October 14, 2025 • 40 mins
Generation Next - Private Detective Harry Watts is an Advisory Board Member to this initiative from Surrey Chamber of Commerce, with whom Answers Investigation have a long association.
Harry talks to Niamh and Giorgia from Generation Next about the dynamic networking they promote - from Rope Walking to events sponsored by a Drinks Manufacturer.
Giorgia also relates a tale of her own Detective work, identifying and exposing a Catfish on Social media
You can find out more about Generation next at https://www.surrey-chambers.co.uk/generation-next/
and about Private Detectives Answers Investigation at https://www.private-detectives.co.uk/
Or call our office on 020 7158 0332
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
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[MUSIC PLAYING]
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Welcome to Detective Diaries, brought to you
by Private Detective's Answers investigation.
If you're captivated by the art of deduction,
the thrill of solving unsolvable, or the enigmatic world
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Detective Diaries are where secrets are unraveled,
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and the truth is always a clue away.
Presented by Private Detective Answers investigation,
each episode contains of big conversations
about the real people involved in investigation.
Here we are again.
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Welcome to another episode of Detective Diaries.
Today, I'm excited to shine a spotlight on Generation Next.
That's Generation Next, not X.
This dynamic initiative within the Surrey Business Community
is all about empowering the next wave of professionals.
I have the pleasure today to be joined
by two of the main driving forces
behind this fantastic initiative,
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being Neva and Georgia, who will be
sharing more on this very shortly.
Has this got anything to do with being a detective?
Well, actually, it does, because being involved
in this industry means more than just being a detective.
It involves being in business.
And as with any other business, there's
the need to network, to build connections,
and then engage with other like-minded groups and individuals.
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Naturally, as a business, we're heavily involved
with a regional chamber of commerce,
sorry, in this instance.
And a few months ago, I had the pleasure of being
invited to sit on the Enfarmus Report to Generation Next.
Generation Next was born from a simple observation,
the leap from education into the workplace
isn't always that smooth.
Many young people find themselves brimming with ambition,
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but lack the direction, guidance, or networks
to help them turn that potential into momentum.
That's where Generation Next comes in.
From me, I only wish that initiative like this existed
when I first started out in my career,
as the world at the time can be quite overwhelming
in the world of business.
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So if you aged 18 to 35, or if you're a business leader,
investing in younger talent, this episode is for you.
Neva, Georgia, pleasure to have you both with me today.
I mean, if I just start, obviously, briefly touched upon
what Generation Next is, but can you just expand
a little bit more, perhaps, where the inspiration came from?
I believe that the inspiration for Generation Next
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really stemmed from when I first came into the role,
the events marketing manager at Sorry Chambers.
I was looking around, I wasn't really seeing
many people in the age bracket of the 18 to 35 attending
our event.
So it was actually my manager that came
to stem the idea of making it an initiative.
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Originally, we had events that were for young professionals,
but they didn't really have that much pick-up.
We were maybe getting 16 people come along,
but the people that did come along were having a great time.
So I thought to a whole initiative to cover
all different areas and aspects.
There's other Chambers throughout the country
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that have their same sort of Generation Next.
But I wanted to really create something,
create something that was our own.
So I took from stuff that have happened in my life,
and I know that when I changed our direction with my career
going from biology and to events,
I didn't have much support from family members
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or I didn't have any mentors in my life.
And I really felt like I was out on my own.
So I wanted to build something that built a structure
around anyone maybe going through the same sort of thing,
but also making it fun and light and taking something from what I'd enjoy
going to the networking events,
making it less corporate and more fun and activity-based.
And I feel like that's kind of where Generation STEM from me.
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So it's quite personal, then, in that respect.
You've been corporate in a lot of things that you've experienced
and gone through to bring it to the point of it, now?
Yeah, definitely.
I think I had a lot of free reign
of when creating Generation Next.
So just why don't you do something and create an initiative,
pull Generation Next, and then it was my job to go away
and build that to whatever it needed, or what I wanted it to be.
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So for it to really be impactful or make sense,
I felt like I had to kind of really reach and think about
what I would have wanted and would benefit from,
and then also seeing the benefits from just the small things
that my self-injured had done already
in the young professional so far.
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That's pretty, George, is it kind of a similar story, would you say?
Yeah, I would say so.
I think similar to what Neve was saying,
we recognised that whilst Surrey has a strong business community,
there wasn't really a dedicated space for young professionals
to connect, learn and grow.
And it's then a platform designed by young professionals
for young professionals, a bit like Neve was saying,
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events that we would actually want to go to.
And I think for me, I have voluntarily mentored 16-year-olds,
even though it's a little bit younger.
Something that I've picked up on is when we're doing CV writing,
interview skills, techniques and things like that.
They wouldn't understand that teamwork, problem solving,
all of those skills are employability skills,
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so it was kind of an eye-opening experience being a mentor,
because then now we create workshops
that help young professionals develop on those skills,
because that's what employers are looking for,
so that's kind of my inspiration behind them.
Brilliant.
Well, what I really like about this is,
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well, I needed to kind of mention about how a lot of Surrey chambers
or some Surrey chambers and different chambers of commerce
have looked at this kind of idea before.
As far as I'm concerned from what I've seen
and certainly getting involved in the hands-on experience of it,
it's brilliant.
I've never seen more young people take up an opportunity like this
than ever before, so a lot of the times it's perhaps behind the scenes
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that they necessarily see it,
but a lot of communities and people I'm speaking to,
I've got absolutely everything to rave about this for.
What are the key objectives then?
If you take that kind of statement,
if you're looking at generation yet for younger people,
what's that key objective to you, would you say?
I would say that we kind of based it around three pillars,
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which work connects, so building a strong network,
is through like networking events and online communities,
and to support, so this is through our advisory boards,
like myself, Georgia,
and also just to have a stable network that goes throughout
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all of your career, so if you change jobs,
they're still there no matter what,
and then to develop this the last one,
so through workshops, through leadership or skills,
and that could be online or in-person as well,
so I hope to be covering those all areas
that will strengthen career really.
I know that it kind of what you're saying at the start,
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actually, is about certain events where young people might feel
that are isolated or perhaps out of their depth,
because they're dealing with someone who's got a plethora of more years,
experience, or working in the industry that they have,
and yet they clearly have something to offer to the table,
it's just getting that voice out there,
so I've certainly seen that the objectives in terms of these events
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that you hold are really striking true to allowing people
to speak to each other in a very open environment.
So how do people join and get involved?
Do you drop a little bit on that?
Yeah, so it's open to anyone in the early stages of their career,
so typically aged 18 to early 30s,
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but we don't have hard cut-offs.
It's mainly about if you're someone who wants to grow, learn,
and be a part of a community, then you're welcome.
People can join directly as individuals or through their employers,
so that's something to know as well,
so if you are a member or sorry,
chambers with plumbers, then your young professionals
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are automatically enrolled into Generation Next.
And yeah, it's really inclusive.
We just want to bring a wide range of industries and backgrounds.
So if I'm 36 and I'm wondering in,
I'm not going to get Turner A. Turner A,
because Generation Older might.
No, of course, we have had people come to our events that are five,
and they sort of question,
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"Am I okay to be here and say to them,
as long as you want to be here,
you want to build on confidence,
because that's another thing."
And they feel that they're in safe environment
because everyone's learning together.
So yeah, we welcome everyone,
yeah, even nice people, hello.
No, it's always been open doors, that is brilliant.
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So I mean, again, I have the benefit here,
unlike our list system,
of actually being involved in this hands-on,
and we went a few weeks ago to the Oakwood adventure centre,
and each of what a wonderful day that was.
Everyone getting involved on the high ropes and some laser tag.
