BF&M 13

The value of summer work experience

BF&M has welcomed summer students for many years. In January 2022, the company launched some advice for students.

When I was at school, I have memories of BF&M workers coming to explain to students what insurance was and the Then in high school, I took part in a mentorship programme held by the Bermuda Education Network. There I met an underwriter from BF&M, and he spoke very highly about his job and his experience. From there I was determined emails and a couple of summers later, I started as a summer student in the compliance department.

I felt comfortable about insurance because I heard of it from school. Also my mother works in the industry. I saw job satisfaction from those around me and that appealed to me.

Being a summer student at BF&M, I experienced what it is like to be a part of a team and how the work I do makes an impact within the company. When I saw a presentation I edited and researched being implemented and used satisfaction and appreciation for what I’d learned.

is helping me grow exponentially. I started at BF&M in the legal and compliance department and now I’m months of my internship, I am based in the claims department. My earlier work involved researching legislation; now that I’m in a claims adjuster role I’m seeing how that legislation impacts customers. My level of responsibility has changed and there are more expectations of me. This sounds in my stride because my learning has been steady and progressive. I don’t feel like an intern, I feel like a fellow worker. My advice to any student considering their future is to be aware of possible opportunities and go after them. And once you have been given an opportunity, work hard and be professional. “A stone left unturned is a diamond unseen”.

If you are interested in starting your career at BF&M or learning more about its summer student opportunities, send your resume

Gen Z is finding success embracing entrepreneurship

entrepreneurial spirit of Gen Z

Those born between 1997 and 2010, also known as Gen Z, are set to become the most entrepreneurial generation the world has seen. A recent Nielsen study showed that 54% of Gen Z want to start their own raised by technology, they are in a great position to do just that. Gen Z grew up in a world of e-commerce, social media, and on-demand services, so they understand how to self-promote. Understanding how within reach we all are, Gen Z is also unafraid to utilise their networks to collaborate and test new ideas, get instant feedback, take that feedback, and make tweaks very easily.

Growing up in this technological renaissance has also put entrepreneurship at the forefront of what Gen Z sees as viable career options outside of the norm. They have abundant entrepreneurial role models, ranging from billionaire Elon Musk to Charli D’Amelio. As the best-educated generation yet, Gen Z highly values than previous generations — incubator masterclasses tend to be the primary approach to learning within Gen Z.

The Bermuda Economic Development Corporation (BEDC) hosts the Summer Student Entrepreneurship Programme (SSEP) every summer for eight weeks. The SSEP aims to nurture that entrepreneurial spirit within those combining entrepreneurial education with real-life entrepreneurial experience. given two weeks of training, which helps to foster an entrepreneurial mindset and provides the tools and knowledge needed to take their businesses to the students spend the next six weeks running their businesses and selling their goods and services to the public.

Vincent Darrell, who participated in the SSEP in 2021, says “the programme with the BEDC enabled me to take the The format of the programme allowed me to learn that we shouldn’t fear making mistakes as entrepreneurs but instead think of losses as lessons. I found the two-week Think Like an Entrepreneur mentorship programme impactful, especially hearing the stories of successful business owners and how they overcame moments of adversity.”

“With the knowledge I obtained,” he continues, “I was able to adopt the skill of bootstrapping and start my business with money from pre-orders and cover the production cost of my clothing, while I used the stipend we were provided to save up for my own equipment. I was able to kill two birds with one stone. With the success of my pre-order system, I am honored to have placed third amongst SSEP programme.”

Vincent Darrell is just one of many Gen Z’s taking advantage of entrepreneurship. Sixteen-year-old Marli Spriggs participated in the 2021 SSEP, where she launched her business Bookspace. "I feel BEDC's SSEP was an ideal starting point to catapult me into a strong entrepreneurship momentum, preparing me for my own future projects,” said Marli. Both Marli and Vincent’s also competed in the Rocket Pitch competition, where they were knowledge from their time in the SSEP to launch their businesses even further and take home a $5,000 and $2,000 prize respectively.

Gen Z’s dedication to themselves, growth and expansion of knowledge is admirable to see, and are skills that the BEDC is eager to encourage and support.

The BEDC team is tremendously proud of Vincent and Marli’s commitment to their businesses and personal development. They are excellent examples of young people looking towards entrepreneurship as a career choice. The BEDC was formed to nurture the entrepreneurial spirit, and the SSEP and Rocket Pitch programmes are just two examples of pathways to success. For more information on the Summer Student Entrepreneur Programme, the Rocket Pitch Competition, and the other call 292-5570.