EveryYouth chairperson Tony Ramos discusses his unlikely entry into banking and marketing, and how the jobs market can be transformed into a more supportive environment for young people.
Tony Ramos has a wide-ranging and impressive career, including senior roles within the financial and legal sectors where he developed and led programmes to improve social mobility for young people.
He is passionate about diversity and inclusion, but says it all started because his former employer, Midland Bank, took a chance on him as a young person with no training in banking.
“I drifted through school not knowing what to do,” says the son of Portuguese and Irish working class immigrant parents. Tony started working in the kitchen at London’s The Ned, a luxury hotel and members’ club now, but what was back then Midland Bank (now HSBC) headquarters.
“The kitchen had 10 chefs from nine different countries. It was very diverse, very inclusive and sometimes quite a confusing workplace because everyone spoke their own language,” he says. “I suspect I was a very run of the mill chef. One day there was a major argument, and one chef pulled a knife out at me as a theatrical gesture.”
The next day, someone from the HR department asked Tony about the “rumpus” and suggested he work for the Bank, rather than in the kitchen.
“’Why don’t you join the bank?’ she said. You’re really good with people and really care about how people feel. She kept pestering me and filled out the job application for me because I was bewildered. I joined the bank at branch level. The support from the organisation was just amazing.”
“They saw my skills and I gained qualifications on the job. I wonder now if large scale employers have that philosophy, or belief, in young people.”

Tony was given study leave each week to make sure he gained entry level qualifications on the job, and says staff were invested in him succeeding. He eventually passed his probation.
But Tony wouldn’t stop there. Soon enough, he left branch banking and entered the world of marketing where he was part of HSBC’s successful ‘The World’s Local Bank’ campaign, before moving on to help the bank’s brand internally with socio economic inclusion.
“I moved to marketing but I didn’t have marketing qualifications. They saw my skills and I again gained qualifications on the job. I wonder now if large scale employers have that philosophy, or belief, in young people,” he says.
Tony eventually left banking and moved to Eversheds Sutherland, a global law firm in the City of London, where he spearheaded a programme called Unlocked, a programme aimed at students who have academic potential and an interest in law, but who may believe that a legal career is out of their reach.
That’s where he met EveryYouth CEO Nicholas Connolly.
Advice for Business Leaders
Employers seek efficiency and a reduction of costs, Tony says, making recruitment processes today often automated and extremely competitive for young people. He says businesses potentially miss out on “real quality candidates” as a result.
Unless there’s a person at the top whose invested in changing that, young people – especially those facing homelessness – will continue to struggle to enter the current jobs market.
“We do need optimistic leaders who pose awkward questions and look at the turnover of employees and ask: ‘Why are we attracting the same group of people all the time?’ ‘Where is the diversity, particularly around socio economic inclusion?’”
Diversity can help a business stand out against its competitors and offers “a great reward”, says Tony.
“Say you make 150 hires, and in a year 50 of those hires could be people from diverse socio economic backgrounds. You develop those people, commit to them and get them to a different place from where than they are now. Research indicates that these hires are likely more committed to you as an employer and will reduce your recruitment costs in the future.
“That is a real impact. You’ve changed 50 people’s lives.
“One of the real benefits of the Unlocked programme was, as the young people came on board, people’s perceptions would visibly change. Clients would say it’s refreshing to meet somebody who is different.”
Advice for Young People
Tony says young people looking to secure meaningful work should ask for help and look for opportunities to meet people and network.
“There is a lot of help out there,” he says. “If someone posts something interesting, respond online and ask to meet for coffee to get advice. You’d be surprised at how many people are happy to help you, people just need to know what you need in order to help you.”
He adds that an opportunity should never be missed.
“If you can volunteer, it can be incredibly powerful. It can give you something to talk about in an interview, help you to understand your skills and capabilities. It can be a form of networking, or can provide you with contacts.”
“You’d be surprised at how many people are happy to help you, people just need to know what you need in order to help you.”
How we all can create change
“When sectors come together, it can be incredibly powerful,” Tony says, reflecting on the shift he witnessed among law firms in the City to start improving diversity.
“That galvanised law firms to create a charter and commit to it. Businesses are competitive and as soon as one firm found success, then others were keen to learn and replicate success,” he says. “Sectors do like a challenge and if you can get a group of like-minded people, it can happen.”
To learn more about how we support young people into meaningful work and training opportunities, explore our EveryYouth Employed programme.