I think a few of the laser tag people probably thought
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they were in the latest edition of Battlefield or something,
but there we are.
But what a wonderful day that was.
Getting people, perhaps out of their comfort zones,
doing things that they didn't want to do,
especially being blindfolded and walking across high ropes,
I could tell you now, I don't want to do that.
But it was excellent.
And it was really good time for everyone just to open up
and do things that they haven't do before.
Where does that kind of event fit in
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with the kind of main services and things you're trying to provide?
Is it going to be geared towards that kind of event?
Or what are you looking at here
when you're trying to put these things out to the other people?
I would say that we take the events towards what we know
that bodes well to people of that age group.
We really find that sometimes they get about wrapped,
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but realistically, one thing we found is that they actually do show up one time.
They're less likely to no show,
but they do better with activities,
ice breakers, things that kind of breaks that ice
and gets into relax, whereas some people
might just be happy just getting put in a room
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and they work the room, network and stuff,
but I think that's kind of ageing out a little bit.
And it is more about time is precious to people.
And I think people prefer to be doing something that they enjoy
than just going in and trying to get as many connections as possible.
And although some people might be owning their own business at that age
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and knowing who their clientele is,
some people might be trying to build those soft skills
and speaking to people and networking is just completely new to them.
So it's just feeling relaxed and feeling like they can have fun with it.
So I think when we have events, I think it'll be based around sometimes activities.
Sometimes it's going to be workshops and skilled based,
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so we've got one going up.
Yeah, and that's kind of a food court,
so half of it's going to be around networking before
and there's games to play in things before getting into the leadership side of things,
the workshops side of things.
So yeah, I think that's going to be a bit...
I don't know if that's going to be a question.
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But I think as well, you touched on it,
but about the soft skills, so the awkward, for example,
you know, the team, the problem solving, it's really nice
because at the start of the event, everyone kind of came in
and they were all in their little groups, you know,
with their other colleagues.
And then we split them up and they're then with people that they've never
spoke to you before and then our lanes attack, we were coming back
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and one of the girls came over to me and said,
"Oh, I didn't know this person at the beginning now we're talking
and it's just nice and I think for employers,
it's knowing that, yeah, they're sending those employees
to these events, but they're coming back with new skills,
so it's good for them."
Can you hear me?
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Can you hear me?
Can you hear me?
Is anybody there?
I'm Harry Watts.
I'm an audio technician and a private investigator.
Hear me on Detective Diaries,
telling you about enhancing poor quality audio recordings
to make them clear and audible.
[Music]
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So I think this is something that perhaps some young people may miss.
Obviously it is geared towards the most generation net
as generation next, but there is this basis of employers as well,
isn't there in terms of getting your employees leveled up,
skilled up, or doing things that they haven't done before,
again, some new employees might not have networked before.
So I can imagine that's really helpful to sort of get them involved.
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But what would you say then perhaps is it those events
that makes this different from other groups or other elements here,
which would be particularly generation next?
I think the fact, obviously, we have also the mentorship
opportunities like Neapol is saying earlier about the advisory board.
So yeah, we've got the networking events,
but I feel like it's more of a balance of professional growth
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and social connection compared to the other events.
And like I was saying earlier, for some of these young people,
it's the first time that they've actually gone out to networking.
So it's about it being a fun environment,
but in a good way.
Rather than just putting them in a room and then feeling isolated,
it's about building them for them next steps.
And we've actually got two girls that used to come to our young professional events
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and that they've been to a few and they've built their confidence up.
We now see them at our normal networking events that has everyone else.
So it's nice to just see that journey as well.
It must be really nice as well, because as you say,
an example of the lady who came to the Oakwood day,
seeing their relationship change and evolving,
how I'm sure in weeks, months to come they're going to be talking about
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hardly first met, and that was at the Oakwood.
So that must give you really nice feelings.
Yeah, definitely.
Yeah, no, it's really nice seeing those connections and things.
And I was touching on like George was saying
with those events, I think, something that's really special about Generation Next
is that it's not to forget that it's also stemming off of sorry chambers.
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So we've got all the connections that sorry chambers has had
from building up for years.
So I think that really sometimes stems it apart,
because although we're building our own little network and rural peers,
if it's a matter of having introductions and meeting mentors and things
that have been part of sorry chambers for years,
then we've always got those connections as well.
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So I feel like Generation Next also opens up a lot more doors and opportunities
that maybe a brand new network might not necessarily have access to it yet,
which is quite nice.
So clearly a lot of Generation Next has been inspired by perhaps what's having
impact on you, but what impacts have you seen in that Generation Next
has already happened, perhaps who we've spoken to, or people coming to you about this?
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Yeah, the feedback so far has been really positive,
and we've seen young professionals growing confidence.
I think my favourite so far is the communication and presentation workshop
we did earlier this year with Fred Afrifa.
So we actually sold out and then needed more spaces.
And the goal of the workshop was for young professionals to grow
in confidence when presenting or even communicating with people other than their peers.
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And when they first came in, I was registering them and I said
right on a post at note, a word that you associate with public speaking,
and a lot of them were writing down nervous, anxious, scared,
and then they did the workshop with Fred, and he was amazing, even I was in it.
And then I said at the end of the workshop,
now write a word down that you associate with public speaking and communication
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and the contrast between the walls.
So there were more words like confident, positive, not so scared.
So it's just yeah, seeing that.
And then like I said earlier, knowing that their employers have sent their employees
to this and they're now going back with new skills and feel more confident.
So yeah, I feel like that was a really impactful one that we did
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earlier this year.
So just reminding that because Fred, he was formerly on the apprentices.
Yes, he was on this season and he was really impressive,
even though I watched the apprentices.
And I was really impressed with him the way he communicates,
even like I said, even I worked at the back of the workshop.
And just the way he presents and the people that were there can really relate to him
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because again, he's a young professional himself.
And yeah, it's a good workshop.
So it's kind of a demonstration, you know, you're not just getting any more
to talk about this, you know, someone who's got that qualification experience
and obviously you're tired of some of the apprentices.
So that's quite nice.
The young people who were all the proud of that and see that.
But you know, it's kind of a case to say you're being serious about this.
(17:18):
You've got these people in who are of this production of Cannibor
and who can help.
Yeah, I think that was our goal behind it.
So obviously this all sounds wonderful.
This all sounds very smooth sailing and someone could set this up tomorrow.
But I'm sure that's not the case.
There's got to be challenges from launching something like this.
Can you tell me a bit about what you've experienced?
(17:39):
I would say, as an employer, I feel like if you even think about it now,
I feel like there's a lot of discussion around Gen Z, Gen X, millennials and how everyone works.
And it's all very different and what people used to.
And I feel like something like this is taking that pressure away
from the employer meant to know what to do and what they need.
(18:01):
We're bringing it to them.
So, employers, I think, benefit and appreciate going to networking events
and upskitting in the right area.
But also, it guilt better retention.
But something that's different about Gen X than looking at a normal networking group
is that it's connected to the Saudi chambers.
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So if you are a member of Saudi chambers,
so if the employer, for example, was looking for their own benefits,
if they became an employer, a member of Saudi chambers,
then automatically anyone in that age bracket is also a Gen X and has all access.
So they'll have all their own benefits from being a member of Saudi chambers,
from all of the business support, all the links, connections,
(18:48):
introductions, we run 100 events a year for just the rest of the network.
So the employers themselves will gain from that in themselves,
but then also all of their staff will be able to have access to Gen X.
And I know even from myself, for being in a workplace where I've access to better myself
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and upskill, it does bring more retention.
You want to stay at a place that you feel like you're growing
and you're growing your career and feeling secure.
And then obviously sometimes the employers of Gen X are in that age group.
So this isn't just for people that are starting off their career
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or working for someone, it could be entrepreneurs and things themselves.
