CEO MONTHLY / DECEMBER 2025 20 Future-Proof Employment Skills with a Focus on Construction rom its home in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, NOCN Group has been serving the global education sector now since 1987. An independent and international charity, the aim of the Group is to influence policy and champion a lifelong, vocational approach to learning, gearing its operation towards nurturing productivity, sustainability, social mobility, and inclusivity. This approach is explored through qualifications, end-point assessments (the final stage of an apprenticeship), tests, online courses, and more. Covering five pivotal areas across these services: preparation for life and work; construction and the built environment; engineering, manufacturing, and the green economy; health and social care; and education and management, NOCN Group comprises NOCN, NOCN India Skills Foundation, and NOCN Job Cards. Each of these entities is subject to the strict objectives of the wider charity, including improving the quality and flexibility of education and enhancing learning opportunities to facilitate progression to either employment or higher education for learners across all of the areas mentioned above. With nearly 200 staff members making up its team – some based in Sheffield, others in Kings Lynn, and some Recognising that the only way for people to achieve their full potential is to bridge the gap between education and employment through vocational learning, and in the process help them to hone their skills across the areas of industry where they are needed most, NOCN Group works with colleges, training providers, employers, and individuals alike to advance these skills globally and help organisations thrive. For more on this, we caught up with its CEO, Graham Hasting-Evans, who has been recognised here as the Education and Training CEO of the Year 2025 – UK. F working in remote roles across the length and breadth of UK – NOCN Group is today an authority in this space, something that can be attributed in no small part to CEO Graham HastingEvans. Since joining the organisation in early 2011, first as its MD and now as its chief executive, Graham has helped take it to these new heights, leveraging decades of senior management experience in areas such as broadcasting and construction to deliver an approach that can adapt quickly and effectively to the changing needs of clients. To say Graham has turned things around for NOCN Group would be an understatement, as when he arrived to fill the position of managing director nearly 15 years ago now, the charity was on the brink of closure. Losing around 30% of its income every year, some major issues with governance needed sorting if it was to survive. Fortunes quickly began to change as Graham set about reversing the course the organisation was on, thanks to its new principal masterfully balancing risk with reward to climb the mountain. The knowledge Graham has garnered from the diverse roles he has inhabited over the course of more than 30 years in executive positions continue to make him the ideal person to steer the ship for NOCN Group, in a role that entails everything from overseeing strategy and general direction to coordinating with its board, representing the organisation at events, and helping it to expand its presence – especially in Asia, where it is seeking to mirror the success it has found in more than 30 countries across the world to date. “We are working on expanding our presence in South and South East Asia and furthering our partnerships in India and Malaysia through regular visits and engagement.” Cutting through all the noise that usually surrounds the CEO position, Graham put it simply when he said: “We are here to help people get into work and develop careers. The passion for the mission, my passion for sustainability, and our focus on net zero fuels my work.” Recognising that working in collaboration with stakeholders through partnership-driven relationships is key to this, this commitment forms a huge part of Graham’s philosophy, as too do the skills he nurtures to be an impact-driven leader. A CEO renowned for his openness, honesty, clear vision, approachability, strong communication, innovative and entrepreneurial spirit, and exceptional ability to unite people of all different cultures and nationalities under the power of education, Graham leads his team with a combination of operational and strategic awareness, delegation with clear expectations, and encompassing support without micromanaging. This unique blend leads to a collaborative, values-centred culture that is perfect for fostering growth. This is best seen through the work the charity has done in the construction industry over the last eight years or so, the outcome of which is NOCN Group becoming one of the top two government-approved apprentice assessment organisations in the UK – as well as the second largest awarding organisation in the construction sector – this thanks to it acquiring CSkills Awards from the Construction Industry Training Boarding (CITB) in 2017, a huge feat given that this was a larger organisation than NOCN at the time. In a statement from the time, Graham said: “As someone who started out as an apprentice and has worked in the building and construction sector for many years, I find this opportunity very exciting. I am looking forward to working with CSkills Awards personnel to incorporate their product expertise and technological distinctiveness into NOCN. Through this unique collaboration, we will create new opportunities, re-address the skill gaps, re-
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