Exploring player transition

PCA Futures Conference in association with GEDU Global Education has helped educate players as they look to explore career transition and personal development.

The first flagship initiative of PCA Futures Month, the Futures Conference gives players the unique opportunity to learn from industry experts and put their newly learned skills to the test.

PCA Futures Month runs throughout November and launched with an exclusive interview with former England bowler and current BBC broadcaster Steven Finn as he explored his career transition from player to pundit. You can read the article and watch the interview here.

Exploring personal development is vital and always one of the main topics discussed in player and Personal Development Manager meetings. In the last 12 months the PDM team have conducted 5,177 meetings to 852 current and former players.

Attending the event from all areas of the country, players at different stages of their careers looked to advance their personal development with 24-year-old Alice Clarke learning alongside 39-year-old Keith Barker.

Attendees took park in 14 sessions throughout the Conference which included workshops, dynamic activities and thoughtful discussions aimed at helping players figure out what their future career could look like when they finish playing, to enable the transition to run smoothly.

Having commenced in its current format in 2017, the two-day event held at the England football team’s training base, St. George’s Park took place on Tuesday 4 and Wednesday 5 November as players obtained essential skills from expert guest speakers.

On day one, PCA Personal Development Manager (PDM), Charlie Mulraine, helped the players explore the emotional journey of leaving cricket in the ‘Successful Transition’ seminar.

Viran Patel from title sponsor of the Conference, GEDU Global Education, then took the players through ‘The Future of Work’ exploring current trends and predictions of the evolving work place.

Rob Geraghty from Presenting Virtually helped build confidence and powerful connections with a memorable and dynamic session ‘Presenting Yourself & Building Powerful Connections’, enabling players to learn how to thrive after playing cricket.

Day one culminated with ‘Journeys Beyond Cricket’ where players that have experience in transitioning shared their inspiring stories. PCA PDM Martin Cropper quizzed Kieran Bull, Chris Nash, Tom Sole, and Ellie Threlkeld alongside Luke Fletcher, who returned to the Conference having attended last year, in an open and honest discussion about life beyond the game.

Day two began with GEDU delivering another session on exploring educational opportunities before Tim Clancy taught the players how to standout with their LinkedIn profiles.

The Official partner of the PCA Futures Awards, Lodders Solicitors, hosted a session on what employers are looking for in applicants before Official Recruitment partner Hays explored their knowledge of CV writing and interview preparation with Chetan Patel and Geoff Collings.

The event concluded with a hands-on interview practice session as players put the skills they’ve learned over the past two days into real life scenarios. PCA PDM Tom Jones then set the players up with action plans and what next steps they need to take in their transition journey.

PCA Managing Director, Ian Thomas, said: “We’ve run the Futures Conference for nine years now and the interactions the players receive from the two days is so powerful for their transition. Having this space to explore career transition really sets the players up for the future. If they leave here feeling motivated, confident and knowing where to get support then we’ve done our job. Listening to former players that have been through the transition gives them the confidence that if I put the work in, then I’ll be ok and if I’m not, I can go back to the PCA and access their support.”

Yorkshire spinner, Dom Bess, said: “The main thing I’ll take away is the confidence that there is life after cricket. It was great listening to the former players offering their knowledge of their transition journeys out of cricket. I want to advance the work experience side of things now and reach out to a few people. Chris Nash mentioned how to network by using the sponsors at your club which was really insightful and is something I’ll take forward.”

Lancashire bowler, Tara Norris, said: “It’s quite daunting thinking about life after cricket but after Futures Conference I feel like I’ve got more clarity and more options by tapping into this resource that the PCA provide. The Conference has made me think about different avenues I could go down and areas that I enjoy doing and being open minded to any opportunities that might come my way. It’s the best two days, you’re guided through every single process so players should definitely get involved.”

GEDU Global Education, Chief Commercial Officer, Viren Patel, said: “Cricket has a finite life so the players need to be thinking about their next career after they retire from the game and it’s important they learn where their skills, their strengths and the gaps in their knowledge are. We’re hugely supportive of the work the PCA are doing in the education space and Futures Conference seemed a great opportunity to support cricketers with their career transition.”

PCA Futures Conference 2025 attendees: Zain Al Hassan, Keith Barker, Dom Bess, Amara Carr, Aylish Cranstone, Alice Clarke, Chris Cooke, Brett D’Oliveira, Adam Finch, Jo Gardner, Laura Jackson, Eve Jones, Tara Norris, Tom Taylor, Timm Van Der Gugten, Matthew Waite.

PCA Futures Month shines a light on the area of personal development and career transition among PCA members. The two-day Futures Conference forms the centrepiece of the initiative alongside the PCA Futures Awards and both are part of the PCA’s Personal Development and Welfare Programme (PDWP). Click here to find out more.