So they'll have access to people that are doing the exact same thing
and just taking them away from that isolation
because starting a business yourself or
wanting to be in leadership can sometimes feel really isolating.
So it's hopefully, yeah, taking that away.
(19:53):
And I was just going to say employers benefit in a few ways.
So first, like I said earlier, their staff will develop skills and confidence
which they then take back into the workplace.
A second need to touch upon it, but it is a retention tool.
I did see online, I'm not going to quote it, it's part of what I saw it.
I did see it and it said younger employees are more likely to stay
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somewhere if they feel invested in and supported.
And then finally, it's good for reputation because
showing your business values the next generation of leaders,
this can make you more attractive to future talent.
So there were a few reasons.
It's quite interesting. I mean, here we say about retention
because I've certainly seen that in other industries,
(20:37):
legal or law enforcement in fact as well.
When you've got these people who are new, coming into something they
okay, no, about, they may be qualified, they may be
educationally trained in what they're looking at.
But when they get in, they feel like they're just been left
to their own devices and it's okay, find your own way.
Well, you know, that's fair enough if there is that kind of thing
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but we will need a bit of guidance don't we?
So speaking of college, you mentioned about sort of advisory board.
What's that and how's that with generation next?
So our advisory board is a makeup of people in that,
that are generation next who are excelling at their careers.
So we have access to them through our website.
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You can read up on what everyone does.
But it's to cover different industries and different areas
and anyone that's a part of generation next
can contact them at the point through email
and basically get put in touch and almost like a mentor system.
So something that we're also talking about looking into next year is
potentially having a month that each of their
(21:43):
advisors cover around their skills.
So we have people in marketing, we have Nazia who's like financial,
we have herself, are they?
And you really cover a lot of like this you work in
tech, but also and leadership, but also like that charismatic of public
(22:04):
speakings, if you really cover as well.
So I think the advisory board is really covering a lot of
large area and it's that kind of, because they all like peers as well,
it's that stafeness as well being able to speak to people
and yeah, be able to learn from them while they're going through it as well, really.
I mean for my experience is it's really wonderful to give back and have those
(22:25):
conversations with people who some of even had over the years and to now be in a
position where you can kind of give back.
I can't speak to it enough, it is wonderful.
And it's a real privilege actually to do that.
And yeah, one hope is that we're going to get lots more people that we're going to be
talking to and mentor in coming 2025 throughout the end of 2025, in the
2026.
(22:46):
This is the story of Giuseppe Dosi, a Italian detective of the
first of the 900.
And in English translation, this is the story of Giuseppe Dosi,
an Italian detective of the early 20th century.
Here we will take the adventures of C'est Nora Dosi on detective d'Iris.
(23:08):
I have to bring up this story. We've been chatting about it before.
Obviously as our listeners will know, we are a detective agency by trade.
And I hear George, that you've been using your own skills in
around the way to deal with something.
Do you want to share your story with the listeners?
(23:29):
Yeah, I can do. So I received a follow request on Instagram from someone and
the bio was sort of like back on the gram and
had the UK and the UAE flags. I thought, oh, maybe I've met him somewhere in
Dubai, I'm not sure, but I accepted it anyway.
And I think it was, I don't know, I remember showing me, I was like, oh, look at this guy.
(23:51):
And then we thought he looked a bit dodged, not to be judgmentate, but his
photos looked, all we thought they were A.R., I don't know.
Yeah, they were, they were almost like too perfect.
Yeah, he was, well, we'll get on the track.
But because it said back on the gram naturally, I just looked at who he was
(24:11):
following, see if there was anyone I knew, and all of those accounts as well.
They just looked a bit fake.
So anyway, then one day he replied to one of my stories and then we were chatting.
And he started posting videos on his story instead of obviously the feed photo, so I thought, oh, maybe
okay, this guy legit. Then he was in Dubai and this is where Detective
(24:35):
Georgia comes into full swing. So he was coming back from Dubai and the first,
hello, what was the first one? Oh, he said that he was flying with Emirates and then he said,
right, I'm getting on the flight, I've done like a deed of the day,
said, okay, what did you do? And he said, when I got on board, I said that I want to buy everyone's breakfast
and drink. And I fly with Emirates when I go to Dubai, so I knew that was a lie because all of the food
(25:01):
and everything's included on a Emirates flight. So I said, okay, but I didn't say anything because I
thought, you know, let's see how much you can lie. Then he texted me after four hours to say he's
landed. I said, okay, an average Dubai flight is seven to eight hours, so again, that's a lie.
Didn't say anything. Then he was someone that he would send me a lot of
(25:24):
selfies and that, oh, this was from Paris, this was from Switzerland. And again, it's just not normal,
you don't do that. And then I went on one of the files, it was a video, so I click on it and it said
screen recording, like the original file, so I thought, okay, now Detective Mode. So then what happened?
Then he said he has a twin sister and this girl requested to follow me on Instagram. He was the
(25:48):
only mutual, so I said, who's this? And he said it was his sister. So I was like, okay, Baron Amanda,
know all of this stuff. I've already got red flags. I accepted it anyway. And then when I got her,
she accepted me and her story, she was running in a field and she had this jumper on and I could see
that was wording on the back of the jumpers. I'm trying to pause this video. It's trying to see,
(26:12):
I'm not gonna name the school, but there wasn't a school on the back of the jumper and it said Netball.
So I went on the school's Instagram account and the girl in the video was someone completely
different to the girl that he's playing with to be his sister. So again, I said to him, "Did you
just have to play Netball?" He says, "No." So I was like, right, okay, next, red flag. Then I asked him
(26:36):
to send me a video of him saying, "Hi, George, because of the sea, he's not camera shy, he constantly
sends me." Then he woke up with a sore throat, of course, because he's not real. Well, he is real,
but we'll get on to that. And then I was like, "Do you know what? I've got enough suspicions now." So I
then used Google Image Reverse. I screenshot one of his Instagram pictures, put it into Google images
(27:03):
and well, well, well, Mr. So-and-So-and-So, he says he is. He exists, but he had blurred out the logo of the
original file and this was linked to, like, a model. He was a blue-tick Instagram, the actual guy that
he's claiming to be. So then he said to me, "The meow catfish guy." He said, "I haven't forgotten
(27:30):
about your video, by the way. I've been involved in car crash." And then I said, "Oh, you're probably
asking AI to make it." And he said, "No, I'm so against that." And then I said, "Hi, George, he's
claiming to be." And then he's sort of like, "No, I'm going to look into this. I'll send you my
driving license if you believe." And I was just like, "No." And then he stopped replying to me. He deleted
(27:51):
his Instagram. There's no trace of him. So I'm detective. Hey, hey, close. Yeah, close.
Open and shut. Yeah, I feel like that's a thing, you know, being single, younger generation is very
important to be careful on social media about who you're meeting and just be a bit more wary
(28:14):
because there are people that claim to be, you know. No, I know we just kind of joke,
obviously, you know, it is a serious point and is it the story from your personal experience there as
well, but it's a good lesson isn't it, just that social media, it's not what I think it is,
and normally is far from it as well. If a guy looks too good, then a bought measure.
(28:37):
Too good to be true. Too good to be true.
Get involved. Detective Diaries is interactive, which involves you, the listener.
Do you have a case you'd like discussed? A burning question about investigative life?
Send an email to podcast@private-detectives.co.uk or reach out via social media. You may hear
(29:05):
your story featured in an upcoming episode. Don't forget to leave your contact details.
[Music]
So our listeners would have just heard our Get Involved clip. You can see the link below
in our show notes. Our audience can submit cases, interesting stories and general ideas to discuss,
(29:29):
so with that in mind, how can listeners get involved with Generation Next, whether it be
as participants, mentors or sponsors perhaps? I would say I'd say Get Involved, really.
