how small employers pull big talent
TRANSCRIPT
Brenda Carter, Resourcing Partner, The Wellcome Trust
Simon Russell, Director of Consulting, Work Group
The Argument
The principles of employer marketing are exactly the
same, however big or small you are. What’s more, smaller
companies can have a clear advantage over the juggernauts of
the graduate market, especially when it comes to attracting the
entrepreneurial, buccaneering individuals who could make the
biggest difference to your business.
Your true nature may
only emerge when you
find yourself cornered.
<---------------18cm------------>
<---------------------26cm--------------------->
A „trope‟ originally described a
figure of speech but increasingly
it is taken to mean those common
conventions, devices and clichés
found in creative works.
Trope #2Young people jump into the air in
unison, expressing joy and excitement
that scarce may be contained.
Cultural reference: A-level results day in the local press…
The question facing creative teams in the
middle of the first decade of the twenty-
first century was, “Can we create even
more visual impact and exhilaration than
we have seen here?”
The question facing creative teams in the
middle of the first decade of the twenty-
first century was, “Can we create even
more visual impact and exhilaration than
we have seen here?”
The answer was, “Yes we can.”
THE DIATROPE
In which two tropes are combined to
create an impact that is even more
striking than the sum of its parts.
SMILEY, HAPPY FACE []
BRAND CHECK []
ARBITRARY RANKING []
MISCHIEVOUS WORDPLAY []
INVESTOR IN PEOPLE []
2013
50 people
It is much more useful to focus on the benefits
to the graduates – especially those ambitious,
entrepreneurial and dynamic individuals who
have most to gain by joining a fast-growing,
successful company.
If you join a big employer, you may be one in
a thousand, with everything that implies. On
the other hand, if you join a small
company, you matter. You are really
important to that organisation. This
perspective helps to build a
compelling, three-part proposition…
VISIBILITYThe big employers can hire graduates in their thousands.
SME businesses will recruit very few and so each one will be
more rare, special and valuable. Visibility means that you
matter to the business – and you are also far more likely to
have exposure to the leaders and decision-makers of the
organisation. You are likely to see and experience more of the
business, too.
IMPACTSmaller organisations tend to give graduates bigger challenges
and responsibilities, relatively earlier in their careers. That
means you can demonstrate your value and make a difference
to the business. Smaller organisations may have less structured
career paths, but they can also offer a steeper learning curve
and accelerated progress for high-performers.
POTENTIALThe best SMEs are those organisations which are not only
successful, but also growing fast. Business growth means
greater scope for personal and professional development; in
certain cases, it may also bring opportunities to build
substantial personal wealth. Joining an SME is always a more
entrepreneurial choice; there are greater risks and rewards.
A company that treats graduates
as Very Important People will also
be a very attractive employer.
Welcome to the VIPER list.
V.I.P.
THE VIPER LIST.
“A confederacy of high-growth, opportunity-rich
companies with something special to offer the
UK’s most ambitious, entrepreneurial graduates.”
Entrepreneurial individuals
of flair and bravado who
back their own judgement
and stake their own skill and
potential against the world.
These are the people who
really make a difference.
SPIRIT OF THE buccaneer
The obvious response is to club
together, to pool resources, to
present a concerted front to the
graduate market as the VIPER list.
The obvious response is to club
together, to pool resources, to
present a concerted front to the
graduate market. But the true way
of the viper is more subtle…
Things we’ve noticed about successful smaller graduate recruiters
Senior people are interested and involved in graduate recruitment. The assessment
process is rigorous and specific. The business thinks through what kind of graduates it
wants and what it wants them to do. It also thinks carefully about what the right graduates
will get out of the experience. Training doesn’t necessarily have to be formal or highly
structured, but there is always high-quality mentoring and coaching provided. There is
clear and specific accountability for the well-being and progress of graduates. Graduates
get to move around and experience different parts of the business. Graduates are given real
jobs to do, often with substantial responsibility and impact. They are not seen as cheap
labour and may earn quite as much as their big-company peers. There are clear career
paths for graduates, although they might well leave to pursue them. There is a sincere pride
and satisfaction in seeing graduates grow and prosper.
About us
We are a global charitable foundation dedicated to
achieving extraordinary improvements in human
and animal health.
We support the brightest minds in biomedical
research and the medical humanities. Our breadth
of support includes public engagement, education
and the application of research to improve health.
What will you do? UK Researchers, GM,
PolicyFunders
UK & International
researchers
Funders,
LMIC
researchers
Deans,
VCsLMIC
Researchers,
GM,
Policy
And many more other exciting opportunities!!
What lessons has the Trust learnt
about strengthening research
capacity in LMICs? Anna
How successful are institutions
in LMICs at obtaining Trust
grants? Alexis
Mythbuster: Are researchers
really more successful if they
change institutions? Sarah
Antimicrobial resistance is
a major global threat! What
can the Trust do? Jemima
Why should the people you want to employ, choose
to build a career with you, rather than anyone else?
THE PEOPLE
YOU NEED
THE WORK
THEY WILL DOTHE COMPANY
THEY WILL JOIN
Engage the entire organisation
Design the working experience
Define what you offer as an employer
Identify the people you want
Get in front of your audience
Choose the right people
Look after them, coach them, mentor them
Give them interesting things to do
Measure and improve the results
Tell the story and share the glory
Towards
the VIP…
Trainee Business Writer
What can you do with an English degree?Work is the engagement and resourcing business that helps employers find, keep and motivate the people they need.
Our consulting team is now looking for a Writer-Analyst to work on a range of internal and external communications
tasks, from employee engagement campaigns to business change programmes. This is a hugely rewarding way to write
for a living that offers substantial scope for personal and professional development.
Chaos and teaseYou will rarely be working from a formal brief because part of our job is to clarify the communication challenge.
Correlating information and research from many different sources, you will bring order out of chaos and tease coherent
themes from even the densest corporate undergrowth. And then you‟ll write something clear, fresh and vivid to get your
message across. After which, we will probably cover it in red ink and encourage you to have another go.
What you hopedConsulting with Work requires absolute commitment to client fortunes and a belief in the importance of what you are
doing. You will soon be working on client-facing projects, although you will be very closely mentored at first. We are
looking for a bright, highly motivated graduate who already has at least a year‟s business experience; it may be that you
have embarked on a career path in some other field of professional services which wasn‟t quite what you hoped.
Pundits carpingWherever you are coming from, you must be one of life‟s high-achievers, who is already using words – spoken and
written – to get what you want. A good degree in English will count in your favour, not least because we are tired of
pundits carping about useless arts graduates. Join us and you will be helping to put the wheels back on the economy in
a very tangible way. To apply, please send a CV and a piece of writing that shows what you can do but isn‟t a poem
about your cat.
One online posting cost £475
There were over 200 applications
Most were poor-quality or irrelevant
10 invited for first interview
5 taken to final assessment
3 jobs filled, good candidates to spare
Pra
ctisin
g w
hat w
e p
reach
Just last week...Royal Academy of Engineering Round Table
on Overseas Recruitment 21st November 2013
Although we weren’t able to offer you a role on this occasion,
we were very impressed with your application and we would be
happy to work with you in the future.
So here’s the thing: there are several brilliant precision
engineering companies in our supply chain who are looking for
graduate engineers with exactly the kind of qualities and
potential you have already demonstrated to us.
We can make an introduction and, if you are happy for us to
share your application data, you could also benefit from an
accelerated selection process. If you would like to know more
about opportunities with our partners, please visit talentlink.com