Published 23 September 2026
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The Next Generation Will Not Choose an Industry They Cannot See
The lubricant industry spends plenty of time discussing its future. We talk about new formulations, emerging technologies, sustainability, mobility and changing customer expectations. Yet there is another question sitting underneath all these conversations: who will bring that future to life?
In a special episode of Beyond the Blend, Steve Knapp spoke with Tina Reading about Lube Life, an initiative designed to introduce young people to the breadth of the lubricant industry and connect employers with emerging talent.
Their conversation highlighted a simple challenge. Before the lubricant industry can solve its
recruitment problem, it must first solve its visibility problem.
The challenge begins with awareness
We have an awareness problem before a recruitment problem
Young people cannot choose a career in an industry they do not know exists. Tina believes this is the real issue sitting behind the sector’s long-running concerns about recruitment.
Lubricants may offer excellent opportunities, but those opportunities remain largely invisible to students making early decisions about subjects, qualifications and careers. Traditional recruitment activity often begins when a vacancy needs filling. Lube Life starts much earlier by helping young people understand what the industry does, why lubricants matter and where they might fit within it.
This reflects a wider challenge we have explored at Plan Grow Do. The lubricant industry does extraordinary work but often struggles to communicate its relevance. In Why We Need to Tell a Better Story, we consider how clearer storytelling can improve public perception, attract new talent and demonstrate the industry’s contribution to sustainability and innovation.
Recruitment becomes easier when awareness has already created curiosity, recognition and a
genuine reason to explore the sector.
Too many people still discover lubricants by accident
Throughout Beyond the Blend, guests have regularly described arriving in the lubricant industry through an unexpected opportunity, personal introduction, apprenticeship or move from another sector. Relatively few appear to have grown up deliberately planning a career in lubricants.
Many subsequently discovered an industry filled with technical challenges, international opportunities and rewarding careers, but their discovery was often accidental. Tina’s argument is that the sector cannot continue leaving this to chance.
Tobias Daley’s journey From the Van to the Boardroom provides another example. His career developed through an apprenticeship, practical experience and continued curiosity rather than a perfectly planned route into the sector. It shows why the industry must connect its technical work to real-world impact when speaking to the next generation.
If the industry wants a stronger and more diverse pipeline of talent, it must introduce itself earlier and give young people a clearer view of the possibilities available.
Making the industry interesting and relevant
Start with something young people already care about
A technical explanation of lubricants may not immediately capture the imagination of a classroom, particularly among younger students. Tina’s approach is to begin with something recognisable.
Formula One provides an example of how lubricant performance can influence speed and competitive advantage. The “world without lubricants” video demonstrates how deeply these products are woven into everyday life. Once students understand the connection to transport, energy, manufacturing, technology and sustainability, the conversation changes. The industry becomes tangible.
This does not mean making lubricants appear glamorous or presenting an unrealistic picture. It means translating their impact into stories and examples that give young people a reason to listen, ask questions and discover more.
Lubricants offer far more than technical careers
Scientists, engineers and tribologists are essential to the industry, but they represent only part of its workforce.
Lubricant businesses also need people working in logistics, operations, sales, marketing, technology, sustainability, communications, publishing, artificial intelligence and business development. This breadth is an important part of the Lube Life message.
A student may have little interest in formulation but feel excited by data, digital design or international commerce. Another might be drawn to environmental work, practical engineering, customer relationships or supply chain management.
By presenting the full range of opportunities, the industry can connect with a much wider group of young people. It can also help employers build teams with the varied capabilities needed to compete in a changing market.
Looking for talent in different places
University Technical Colleges offer a valuable talent pool
Lube Life is working with the Baker Dearing Educational Trust, whose network includes 44 University Technical Colleges across England and more than 20,000 students.
These colleges educate young people aged between 14 and 19, combining the national curriculum with specialist areas such as engineering, technology, design and life sciences.
Tina believes many of these students possess precisely the interests and practical abilities that lubricant businesses need.
They may simply be overlooked by employers concentrating on familiar universities, conventional educational routes or candidates with the most obvious qualifications. For the lubricant industry, broadening the search could reveal a considerable pool of relevant and motivated talent.
Tina’s message also echoes Linda Perry’s reflections on People, Curiosity and the Power of Lifelong Learning. Technical knowledge matters, but so do curiosity, relationships and the willingness to keep learning. These qualities can be found across many educational backgrounds if employers are prepared to look beyond their usual recruitment routes.
Employers need to look beyond the perfect CV
Automated recruitment systems can make hiring more efficient, but they can also remove potentially excellent candidates before a human conversation takes place.
Someone may have the curiosity, practical intelligence and enthusiasm required for a role yet fail to include the right keywords in an application. Steve and Tina discussed the importance of balancing traditional measures of intelligence with emotional intelligence, interest and what Tina described as a “spark”.
A qualification provides useful evidence, but it does not tell the whole story. Lubricant businesses may find better long-term employees by looking for people who genuinely care about the work and can be nurtured as they develop.
As Tina put it, she would rather employ people with a real interest in the industry than rely
entirely on a CV that appears to match the role.