See what's out there. I'd ask them what they're doing for their next generation that they're
bringing in, and I would just say to them that there's plenty of opportunity if they want to be
(29:51):
involved, speakers, sponsors. Yeah, lend a hand, come check it out. We've got brands for
making new website, Generation Next, sorry, you can google it, or you can find it through this
Voting and this website as well, so I'd say go check it out.
Bring it, so it's not just looking at the employees to get their stuff involved. We're talking about
the participants, the mentors, the sponsorships, the advocates. I mean, if you've got a message for
(30:15):
those who want to get involved for those reasons. I think it's really easy like to get involved.
Obviously if you're a young professional, you can sign up directly via the website or as mentioned
if you are already a member of sorry chambers then through your employer. And also like you mentioned
mentorship, so if you're more experienced then we're always looking for mentors to join the advisory
(30:40):
board, so definitely have a look to see what we've already got on the board in terms of kind of
industries. And then if you're a business, there are opportunities to support us as sponsors or
advocates as need just touched upon. But I think the best first step is to just reach out to the
sorry chambers team or look on the website. Yeah, get in touch with love to all different audiences.
(31:04):
The professionals, the mentors, the businesses, get involved.
I think that you can reach out to our social media as well. So we've got our generation next.
Sorry, Instagram, come check it out. And yeah, with the advisory board again obviously you can reach
out through the website and you don't have to be a member in order to come to the events or anything
(31:28):
so if you want to trial it or send some of your staff or try that yourself you can just come along
and some of our workshops and things online are like completely free as well. So yeah, you can
out, just out, come along. And generally I think that's a nice thing from personal experience as well.
It's not a case of some networking groups where you come along and say, right, yeah, they bring
(31:50):
your referral or whatever it may be. This is an open book to say, does this work for you? Are you
enjoying it? And is it helping you in if so? Getting involved. Yeah, super low pressure I would say is like
the environment we're trying to create is low pressure, but then also beneficial.
So what's the next plan for the big adventure day? Am I being blindfolded again at some high
(32:13):
rooms or what's going on? I'm just saying. We've been a little bit of a with, yeah. We were
just feeling a little bit. Yeah. Well, for me personally, I remember my first sorry chambers event
compared to the young professionals event and while the sorry chambers events are phenomenal,
(32:35):
this must have been eight, nine years ago. I think I attended. I really did see the difference
between going into a room of like-minded people having those relatable conversations, but then saying,
right, where's next? Where can we build this to? And so yeah, the motivation for me to be on that
advice we've all ready to give back. So I'm very much enjoying that role and looking forward to where
(32:55):
where it comes on to next. We obviously speaking of Oakwood, we're going to just have to have
talk about coming chat about some of the experiences and how it's been chatting with the members who
are there on the day, so hopefully we can get some insight and you'll be able to hear some more
feedback about all the wonderful things that have been doing. That would be great.
Ah, nice to see you again. Do you know what? The Oakwood Adventure Day was very memorable for me.
(33:22):
I think it was probably one of the best experiences that I've done since joining my career,
starting my career. I'm very adventurable anyways, so I loved the sort of go-ape side and the
climbing and the heights and then the laser tag I thought was extremely cool, but the smoke
(33:44):
bombs and running around, I got quite competitive I think. Good team, what though? It made us
very well. Yeah, there was a lot of like, I think we did quite well in the fact that there wasn't
one person like trying to be bossy over everyone else, like we all worked quite well with each other
and sort of like taking it in terms like running and shooting people and then running back and
(34:08):
everyone defending each other and oh you know what the hot chocolate we had after the rain. That was
so good. But I think for me generation next like the whole system in itself, I really enjoyed it and
I film much more comfortable in those sort of networking events because everyone else is a
(34:30):
similar age to me and I feel like it's much easier to talk to people of a similar age because
we all kind of feel the same level of experience. I don't feel like I'm talking to someone who
probably thinks they know it all or isn't as interested in my career because they're too bothered
with themselves or anything like that and it's just it's nice to talk to people who are my age
(34:55):
and then in future we might still be in contact because they'll probably still be in their careers
where I am now, whereas if you speak to a normal networking event they might be in their career
10 years later but they might have retired by then. So it's nice to have those contacts that you know
are probably going to stay around for quite a long time. I actually spoke to someone else who is
(35:20):
there called Daniel and I think we actually have a few clips of him in how he felt about the experience.
My name is Daniel and where are you coming from today? So I'm a solicitor,
Harrington Carmichael based in Farmer, yeah so quite a way away. Yeah, what do you specify?
(35:43):
So I specialize in commercial and property disputes so overall I'm at the Sputes resolution
solicitor and I deal with business to business disputes, private disputes, mostly surrounding
a property and you know involving a property or also business to business,
(36:03):
disagreements, breach the contract, all that lovely stuff. Oh and how have you found today?
Yeah really good, really engaging, very different to what I'm used to in a good way. I think a lot
of the stuff that I attend networking-wise tends to be kind of just standing up, introducing yourself,
(36:25):
very forward-facing and this has been really different in a good way that you know I feel like it
it goes a bit deeper and you know you do some activities together, you build that trust
early on and it's good you get to talk to people on a personal level, not just on a professional one.
Do you think you'll go to another generation next? Yeah hopefully, yeah I would like to come again
(36:51):
obviously there's some hoops I need to jump through but yeah no I would love to, I think I would definitely
recommend it especially if no one you know if I'm speaking to someone that hasn't been to something
like this before I'll say just try it and then let me know what you think is very different, very
engaging and yeah it was good. I mean you really cannot build a relationship any quicker than putting
(37:13):
you know all those people up in those higher robes you know and yeah someone blindfolded on top as well
no yeah that was that was good. So it was really nice to hear Daniel's comments there, lots of positive
feedback talking about the day and why the event works for younger people so that was really brilliant
and thank you Daniel for those comments. So obviously there's private detectives being members here
(37:38):
the obviously a bit of a niche business you could say is this something that you're looking at
mainstream or is it selected groups what you're obviously talking about it being an open door
so I imagine you're looking for everyone about other particular industries that you're working with
at the moment. I think it's important us to have people from such diverse industries to let you say
private detectives to creatives, accountants to engineers it makes the conversations richer and the
(38:04):
network stronger and it therefore means that members get exposure to different ways of thinking
which they wouldn't necessarily get if they only mix their own industry and it creates a really
dynamic well-rounded community and yeah I think maybe a forensics workshop on the cars over to you.
Oh that is a brilliant idea. Yeah definitely I'll bring the date you're really what do you
(38:29):
proud of you? Yeah we'll get the short going on the floor. Yeah brilliant day. No I love the idea
that would certainly talk more about it after this I think. Kneeve Georgia thank you so much for
being here I really want to talk to you all about generation next. I certainly think we're going
to have to be looking at that for instance next day aren't we? Yeah definitely sounds very interesting
(38:52):
definitely have to put that on the podcast as well. Absolutely that will make you a good episode so
if you're listening look forward to that one in the near future. To our listeners thank you again
for joining us and we look forward to seeing you in the next episode of Detective Directs.
We hope you enjoyed today's podcast brought to you by answers investigation and UK fingerprint.
(39:17):
If you've enjoyed our conversation and want to learn more about the fascinating world of
investigations be sure to check out private detectives answers investigation. Their experience
team offers a wide range of discrete and professional services helping you find the answers you need
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(39:39):
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(40:01):
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[MUSIC PLAYING]
(00:05):
Welcome to Detective Diaries, brought to you
by Private Detective's Answers investigation.
If you're captivated by the art of deduction,
the thrill of solving unsolvable, or the enigmatic world
of private investigation, you have just
found your new favorite podcast.
