“We are keen to restore service to this community as soon as possible, so we have decided to go ahead with our plans,” Co-Op spokeswoman Sheila Tapster said.

The opening hours will be Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5.30pm, providing over 51 hours of service per week.

A similar wide range of products and services will still be available.

Ms Tapster added: “The new branch will be located approximately 280 metres from the previous location.

“St Leonards Road Car Park pay & display is available 120 meters away on St Leonards Road.

“The new premises will have a wide door and a ramp at the entrance. Internally, there will be a hearing loop and space for a wheelchair.

“This re-opening of the branch in a new location is a commercial decision for Post Office and we are not seeking feedback on this aspect of the change.

“However, we would welcome suggestions and feedback about access into and inside the new premises.

“The opportunity to give feedback will close on 12 August. Customers can share their views during the consultation online at postofficeviews.co.uk with the branch code 397137.

“Submissions can also be made via email to comments@postoffice.co.uk, by post to Freepost YOUR COMMENTS, or by telephone 03452 66 01 15 or Textphone 03457 22 33 55.”

Park Place Technologies has launched The Savvy CIO, a podcast for IT leaders hosted by former Chief Information Officer Bradd Busick.

The first season focuses on the pressures facing senior technology executives as they manage ageing infrastructure, fixed budgets and rising demand tied to artificial intelligence.

Sponsored by Park Place, the series features conversations with IT executives and industry analysts from organisations including IBM, Coca-Cola Bottlers, Datum, Omdia, Solved and IDC. The opening season runs to 10 episodes.

Its editorial focus reflects a familiar tension in large organisations. Chief Information Officers are under pressure to keep existing systems running while deciding where to invest in modernisation, automation and data-intensive projects.

Topics include AI readiness, the practical challenges of liquid cooling in data centres, and the difficulty of getting more value from static IT budgets. Together, they point to an industry debate that has shifted from broad digital transformation language to questions of infrastructure limits, energy use and procurement discipline.

Busick, who currently serves as Principal, AI, Data & Technology Enablement at Frazier Healthcare Partners, brings a background in healthcare and operational technology. He previously served as Chief Information Officer at MultiCare Health System and was recognised as Washington State Healthcare CIO of the Year and National Healthcare CIO of the Year at the ORBIE Awards.

The launch adds to a broader stream of vendor-backed media aimed at senior technology buyers. Many suppliers and services groups now use podcasts and interview formats to reach Chief Information Officers and Chief Technology Officers making decisions on infrastructure life cycles, cloud spending, AI deployment and internal productivity.

Industry pressure

The programme is built around a hardening set of priorities in enterprise IT. Boards want returns from previous technology spending, finance teams want tighter discipline, and operating divisions increasingly expect AI tools and more responsive systems without matching budget increases.

That leaves technology leaders balancing competing demands. In many organisations, they must maintain ageing hardware and support contracts even as they are asked to shift funds towards data, automation and machine learning projects.

Infrastructure decisions have also become more visible at executive level because of the strain created by AI workloads. Questions about processing capacity, cooling, energy consumption and data architecture now sit alongside traditional concerns such as resilience, uptime and software support.

Busick framed the role in stark terms.

“In the old days, the CIO used to keep the lights on. Now the CIO decides which lights are worth keeping,” said Bradd Busick, Principal, AI, Data & Technology Enablement at Frazier Healthcare Partners.

He added: “This podcast features some of the top thought leaders in the world, where we don’t just talk about technology, we talk about leverage, speed and where the organisation is ‘lying to itself’ about its IT capabilities.”

Content strategy

For Park Place, the podcast offers a way to attach its brand to recurring discussions about infrastructure management and IT economics. The company operates in IT infrastructure services and reports annual revenue of USD $1.2 billion and 3,300 employees.

It says it serves more than 25,000 organisations across 180 countries, including half of the Fortune 500. Its business spans hardware maintenance, software technical support, hardware procurement and related infrastructure management services.

Park Place’s marketing leadership said the series was designed to address the less polished side of technology change programmes, where cost constraints and operational bottlenecks often slow executive plans.

“We realised many of the conversations being had focused entirely on the aspirational side of modernisation and did not actively address the ever-increasing hurdles CIOs face,” said Larry DeAngelis, Vice President of Marketing at Park Place Technologies.

He added: “We are hosting intelligent conversations to equip CIOs and CTOs with actionable insights to move their businesses forward.”

Shifting audience

The target audience extends beyond Chief Information Officers. The first season’s themes suggest the programme is aimed at a broader group of senior technology and operations leaders, including Chief Technology Officers, infrastructure heads and digital transformation executives.

That reflects a change in how enterprise technology purchasing decisions are made. Budget authority and strategic influence are often spread across finance, operations, security and product teams, making it harder for a single executive to shape technology direction alone.

The inclusion of analysts from firms such as IDC and Omdia also suggests an effort to combine practitioner experience with market interpretation. In vendor-backed editorial products, that mix can broaden relevance by linking frontline operational problems with wider industry patterns.

For listeners, the appeal may rest less on the existence of another business podcast and more on whether it can offer blunt assessments of the trade-offs senior IT leaders already face each day: whether to extend the life of existing assets, where to spend scarce budget, and how to avoid overstating readiness for AI projects before the underlying infrastructure is in place.