By Michelle Boyde
Tomorrow promises to be a painful day in the capital, not to mention a long one as we try to get around without the tube. If you find yourself feeling a little bitter about tomorrow’s strike, spare a thought for my colleague. He will be caught by our strike tomorrow morning as he heads for St Pancreas and then by the French Metro strike (over retirement age) when he arrives in Paris later that day. Strikes are certainly prevalent right now…
Coca Cola have confirmed their strike over pay for September 8th and the majority of union members at the BBC have called for industrial action over the change in pension scheme. I won’t even mention British Airways.
Strikes are certainly a very visible example of disgruntled employees. Others may not be quite so palpable. However, for loyal employees who have stood by their employer the last couple of years, through the pay freezes and imposed hour cuts, many will be asking what they will get in return. In amongst the job cuts, perhaps they should be happy to have a job. However, the reality is that top talent can always find job elsewhere and they are the ones you need to keep. New hires are expensive; investing in current employees is better value for money.
Internal engagement continues to be a critical facet of employer branding – brands are built from the inside out and now is one of the worse times to neglect this element.
By Michelle Boyde
Today’s Guardian touches on internships and how UK employers financially exploit young people. It reports that one in three UK interns are working for nothing. However, with high-unemployment and a wealth of new graduates scraping around for constructive work experience to enhance their CVs, this is not overly surprising. Universum data has continued to show internships to be a popular channel for learning about employers. In 2009, over a quarter of students wanted to take part in an internship. The question is: will recent experiences have disillusioned students about the benefits of internships? The brand new results from the Universum UK Student Survey 2010 are released April 15th and are sure to give us an indication. It’s possible, however, that high-unemployment will see our young people prepared to ‘intern’ in the name of experience whether they are paid or not.
By Michelle Boyde
The buzz phrase at the moment has to be ‘Broken Britain’ – in the papers, on the news; our politicians are spouting their strategies for healing our deteriorating country at every opportunity. This week’s poverty feature in the Evening Standard has brought to light the plight of many living in London and at the same time, re-engaged many Londoners in the issue of poverty. Many of those engaged by this week-long feature are sure to be young talent, specifically the Millennial generation. Almost 40 per cent of which, have a career goal ‘to be dedicated to a cause or serving a greater good’ (Universum Student Survey). London has big disparities in income and lifestyle, many of which are perceived to be fostered by greedy capitalism and we seem more aware of this than ever with a general election looming. Young people’s engagement in social responsibility offers huge branding opportunities for employers, but crucially this branding must be supported by truth. Will we see a sharp rise in the number of employers communicating their community initiatives over the coming months? And, can the City employers balance this with their ‘bad bankers’ image? Only time will tell if this can be a differentiating factor for UK employers.
By Christopher Van Mossevelde
Post-recession, the practice of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), alternatively known as responsible or sustainable business, will play a huge part in employer branding work in 2010. Read the rest of this entry »
The major focus now is to overcome the negatives of last year’s recession
By Christopher Van Mossevelde
HR professionals are positive about the economic outlook for 2010, according to a recent global survey conducted by employer branding company Universum. Nearly half of the respondents, from Europe, the US, and Asia, said that the promotion of their employer brand will be higher in 2010 than in 2009. One fourth indicate an increase in the amount invested for next year – an encouraging sign that employers will be active for 2010 after a rather dismal year! Read the rest of this entry »
Survey highlights the credit crunch effects
Universum UK releases the results of its professional survey that offer insight into the career preferences of working professionals in the UK. This year’s results show that the credit crunch and economic conditions have definitely affected their choice of employers and current career expectations. This year, employers in the financial services sector are not as attractive for UK professionals and do not feature in the top 30, with the exception of the Bank of England that stands alone in the 23rd place. Read the rest of this entry »
Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is ranked 40 by UK humanties students, climbing from position 58 last year
At BCG, individuals can “grow further”. Flexible career paths are encouraged and employees have a lot of choice around the path that will best support their personal development.
By Michelle Boyde
Interview with Stephen Huntley, UK University Recruiting Director at BCG
“International opportunities are an element of our new branding campaign, Grow Further, which promotes personal growth.”
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Google is ranked 1 by UK engineering/IT students
Life at Google isn’t just about fun – ‘Googlers’ also work hard. Communicating this duality has become a focus for the company.
By Michelle Boyde
“We’re perceived as a ‘fun place to work’ – which is certainly accurate, but not the whole story. You’ll have fun at Google, but you’ll also have to work very hard.”
Interview with Caitlin Pantos, University Programmes Specialist at Google
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Goldman Sachs is ranked 3 by UK business students
For senior management at Goldman Sachs, recruitment and employer branding is a top priority. Goldman Sachs considers people to be its greatest asset.
By Michelle Boyde
Interview with Sarah Crawford, Head of Recruiting EMEA at Goldman Sachs.
“Senior members of the firm think about recruiting and employer branding in day-to-day work life.”
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Morgan Stanley is ranked 14 by UK business students
It is an exciting time for talented graduates to join Morgan Stanley. There will be great opportunities available in the future for those entering the investment banking business now.
By Michelle Boyde
“It is easy to be a star when things are good, but it’s a greater challenge working in today’s markets and it is now when the truly outstanding individuals will shine.”
Interview with Stephanie Ahrens, Executive Director in Graduate Recruitment EMEA at Morgan Stanley.
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