Detective Diaries are where secrets are unraveled,
(00:27):
and the truth is always a clue away.
Presented by Private Detective Answers investigation,
each episode contains of big conversations
about the real people involved in investigation.
Here we are again.
(00:48):
Welcome to another episode of Detective Diaries.
Today, I'm excited to shine a spotlight on Generation Next.
That's Generation Next, not X.
This dynamic initiative within the Surrey Business Community
is all about empowering the next wave of professionals.
I have the pleasure today to be joined
by two of the main driving forces
behind this fantastic initiative,
(01:09):
being Neva and Georgia, who will be
sharing more on this very shortly.
Has this got anything to do with being a detective?
Well, actually, it does, because being involved
in this industry means more than just being a detective.
It involves being in business.
And as with any other business, there's
the need to network, to build connections,
and then engage with other like-minded groups and individuals.
(01:29):
Naturally, as a business, we're heavily involved
with a regional chamber of commerce,
sorry, in this instance.
And a few months ago, I had the pleasure of being
invited to sit on the Enfarmus Report to Generation Next.
Generation Next was born from a simple observation,
the leap from education into the workplace
isn't always that smooth.
Many young people find themselves brimming with ambition,
(01:51):
but lack the direction, guidance, or networks
to help them turn that potential into momentum.
That's where Generation Next comes in.
From me, I only wish that initiative like this existed
when I first started out in my career,
as the world at the time can be quite overwhelming
in the world of business.
(02:11):
So if you aged 18 to 35, or if you're a business leader,
investing in younger talent, this episode is for you.
Neva, Georgia, pleasure to have you both with me today.
I mean, if I just start, obviously, briefly touched upon
what Generation Next is, but can you just expand
a little bit more, perhaps, where the inspiration came from?
I believe that the inspiration for Generation Next
(02:34):
really stemmed from when I first came into the role,
the events marketing manager at Sorry Chambers.
I was looking around, I wasn't really seeing
many people in the age bracket of the 18 to 35 attending
our event.
So it was actually my manager that came
to stem the idea of making it an initiative.
(02:54):
Originally, we had events that were for young professionals,
but they didn't really have that much pick-up.
We were maybe getting 16 people come along,
but the people that did come along were having a great time.
So I thought to a whole initiative to cover
all different areas and aspects.
There's other Chambers throughout the country
(03:16):
that have their same sort of Generation Next.
But I wanted to really create something,
create something that was our own.
So I took from stuff that have happened in my life,
and I know that when I changed our direction with my career
going from biology and to events,
I didn't have much support from family members
(03:38):
or I didn't have any mentors in my life.
And I really felt like I was out on my own.
So I wanted to build something that built a structure
around anyone maybe going through the same sort of thing,
but also making it fun and light and taking something from what I'd enjoy
going to the networking events,
making it less corporate and more fun and activity-based.
And I feel like that's kind of where Generation STEM from me.
(04:02):
So it's quite personal, then, in that respect.
You've been corporate in a lot of things that you've experienced
and gone through to bring it to the point of it, now?
Yeah, definitely.
I think I had a lot of free reign
of when creating Generation Next.
So just why don't you do something and create an initiative,
pull Generation Next, and then it was my job to go away
and build that to whatever it needed, or what I wanted it to be.
(04:26):
So for it to really be impactful or make sense,
I felt like I had to kind of really reach and think about
what I would have wanted and would benefit from,
and then also seeing the benefits from just the small things
that my self-injured had done already
in the young professional so far.
(04:48):
That's pretty, George, is it kind of a similar story, would you say?
Yeah, I would say so.
I think similar to what Neve was saying,
we recognised that whilst Surrey has a strong business community,
there wasn't really a dedicated space for young professionals
to connect, learn and grow.
And it's then a platform designed by young professionals
for young professionals, a bit like Neve was saying,
(05:10):
events that we would actually want to go to.
And I think for me, I have voluntarily mentored 16-year-olds,
even though it's a little bit younger.
Something that I've picked up on is when we're doing CV writing,
interview skills, techniques and things like that.
They wouldn't understand that teamwork, problem solving,
all of those skills are employability skills,
(05:30):
so it was kind of an eye-opening experience being a mentor,
because then now we create workshops
that help young professionals develop on those skills,
because that's what employers are looking for,
so that's kind of my inspiration behind them.
Brilliant.
Well, what I really like about this is,
(05:51):
well, I needed to kind of mention about how a lot of Surrey chambers
or some Surrey chambers and different chambers of commerce
have looked at this kind of idea before.
As far as I'm concerned from what I've seen
and certainly getting involved in the hands-on experience of it,
it's brilliant.
I've never seen more young people take up an opportunity like this
than ever before, so a lot of the times it's perhaps behind the scenes
(06:15):
that they necessarily see it,
but a lot of communities and people I'm speaking to,
I've got absolutely everything to rave about this for.
What are the key objectives then?
If you take that kind of statement,
if you're looking at generation yet for younger people,
what's that key objective to you, would you say?
I would say that we kind of based it around three pillars,
(06:36):
which work connects, so building a strong network,
is through like networking events and online communities,
and to support, so this is through our advisory boards,
like myself, Georgia,
and also just to have a stable network that goes throughout
(06:56):
all of your career, so if you change jobs,
they're still there no matter what,
and then to develop this the last one,
so through workshops, through leadership or skills,
and that could be online or in-person as well,
so I hope to be covering those all areas
that will strengthen career really.
I know that it kind of what you're saying at the start,
(07:18):
actually, is about certain events where young people might feel
that are isolated or perhaps out of their depth,
because they're dealing with someone who's got a plethora of more years,
experience, or working in the industry that they have,
and yet they clearly have something to offer to the table,
it's just getting that voice out there,
so I've certainly seen that the objectives in terms of these events
(07:39):
that you hold are really striking true to allowing people
to speak to each other in a very open environment.
So how do people join and get involved?
Do you drop a little bit on that?
Yeah, so it's open to anyone in the early stages of their career,
so typically aged 18 to early 30s,
(08:00):
but we don't have hard cut-offs.
It's mainly about if you're someone who wants to grow, learn,
and be a part of a community, then you're welcome.
People can join directly as individuals or through their employers,
so that's something to know as well,
so if you are a member or sorry,
chambers with plumbers, then your young professionals
(08:21):
are automatically enrolled into Generation Next.
And yeah, it's really inclusive.
We just want to bring a wide range of industries and backgrounds.
So if I'm 36 and I'm wondering in,
I'm not going to get Turner A. Turner A,
because Generation Older might.
No, of course, we have had people come to our events that are five,
and they sort of question,
(08:42):
"Am I okay to be here and say to them,
as long as you want to be here,
you want to build on confidence,
because that's another thing."
And they feel that they're in safe environment
because everyone's learning together.
So yeah, we welcome everyone,
yeah, even nice people, hello.
No, it's always been open doors, that is brilliant.
(09:02):
So I mean, again, I have the benefit here,
unlike our list system,
of actually being involved in this hands-on,
and we went a few weeks ago to the Oakwood adventure centre,
and each of what a wonderful day that was.
Everyone getting involved on the high ropes and some laser tag.
I think a few of the laser tag people probably thought
(09:23):
they were in the latest edition of Battlefield or something,
but there we are.
But what a wonderful day that was.
Getting people, perhaps out of their comfort zones,
doing things that they didn't want to do,
especially being blindfolded and walking across high ropes,
I could tell you now, I don't want to do that.
But it was excellent.
And it was really good time for everyone just to open up
and do things that they haven't do before.
Where does that kind of event fit in
(09:45):
with the kind of main services and things you're trying to provide?
Is it going to be geared towards that kind of event?
