Universum releases America’s Ideal Employers 2011

Last Thursday, on May 12th, we released the results of our US employer image survey based on undergraduates. There were some interesting changes in the top list of most desired employers for business students. Google did win the title, for the second consecutive year, as America’s Ideal Employer 2011. However, it was striking to see Apple’s huge success, climbing 6 places, and Walt Disney and Nike coming respectively at third and eighth place. Interestingly, this resulted in the Big Four – Ernst & Young, PwC, Deloitte and KPMG – being pushed back in ranks. Below we present the major highlights of our research.

Like the results of our other surveys this year, the banks in the US have also lost employer appeal. Is it due to their involvement and responsibility in the past economic meltdown – maybe so, maybe not? Our US research team says that undergraduates are choosing safe employers and ones that offer work/life balance, something which students think the banks, management consulting and financial firms are not seen as giving and therefore the drop in ranks for business students.

With unemployment rates still high and the US economy down in the dumps, students are understandably concerned about secure employment. Is this changing career expectations and resulting in a generational shift of mindset?

The so-called spoilt Generation Y, with their helicopter parents watching over their child’s interests, are confronted with the dismal reality of having to pay for an expensive education and face the prospects of being unemployed or having to work until the retirement age of 70. The Millenials are now realizing that they can’t have everything. Employers will decide and not employees on work/life balance benefits, flexibility and control of working hours. In one sense, it’s very much becoming an employers’ market in the US – or is it? Finding skilled workers or top talent is and will still be challenging, as the US education system is in crisis.

Nearly half of all new jobs will require more than just a high school degree, but a fourth of America’s students don’t have one. Moreover, with so many Baby Boomers retiring from classrooms, the US has to prepare 100,000 new teachers in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math to secure the future quality of its education. In addition, these teachers face the challenge of educating and inspiring more students to go beyond their high school diplomas.

Aside from the losers in the ideal employer rankings, organizations that are gaining employer appeal just happen to be in the public sector. The government has been trying hard to stimulate the US economy, by offering jobs and pumping $787bn into it. Students are understandably selecting government/ public sector organizations, as that’s where the most secure jobs are at the moment, right? It’s one among many of probable explanations of why government/public sector organizations have climbed in the ideal employer rankings. 

The U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Energy, the CIA, the NSA, and the U.S. Air Force, etc. have all climbed in the rankings. Due to Hollywood’s sensational movies of patriotic action heroes, there is fantastical appeal of working in the secret service sector. But if you are a top talent, it’s surely a place of secure employment, that’s if the government doesn’t go bust first.

The year 2011 is also an interesting year for newcomers in the ideal employer index. Facebook, United Nations and EPA break-through to the top in the rankings. Our US research team claims it shows that young talent’s desire to tackle global challenges in technology, human rights, peace, security, health, and the environment. These employers offer work that is personally meaningful and lets students achieve a sense of accomplishment.

With the social network permeating society’s day-to-day exchanges and becoming the channel of communications, Facebook’s entrance in the student survey is totally expected. Let’s see if it becomes the next Google and an employer of choice not only on a national but global level – time will tell. 

Some of the employer image findings, specifically those related to business students, were published in Bloomberg Businessweek: “Dream jobs: College Students Make their Picks”. The journalist Francesca Di Meglio interviewed Kyle Ewing, talent and outreach programs manager at Google, to get the secret formulae for why Google keeps winning, as well as a key spokesperson from Walt Disney to find out how they make dreams a reality.

Interestingly, everyone associates Google for its generous benefits, but Ewing confirms that the company wants to be recognized for more than just its perks. According to Ewing, people choose Google because of the challenging work.

Google, however, is not exempt from competing for talent and just like any company it needs to work hard to maintain its number one position. With its recruitment competitors such as Facebook and other IT firms in the Silicon Valley, the company is in pursuit of recruiting a director of employment marketing and branding – proof that the company is aware that nothing can be taken for granted.

Regarding Walt Disney, Bloomberg Businessweek quotes Kristi Breen, director of Disney College and International Programs, who says the entertainment company offers a range of professional opportunities, including roles in finance, marketing, engineering, animal programs, human resources, and operations.

They further cite her saying, “The training and ongoing development our [employees] receive to further their careers is excellent. There are significant opportunities to network with key leaders within the organization, and unlimited opportunities to grow and move within the company.” The Walt Disney Company certainly has a pristine image.

Apple is another employer that is proving to be a serious contender in all markets, especially in the US. It climbed 6 spots and came at second place among business student. It’s true that the iconic CEO Steve Jobs plays a huge role in the company’s popularity. Let’s see what happens when they have a new leader in place. The company’s innovative products, like the iPad and iPhone, definitely draw students’ attention to the consumer electronics company.

One more interesting observation in our employer image research is the status of the Oil & Gas company BP.  It climbed or managed to maintain its position in Europe, irrespective of their PR debacle last year, but has in fact dropped positions in the US. Since students outside of the US don’t seem to care much, does it mean that the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had an isolated impact on their employer brand? Our research shows that it most probably did.  

The Big Four fall in ranks and lose some of their luster among business students. This is due to companies such as Apple, the Walt Disney Company and Nike taking their spots – companies that are highly successful in producing great consumer products that appeal to this generation.

Lastly, Bloomberg Businessweek produced an interesting interactive graphic, using our seven defined personality profiles from Springboardr. What Universum has identified is that students with dissimilar career goals have strikingly different ideas about what makes for an ideal employer – the same applies to a student’s study background. To better visualize our findings and map the popularity profile of dozens of companies, check out their interactive graphic

Certainly, everybody can’t be a winner – some companies get the spotlight and others the shade. It all depends on what employers are associated with, whether it’s seen as appealing or not, and lastly how much publicity they receive and generate. Becoming an employer-of-choice requires hard work!

About the US Universum Student Survey 2011
Number of participants in 2011: 61,726 respondents
Number of individual employer evaluations: 206,462
Number of universities targeted: 345
Field period: December 2010 to March 2011