Different ways of learning deserve greater recognition
Tina spoke openly about being dyslexic and finding some traditional forms of classroom learning difficult. She also described how technical subjects can come alive when experienced professionals move beyond formal teaching and share real examples, stories and practical knowledge.
This principle is central to Lube Life. Its magazine is interactive, its ambassadors are supported by a toolkit, and simple experiments are being developed to help students see ideas in action.
Recognising neurodiversity is not simply an exercise in widening participation. It can help the industry reach imaginative and capable people whose strengths may be missed by standardised teaching, application and recruitment processes.
One size does not fit every learner, just as one recruitment route will not uncover every type of talent.
Creating a practical route into the industry
Lube Life brings education and recruitment together
Awareness is valuable, but it must eventually lead somewhere. Lube Life is being developed as a connected programme rather than a single campaign.
Its educational magazine introduces younger readers to the history, importance and applications of lubricants. A more detailed and technical version is planned for older students and university audiences, with content aligned more closely to the national curriculum.
Through StudySmarter, lubricant businesses can also promote placements, apprenticeships, graduate positions and other vacancies to a large student audience. The platform has just under five million active users across the UK and Ireland, giving participating businesses access to a substantial pool of potential talent.
This creates a possible journey from first discovering the industry to exploring a particular employer and applying for an opportunity. Companies can contact Tina to understand the recruitment access and packages available through the programme.
Smaller businesses can compete for talented people
Large employers naturally possess strong brands and considerable recruitment resources.
Their names may already be familiar to students attending careers events. Smaller lubricant manufacturers, distributors and service providers do not always have that immediate recognition, but they can offer something equally valuable.
A smaller organisation may give a young employee closer support, broader responsibilities and greater exposure to different parts of the business. It can often nurture individuals in a more personal environment and help them understand how their work contributes to the organisation.
Lube Life gives these companies a way to become visible earlier, explain what makes their organisation distinctive and reach students who might otherwise concentrate only on the largest engineering, automotive or energy brands.
The role of the Lube Life ambassador
You do not need to be a polished presenter
One of the most practical messages from the conversation was that almost anyone working within the industry could become an ambassador.
Lube Life is not searching exclusively for senior executives, scientists or confident keynote speakers. It needs people who enjoy what they do and are willing to share their experiences honestly.
Ambassadors receive a structure for introducing the industry before talking about their own role, career journey and reasons for enjoying the sector. They can also use practical demonstrations and simple experiments to make the subject more engaging.
A personal story can be far more memorable than a perfect presentation. The aim is to help a student recognise an opportunity, not to deliver a flawless technical lecture.
A small amount of time can make a difference
The ambassador programme has been designed to accommodate the realities of working life.
Participants identify their areas of knowledge, preferred colleges and available time. Baker Dearing can then share relevant opportunities, allowing each ambassador to decide what they can support.
The commitment might be two hours in a year or several days. Tina currently has around 35 ambassadors and hopes to reach 100 so the programme can cover all 44 colleges with a healthy mixture of disciplines, backgrounds and experiences.
The programme needs scientists and engineers, but it also needs people from logistics, sales, marketing, technology, operations and communications. Employers can support the programme by allowing members of their teams to contribute a morning or afternoon and represent the industry to a new audience.
Human stories remain difficult to replace
Technology can help distribute information, identify candidates and connect employers with
students. However, Tina argues that it cannot replace the experience of meeting somebody who genuinely enjoys their work.
An ambassador can answer an unexpected question, describe a real problem they helped solve and explain how their career developed. That interaction can make an unfamiliar industry feel personal and achievable.
Lube Life combines useful platforms with something deeply human: people sharing their enthusiasm with other people. In a recruitment environment increasingly influenced by automation and AI, that direct contact could become even more valuable.
Technology can create reach, but the passion and experience of an ambassador can create belief.
Turning industry support into collective action
The lubricant sector already knows how to support its own
Tina described the lubricant industry as a close and supportive community. She has seen people respond almost immediately when a student needed help finding a work placement.
Lube Life seeks to direct more of that generosity beyond the existing network and towards young people who have not yet entered it. Instead of companies acting entirely in isolation, ambassadors, educators, industry bodies and employers can contribute to a shared effort.
That could mean giving a talk, offering work experience, sharing an opportunity or helping the programme reach another audience.
Individual company programmes already make a difference. Bringing more of that activity together could give the lubricant industry a stronger presence than any single organisation could achieve alone.
The opportunity in front of us
The lubricant industry has no shortage of interesting work or rewarding careers. Its difficulty is that too few young people can see them.
Lube Life is creating a practical bridge between education and employment through engaging resources, industry ambassadors, University Technical Colleges and direct access to recruitment opportunities. It provides companies with a way to become more visible and gives students an opportunity to explore careers they may never previously have encountered.
The wider message from Tina and Steve’s conversation is clear. The next generation should not have to discover lubricants by accident.
You do not need the perfect presentation or the most senior job title to help. You need a story, some experience and a willingness to give a little of your time.
The people who will power the future of the lubricant industry are already out there. Our job is to make sure they know we are here.
To hear the full conversation with Tina Reading and discover more stories from the people behind the lubricant industry, subscribe to Beyond the Blend and follow the podcast for future episodes.