Or what are you looking at here
when you're trying to put these things out to the other people?
I would say that we take the events towards what we know
that bodes well to people of that age group.
We really find that sometimes they get about wrapped,
(10:05):
but realistically, one thing we found is that they actually do show up one time.
They're less likely to no show,
but they do better with activities,
ice breakers, things that kind of breaks that ice
and gets into relax, whereas some people
might just be happy just getting put in a room
(10:26):
and they work the room, network and stuff,
but I think that's kind of ageing out a little bit.
And it is more about time is precious to people.
And I think people prefer to be doing something that they enjoy
than just going in and trying to get as many connections as possible.
And although some people might be owning their own business at that age
(10:49):
and knowing who their clientele is,
some people might be trying to build those soft skills
and speaking to people and networking is just completely new to them.
So it's just feeling relaxed and feeling like they can have fun with it.
So I think when we have events, I think it'll be based around sometimes activities.
Sometimes it's going to be workshops and skilled based,
(11:12):
so we've got one going up.
Yeah, and that's kind of a food court,
so half of it's going to be around networking before
and there's games to play in things before getting into the leadership side of things,
the workshops side of things.
So yeah, I think that's going to be a bit...
I don't know if that's going to be a question.
(11:33):
But I think as well, you touched on it,
but about the soft skills, so the awkward, for example,
you know, the team, the problem solving, it's really nice
because at the start of the event, everyone kind of came in
and they were all in their little groups, you know,
with their other colleagues.
And then we split them up and they're then with people that they've never
spoke to you before and then our lanes attack, we were coming back
(11:55):
and one of the girls came over to me and said,
"Oh, I didn't know this person at the beginning now we're talking
and it's just nice and I think for employers,
it's knowing that, yeah, they're sending those employees
to these events, but they're coming back with new skills,
so it's good for them."
Can you hear me?
(12:18):
Can you hear me?
Can you hear me?
Is anybody there?
I'm Harry Watts.
I'm an audio technician and a private investigator.
Hear me on Detective Diaries,
telling you about enhancing poor quality audio recordings
to make them clear and audible.
[Music]
(12:41):
So I think this is something that perhaps some young people may miss.
Obviously it is geared towards the most generation net
as generation next, but there is this basis of employers as well,
isn't there in terms of getting your employees leveled up,
skilled up, or doing things that they haven't done before,
again, some new employees might not have networked before.
So I can imagine that's really helpful to sort of get them involved.
(13:03):
But what would you say then perhaps is it those events
that makes this different from other groups or other elements here,
which would be particularly generation next?
I think the fact, obviously, we have also the mentorship
opportunities like Neapol is saying earlier about the advisory board.
So yeah, we've got the networking events,
but I feel like it's more of a balance of professional growth
(13:26):
and social connection compared to the other events.
And like I was saying earlier, for some of these young people,
it's the first time that they've actually gone out to networking.
So it's about it being a fun environment,
but in a good way.
Rather than just putting them in a room and then feeling isolated,
it's about building them for them next steps.
And we've actually got two girls that used to come to our young professional events
(13:51):
and that they've been to a few and they've built their confidence up.
We now see them at our normal networking events that has everyone else.
So it's nice to just see that journey as well.
It must be really nice as well, because as you say,
an example of the lady who came to the Oakwood day,
seeing their relationship change and evolving,
how I'm sure in weeks, months to come they're going to be talking about
(14:13):
hardly first met, and that was at the Oakwood.
So that must give you really nice feelings.
Yeah, definitely.
Yeah, no, it's really nice seeing those connections and things.
And I was touching on like George was saying
with those events, I think, something that's really special about Generation Next
is that it's not to forget that it's also stemming off of sorry chambers.
(14:35):
So we've got all the connections that sorry chambers has had
from building up for years.
So I think that really sometimes stems it apart,
because although we're building our own little network and rural peers,
if it's a matter of having introductions and meeting mentors and things
that have been part of sorry chambers for years,
then we've always got those connections as well.
(14:58):
So I feel like Generation Next also opens up a lot more doors and opportunities
that maybe a brand new network might not necessarily have access to it yet,
which is quite nice.
So clearly a lot of Generation Next has been inspired by perhaps what's having
impact on you, but what impacts have you seen in that Generation Next
has already happened, perhaps who we've spoken to, or people coming to you about this?
(15:21):
Yeah, the feedback so far has been really positive,
and we've seen young professionals growing confidence.
I think my favourite so far is the communication and presentation workshop
we did earlier this year with Fred Afrifa.
So we actually sold out and then needed more spaces.
And the goal of the workshop was for young professionals to grow
in confidence when presenting or even communicating with people other than their peers.
(15:47):
And when they first came in, I was registering them and I said
right on a post at note, a word that you associate with public speaking,
and a lot of them were writing down nervous, anxious, scared,
and then they did the workshop with Fred, and he was amazing, even I was in it.
And then I said at the end of the workshop,
now write a word down that you associate with public speaking and communication
(16:11):
and the contrast between the walls.
So there were more words like confident, positive, not so scared.
So it's just yeah, seeing that.
And then like I said earlier, knowing that their employers have sent their employees
to this and they're now going back with new skills and feel more confident.
So yeah, I feel like that was a really impactful one that we did
(16:32):
earlier this year.
So just reminding that because Fred, he was formerly on the apprentices.
Yes, he was on this season and he was really impressive,
even though I watched the apprentices.
And I was really impressed with him the way he communicates,
even like I said, even I worked at the back of the workshop.
And just the way he presents and the people that were there can really relate to him
(16:58):
because again, he's a young professional himself.
And yeah, it's a good workshop.
So it's kind of a demonstration, you know, you're not just getting any more
to talk about this, you know, someone who's got that qualification experience
and obviously you're tired of some of the apprentices.
So that's quite nice.
The young people who were all the proud of that and see that.
But you know, it's kind of a case to say you're being serious about this.
(17:18):
You've got these people in who are of this production of Cannibor
and who can help.
Yeah, I think that was our goal behind it.
So obviously this all sounds wonderful.
This all sounds very smooth sailing and someone could set this up tomorrow.
But I'm sure that's not the case.
There's got to be challenges from launching something like this.
Can you tell me a bit about what you've experienced?
(17:39):
I would say, as an employer, I feel like if you even think about it now,
I feel like there's a lot of discussion around Gen Z, Gen X, millennials and how everyone works.
And it's all very different and what people used to.
And I feel like something like this is taking that pressure away
from the employer meant to know what to do and what they need.
(18:01):
We're bringing it to them.
So, employers, I think, benefit and appreciate going to networking events
and upskitting in the right area.
But also, it guilt better retention.
But something that's different about Gen X than looking at a normal networking group
is that it's connected to the Saudi chambers.
(18:25):
So if you are a member of Saudi chambers,
so if the employer, for example, was looking for their own benefits,
if they became an employer, a member of Saudi chambers,
then automatically anyone in that age bracket is also a Gen X and has all access.
So they'll have all their own benefits from being a member of Saudi chambers,
from all of the business support, all the links, connections,
(18:48):
introductions, we run 100 events a year for just the rest of the network.
So the employers themselves will gain from that in themselves,
but then also all of their staff will be able to have access to Gen X.
And I know even from myself, for being in a workplace where I've access to better myself
(19:11):
and upskill, it does bring more retention.
You want to stay at a place that you feel like you're growing
and you're growing your career and feeling secure.
And then obviously sometimes the employers of Gen X are in that age group.
So this isn't just for people that are starting off their career
(19:31):
or working for someone, it could be entrepreneurs and things themselves.
So they'll have access to people that are doing the exact same thing
and just taking them away from that isolation
because starting a business yourself or
wanting to be in leadership can sometimes feel really isolating.
