Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI) is at the forefront of driving positive change in Irish society, championing sustainability and social inclusion for over 25 years. As a leading advisor to businesses and communities, BITCI’s vision is to inspire a movement that addresses some of the most urgent challenges of our time—climate change and social inequality. With a commitment to creating significant, lasting impact for both people and the planet, BITCI continues to lead by example, fostering partnerships and pioneering programmes that open doors to opportunity.
I interviewed Katie Crosby BITCI’s WorkAbility Programme Coordinator and Anna Greenhalgh BITCI’s Employment Programmes Manager to find out more about their programmes
- To begin with, what is Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI)? What’s the company’s overall vision for the future?
Our vision is an inclusive, sustainable future for all. Our mission is to inspire, challenge and facilitate businesses to bring about a sustainable, low carbon economy and more inclusive society where everyone thrives.
- Why did BITCI start their employment programmes, what is the size of the team that are employed within BITC and what is the overall aim of BITCI’s Employment Programmes?
We know that employment is the most effective route out of disadvantage. At the same time our Employment Programmes offer businesses authentic, diversity and inclusion solutions, providing practical supports and opening up an untapped talent pool of jobseekers to the employment market. Through our team of 20+, we aim to address one of the most pressing societal issues in Ireland: the continued unemployment rates and under-employment of marginalised jobseekers. We do this through group training, one to one coaching and business partnerships.
- Which specific groups of jobseekers do BITCI’s Employment Programmes aim to support?
Our employment programmes support marginalised jobseekers, including:
- Migrants, refugees and asylum seekers
- People with disabilities or health issues
- People from the Traveller community
- Women returning to work after long gaps
- What is the EPIC Programme, and which specific group does it support and what unique issues or concerns do the people in the programme have that is a barrier to employment?
EPIC helps unemployed and job-ready asylum seekers, refugees and migrants living in Ireland to increase their chances of finding a job through online training, individual support and partnering with businesses. Barriers are not unique to this cohort but include accommodation problems, rural isolation, lack of confidence, low financial, IT and social resources, and lack of understanding of the Irish jobs market
- What is the EmployAbility Programme, how does this programme differ from the other programmes you have for marginalised groups?
EmployAbility supports jobseekers with disabilities, injuries and health challenges to find employment based on their strengths and interests. BITCI is an Intreo partner and delivers the service in Dublin North and Dublin West regions, spanning from Tallaght across to Balbriggan. There are 23 organisations providing the Employability service across Ireland.
People with health issues or disabilities who are ready for work are referred by their local Intreo Employment Advisor and can work with their Employability Job Coach for up to one year. They don’t need to be on any particular social welfare payment or provide medical documents to take part.
At the core of this service is individualised job coaching where the needs and abilities of each participant are put front and centre. The service is all about finding the right job at the right time.
- The most recent group of people that BITCI supports is the Traveller Employment Programme. When was this programme created and how successful has it been?
The programme has been running for 3 years and has broken new ground in connecting the Traveller and Business Communities. Over 70 participants have benefited to date.
- Effective & Impactful Programme designed
- Relationships with Traveller Organisations built
- Active case load of participants
- Engagement with Employers is increasing
- Deeper Awareness of Traveller Culture being actively promoted
- Delivering positive results through employment and training
- What is the main focus of the Women@Work programme? Do you have any success stories from this programme that you can tell us about?
Women@Work programme supports women to find employment that is sustainable, focusing on long-term career goals. We aim to support women who have been out of work for some time or who have relocated to Ireland.
You can view a testimonial from one of our participant (Priscilla) here: https://youtu.be/NtHWdaq78zA
- Do you have any statistics about the success of these programmes and the number of people you’ve successful placed into companies
We recently posted an update on LinkedIn sharing the impact our employment programmes in 2024 had on our jobseekers:
- 458 new jobseekers joined our programmes
- 203 have already moved into employment
- 25 companies volunteered their time to support jobseekers
- The EPIC Programme provided over 100 hours of training and coaching per jobseeker. The Women@Work Programme saw an amazing 84% of participants secure employment or training opportunities
- 21 companies took part in our Traveller Cultural Awareness training, helping to challenge biases and foster inclusion.
- Our EmployAbility services for people with disabilities in Dublin North & West 263 people in improving their employability
- Our Women Returners programme saw 84% participants achieve positive outcomes (jobs or training).
- If anyone is interested in joining these programmes what should they do?
The BITCI website provides information on how to join each programme – Employment Programmes – bitci
- Are there any other people, companies or programmes that you or in general BITCI are big fans of?
The journey to sustainability and social inclusion demands strong alliances and partnerships across multiple stakeholder organisations.
We put great value on all our strategic partnerships with progressive companies. In particular, signatories of BITCI’s Elevate Pledge are demonstrating leadership by working through our Employment Programmes to positively impact the prospects and careers of diverse jobseekers. SMEs are active with us too, regularly using our talent pipeline to fill open roles.
Partnering organisations can be found on our website Our Partners – bitci, Our Members – bitci.
There are a lot of other non-profit and community organisations focused on inclusive employment and we aim to build relationships with them to create clear, complementary pathways for diverse jobseekers.