So it's hopefully, yeah, taking that away.
(19:53):
And I was just going to say employers benefit in a few ways.
So first, like I said earlier, their staff will develop skills and confidence
which they then take back into the workplace.
A second need to touch upon it, but it is a retention tool.
I did see online, I'm not going to quote it, it's part of what I saw it.
I did see it and it said younger employees are more likely to stay
(20:15):
somewhere if they feel invested in and supported.
And then finally, it's good for reputation because
showing your business values the next generation of leaders,
this can make you more attractive to future talent.
So there were a few reasons.
It's quite interesting. I mean, here we say about retention
because I've certainly seen that in other industries,
(20:37):
legal or law enforcement in fact as well.
When you've got these people who are new, coming into something they
okay, no, about, they may be qualified, they may be
educationally trained in what they're looking at.
But when they get in, they feel like they're just been left
to their own devices and it's okay, find your own way.
Well, you know, that's fair enough if there is that kind of thing
(20:59):
but we will need a bit of guidance don't we?
So speaking of college, you mentioned about sort of advisory board.
What's that and how's that with generation next?
So our advisory board is a makeup of people in that,
that are generation next who are excelling at their careers.
So we have access to them through our website.
(21:21):
You can read up on what everyone does.
But it's to cover different industries and different areas
and anyone that's a part of generation next
can contact them at the point through email
and basically get put in touch and almost like a mentor system.
So something that we're also talking about looking into next year is
potentially having a month that each of their
(21:43):
advisors cover around their skills.
So we have people in marketing, we have Nazia who's like financial,
we have herself, are they?
And you really cover a lot of like this you work in
tech, but also and leadership, but also like that charismatic of public
(22:04):
speakings, if you really cover as well.
So I think the advisory board is really covering a lot of
large area and it's that kind of, because they all like peers as well,
it's that stafeness as well being able to speak to people
and yeah, be able to learn from them while they're going through it as well, really.
I mean for my experience is it's really wonderful to give back and have those
(22:25):
conversations with people who some of even had over the years and to now be in a
position where you can kind of give back.
I can't speak to it enough, it is wonderful.
And it's a real privilege actually to do that.
And yeah, one hope is that we're going to get lots more people that we're going to be
talking to and mentor in coming 2025 throughout the end of 2025, in the
2026.
(22:46):
This is the story of Giuseppe Dosi, a Italian detective of the
first of the 900.
And in English translation, this is the story of Giuseppe Dosi,
an Italian detective of the early 20th century.
Here we will take the adventures of C'est Nora Dosi on detective d'Iris.
(23:08):
I have to bring up this story. We've been chatting about it before.
Obviously as our listeners will know, we are a detective agency by trade.
And I hear George, that you've been using your own skills in
around the way to deal with something.
Do you want to share your story with the listeners?
(23:29):
Yeah, I can do. So I received a follow request on Instagram from someone and
the bio was sort of like back on the gram and
had the UK and the UAE flags. I thought, oh, maybe I've met him somewhere in
Dubai, I'm not sure, but I accepted it anyway.
And I think it was, I don't know, I remember showing me, I was like, oh, look at this guy.
(23:51):
And then we thought he looked a bit dodged, not to be judgmentate, but his
photos looked, all we thought they were A.R., I don't know.
Yeah, they were, they were almost like too perfect.
Yeah, he was, well, we'll get on the track.
But because it said back on the gram naturally, I just looked at who he was
(24:11):
following, see if there was anyone I knew, and all of those accounts as well.
They just looked a bit fake.
So anyway, then one day he replied to one of my stories and then we were chatting.
And he started posting videos on his story instead of obviously the feed photo, so I thought, oh, maybe
okay, this guy legit. Then he was in Dubai and this is where Detective
(24:35):
Georgia comes into full swing. So he was coming back from Dubai and the first,
hello, what was the first one? Oh, he said that he was flying with Emirates and then he said,
right, I'm getting on the flight, I've done like a deed of the day,
said, okay, what did you do? And he said, when I got on board, I said that I want to buy everyone's breakfast
and drink. And I fly with Emirates when I go to Dubai, so I knew that was a lie because all of the food
(25:01):
and everything's included on a Emirates flight. So I said, okay, but I didn't say anything because I
thought, you know, let's see how much you can lie. Then he texted me after four hours to say he's
landed. I said, okay, an average Dubai flight is seven to eight hours, so again, that's a lie.
Didn't say anything. Then he was someone that he would send me a lot of
(25:24):
selfies and that, oh, this was from Paris, this was from Switzerland. And again, it's just not normal,
you don't do that. And then I went on one of the files, it was a video, so I click on it and it said
screen recording, like the original file, so I thought, okay, now Detective Mode. So then what happened?
Then he said he has a twin sister and this girl requested to follow me on Instagram. He was the
(25:48):
only mutual, so I said, who's this? And he said it was his sister. So I was like, okay, Baron Amanda,
know all of this stuff. I've already got red flags. I accepted it anyway. And then when I got her,
she accepted me and her story, she was running in a field and she had this jumper on and I could see
that was wording on the back of the jumpers. I'm trying to pause this video. It's trying to see,
(26:12):
I'm not gonna name the school, but there wasn't a school on the back of the jumper and it said Netball.
So I went on the school's Instagram account and the girl in the video was someone completely
different to the girl that he's playing with to be his sister. So again, I said to him, "Did you
just have to play Netball?" He says, "No." So I was like, right, okay, next, red flag. Then I asked him
(26:36):
to send me a video of him saying, "Hi, George, because of the sea, he's not camera shy, he constantly
sends me." Then he woke up with a sore throat, of course, because he's not real. Well, he is real,
but we'll get on to that. And then I was like, "Do you know what? I've got enough suspicions now." So I
then used Google Image Reverse. I screenshot one of his Instagram pictures, put it into Google images
(27:03):
and well, well, well, Mr. So-and-So-and-So, he says he is. He exists, but he had blurred out the logo of the
original file and this was linked to, like, a model. He was a blue-tick Instagram, the actual guy that
he's claiming to be. So then he said to me, "The meow catfish guy." He said, "I haven't forgotten
(27:30):
about your video, by the way. I've been involved in car crash." And then I said, "Oh, you're probably
asking AI to make it." And he said, "No, I'm so against that." And then I said, "Hi, George, he's
claiming to be." And then he's sort of like, "No, I'm going to look into this. I'll send you my
driving license if you believe." And I was just like, "No." And then he stopped replying to me. He deleted
(27:51):
his Instagram. There's no trace of him. So I'm detective. Hey, hey, close. Yeah, close.
Open and shut. Yeah, I feel like that's a thing, you know, being single, younger generation is very
important to be careful on social media about who you're meeting and just be a bit more wary
(28:14):
because there are people that claim to be, you know. No, I know we just kind of joke,
obviously, you know, it is a serious point and is it the story from your personal experience there as
well, but it's a good lesson isn't it, just that social media, it's not what I think it is,
and normally is far from it as well. If a guy looks too good, then a bought measure.
(28:37):
Too good to be true. Too good to be true.
Get involved. Detective Diaries is interactive, which involves you, the listener.
Do you have a case you'd like discussed? A burning question about investigative life?
Send an email to podcast@private-detectives.co.uk or reach out via social media. You may hear
(29:05):
your story featured in an upcoming episode. Don't forget to leave your contact details.
[Music]
So our listeners would have just heard our Get Involved clip. You can see the link below
in our show notes. Our audience can submit cases, interesting stories and general ideas to discuss,
(29:29):
so with that in mind, how can listeners get involved with Generation Next, whether it be
as participants, mentors or sponsors perhaps? I would say I'd say Get Involved, really.
See what's out there. I'd ask them what they're doing for their next generation that they're
bringing in, and I would just say to them that there's plenty of opportunity if they want to be
(29:51):
involved, speakers, sponsors. Yeah, lend a hand, come check it out. We've got brands for
making new website, Generation Next, sorry, you can google it, or you can find it through this
Voting and this website as well, so I'd say go check it out.
Bring it, so it's not just looking at the employees to get their stuff involved. We're talking about
the participants, the mentors, the sponsorships, the advocates. I mean, if you've got a message for
(30:15):
those who want to get involved for those reasons. I think it's really easy like to get involved.
Obviously if you're a young professional, you can sign up directly via the website or as mentioned
if you are already a member of sorry chambers then through your employer. And also like you mentioned
mentorship, so if you're more experienced then we're always looking for mentors to join the advisory
(30:40):
board, so definitely have a look to see what we've already got on the board in terms of kind of
industries. And then if you're a business, there are opportunities to support us as sponsors or
advocates as need just touched upon. But I think the best first step is to just reach out to the
sorry chambers team or look on the website. Yeah, get in touch with love to all different audiences.
(31:04):
The professionals, the mentors, the businesses, get involved.
I think that you can reach out to our social media as well. So we've got our generation next.
Sorry, Instagram, come check it out. And yeah, with the advisory board again obviously you can reach
out through the website and you don't have to be a member in order to come to the events or anything
(31:28):
so if you want to trial it or send some of your staff or try that yourself you can just come along
and some of our workshops and things online are like completely free as well. So yeah, you can
out, just out, come along. And generally I think that's a nice thing from personal experience as well.
It's not a case of some networking groups where you come along and say, right, yeah, they bring
(31:50):
your referral or whatever it may be. This is an open book to say, does this work for you? Are you
enjoying it? And is it helping you in if so? Getting involved. Yeah, super low pressure I would say is like
the environment we're trying to create is low pressure, but then also beneficial.
So what's the next plan for the big adventure day? Am I being blindfolded again at some high
(32:13):
rooms or what's going on? I'm just saying. We've been a little bit of a with, yeah. We were
just feeling a little bit. Yeah. Well, for me personally, I remember my first sorry chambers event
compared to the young professionals event and while the sorry chambers events are phenomenal,
(32:35):
this must have been eight, nine years ago. I think I attended. I really did see the difference
between going into a room of like-minded people having those relatable conversations, but then saying,
right, where's next? Where can we build this to? And so yeah, the motivation for me to be on that
advice we've all ready to give back. So I'm very much enjoying that role and looking forward to where
(32:55):
where it comes on to next. We obviously speaking of Oakwood, we're going to just have to have
talk about coming chat about some of the experiences and how it's been chatting with the members who
are there on the day, so hopefully we can get some insight and you'll be able to hear some more
feedback about all the wonderful things that have been doing. That would be great.
Ah, nice to see you again. Do you know what? The Oakwood Adventure Day was very memorable for me.
(33:22):
I think it was probably one of the best experiences that I've done since joining my career,
starting my career. I'm very adventurable anyways, so I loved the sort of go-ape side and the
climbing and the heights and then the laser tag I thought was extremely cool, but the smoke
(33:44):
bombs and running around, I got quite competitive I think. Good team, what though? It made us
very well. Yeah, there was a lot of like, I think we did quite well in the fact that there wasn't
one person like trying to be bossy over everyone else, like we all worked quite well with each other
and sort of like taking it in terms like running and shooting people and then running back and
(34:08):
everyone defending each other and oh you know what the hot chocolate we had after the rain. That was
so good. But I think for me generation next like the whole system in itself, I really enjoyed it and
I film much more comfortable in those sort of networking events because everyone else is a
(34:30):
similar age to me and I feel like it's much easier to talk to people of a similar age because
we all kind of feel the same level of experience. I don't feel like I'm talking to someone who
probably thinks they know it all or isn't as interested in my career because they're too bothered
with themselves or anything like that and it's just it's nice to talk to people who are my age
(34:55):
and then in future we might still be in contact because they'll probably still be in their careers
where I am now, whereas if you speak to a normal networking event they might be in their career
10 years later but they might have retired by then. So it's nice to have those contacts that you know
are probably going to stay around for quite a long time. I actually spoke to someone else who is
(35:20):
there called Daniel and I think we actually have a few clips of him in how he felt about the experience.
My name is Daniel and where are you coming from today? So I'm a solicitor,
Harrington Carmichael based in Farmer, yeah so quite a way away. Yeah, what do you specify?
(35:43):
So I specialize in commercial and property disputes so overall I'm at the Sputes resolution
solicitor and I deal with business to business disputes, private disputes, mostly surrounding
a property and you know involving a property or also business to business,
(36:03):
disagreements, breach the contract, all that lovely stuff. Oh and how have you found today?
Yeah really good, really engaging, very different to what I'm used to in a good way. I think a lot
of the stuff that I attend networking-wise tends to be kind of just standing up, introducing yourself,
(36:25):
very forward-facing and this has been really different in a good way that you know I feel like it
it goes a bit deeper and you know you do some activities together, you build that trust
early on and it's good you get to talk to people on a personal level, not just on a professional one.
Do you think you'll go to another generation next? Yeah hopefully, yeah I would like to come again
(36:51):
obviously there's some hoops I need to jump through but yeah no I would love to, I think I would definitely
recommend it especially if no one you know if I'm speaking to someone that hasn't been to something
like this before I'll say just try it and then let me know what you think is very different, very
engaging and yeah it was good. I mean you really cannot build a relationship any quicker than putting
(37:13):
you know all those people up in those higher robes you know and yeah someone blindfolded on top as well
no yeah that was that was good. So it was really nice to hear Daniel's comments there, lots of positive
feedback talking about the day and why the event works for younger people so that was really brilliant
and thank you Daniel for those comments. So obviously there's private detectives being members here
(37:38):
the obviously a bit of a niche business you could say is this something that you're looking at
mainstream or is it selected groups what you're obviously talking about it being an open door
so I imagine you're looking for everyone about other particular industries that you're working with
at the moment. I think it's important us to have people from such diverse industries to let you say
private detectives to creatives, accountants to engineers it makes the conversations richer and the
(38:04):
network stronger and it therefore means that members get exposure to different ways of thinking
which they wouldn't necessarily get if they only mix their own industry and it creates a really
dynamic well-rounded community and yeah I think maybe a forensics workshop on the cars over to you.
Oh that is a brilliant idea. Yeah definitely I'll bring the date you're really what do you
(38:29):
proud of you? Yeah we'll get the short going on the floor. Yeah brilliant day. No I love the idea
that would certainly talk more about it after this I think. Kneeve Georgia thank you so much for
being here I really want to talk to you all about generation next. I certainly think we're going
to have to be looking at that for instance next day aren't we? Yeah definitely sounds very interesting
(38:52):
definitely have to put that on the podcast as well. Absolutely that will make you a good episode so
if you're listening look forward to that one in the near future. To our listeners thank you again
for joining us and we look forward to seeing you in the next episode of Detective Directs.
We hope you enjoyed today's podcast brought to you by answers investigation and UK fingerprint.
(39:17):
If you've enjoyed our conversation and want to learn more about the fascinating world of
investigations be sure to check out private detectives answers investigation. Their experience
team offers a wide range of discrete and professional services helping you find the answers you need
with integrity and expertise. If you're interested in fingerprint analysis or require specialist
(39:39):
fingerprint services don't miss UK fingerprint. As one of the leading fingerprint companies in the UK
they provide everything from identification to background checks working with individuals,
businesses, financial institutions and gambling companies. To find out more visit www.private-detectives.co.uk
(40:01):
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solutions and fingerprint expertise. You can call their office on 02-0-7158-0332.
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