It’s been a busy time here at Universum and I apologize sincerely for the lack of updates. The Universum Rankings have taken the world by storm.

It all started in May, when Businessweek published the 2011 Universum Ideal Employer Rankings. These rankings were the result of surveying over 60,000 undergraduate students.

http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/may2011/bs20110511_024823.htm

Then, in July, Fortune/CNN Money picked up on Universum’s MBA Rankings. These rankings were the result of surveying over 6,000 MBA students.

http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/18/news/companies/top_MBA_employers/index.htm

All this coverage prompted Joyce Lain Kennedy of the Chicago Tribune to point a reader to the Universum Ideal Employer Rankings because of its extensive amount of data.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/jobs/chi-google-plus-job-search-kennedy-20110724,0,7736688.column

But the best is yet to come. On November 17th, The Universum Top 100 will be printed as a supplement in the New York Times. Over one million copies will be distributed to some of the best and brightest minds around.

With all that being said, be sure to check back often for updates on all of the exciting happenings in the world of Employer Branding.

Universum held the Fifth Annual Universum Awards in New York City last Wednesday. The event was hosted by the New York Times and featured a number of talented speakers and guests.

The featured speakers included Yolanda Mangolini, Global Director of Diversity Talent and Inclusion at Google, Paula Caligiuri, author, professor and frequent CNN analyst as well as New York Times Bestselling Author and Businessman Stedman Graham.

The night saw dozens of awards handed out to employers who were perceived to be the most attractive as voted on by over 65,000 undergraduate and MBA students in the United States.

To see a full list of the winners you can go to Businessweek:

http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/may2011/bs20110511_024823.htm

Last week I mentioned that Universum’s first annual employer rankings for young professionals was released. The rankings saw extensive coverage and really helped ignite the conversation on just what makes an employer seem like a good place to work?

While many were content with just listing the employers as ranked by the 10,000 plus professionals, some decided to delve in more deeply to uncover just what makes an employer seem attractive?

Laura Vanderkam from the CBS Interactive Business Network decided to look at the rankings more closely and question just why a company that very few people are qualified to work for consistently ranks high on desired employer lists.

Vanderkam writes:

“Google’s perks in particular are legendary (free lunches! ball pits!) and nearly 25% of young professionals said they wanted to work there.

“But if you think about it, this doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Google’s a great place to work… if you’re a software engineer. If you’re a writer, chemical engineer, musician, botanist or any of a host of other specialties, the opportunities are a bit more limited.”

And she’s right, there are very few of us out there that would be qualified to write code, but essentially it all comes down to branding and positioning, two of Google’s strong points.

The Universum Survey is incredibly straightforward. Students and professionals alike are asked the simple question “Where would you consider working?”

The result represents the strength of employer brands regardless of industry or the individual’s qualifications. It’s not so much a job application as it is a wish list, and where employers rank on this list depends heavily on its use of employer branding and strategy.

You can read Laura Vanderkam’s article in its entirety here:

http://www.bnet.com/blog/time-management/what-makes-a-company-a-cool-place-to-work/373

Yesterday Universum released it’s very first annual IDEAL employer rankings by young professionals.

Universum surveyed 10,306 young professionals, defined as college graduates with 1 to 8 years of professional experience, and asked them to pick their most ideal employers.

The results have caused quite a stir with Google (chosen by 25% of young professionals) nearly doubling its next closest competitor, Apple (13%).

Perhaps the biggest theme that can be drawn from the rankings is that young professionals are drawn to the jobs with the most financial stability. This can be seen with major tech companies and government jobs leading the way over many other employer brands.

You can read more analysis into the Universum rankings and see the ideal employer list in its entirety in the Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703512404576208702115862760.html?mod=WSJ_Careers_CareerJournal_4

International companies are increasingly focusing on emerging markets for the growth of their business, given the pace of the economic development, size of the prospective markets and the cost advantage in many areas. This growth is fully dependent on the success of attracting and retaining the right talent to run and develop the operations. Yet finding the right people has been difficult. Similarly, in the developed nations, companies are faced with the challenges of an ageing population and a shortage of skilled workers – this has lead to the so-called War for Talent.

Universum, the global leader in Employer Branding, presents key arguments of why employer branding should be a core component of your organization’s strategy.  We explore the career and employer preferences of today’s students – or tomorrow your employees. We will discuss how to measure your activities, to ensure that you are implementing the right activities, and how to communicate to talent to fulfill your recruitment needs. Employer branding will help you be more successful in the recruitment and retention of top talent.

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To register for this complimentary webinar, please follow this link: http://www.ere.net/webinars/global-trends-in-employer-branding-and.asp

Communicating to the current generation does create its own challenges. Advertisements surround them every day…everywhere.  After creating the perfect Employer Branding Communication Plan, you have to get your message in front of your target audience. How do you ensure your message reaches your target audience?

Join us for a complimentary webinar on Tuesday, June 29th at 2:00pm EST to learn about our student publication, Jungle Campus, and how this media outlet can help you get the right message in front of the right audience. Jungle Campus accomplishes this by combining print distribution at 50 top undergraduate campuses with online distribution via the Jungle Campus e-zine.

Click here to view the most recent Jungle Campus e-zine: www.JungleCampus.com

The Jungle Campus editors work together with you to create the perfect message.  How? – By asking the right questions. With the unique profile feature in Jungle Campus, instead of you telling the students why they should work for you, a young professional within your organization gets an opportunity to let the students know why they do work for you. Students appreciate the insider information that they receive in Jungle Campus.

Check out what students are saying about Jungle Campus: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNFXCcv51cc

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To learn more, register for our complimentary “Reaching your Target Audience” webinar today!

When: Tuesday, June 29th, 2010 from 2:00pm EST – 3:00pm EST

Click here to register: https://universumusa.ilinc.com/register/rxyvfct

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The results are in!  Universum’s 2009 IDEAL Employer Survey Rankings and Findings are released.

Find out which employers over 61,000 undergraduates and over 6,000 MBA students ranked as their ideal employers?  And how the economy is affecting employer branding efforts on campus?  Do you know what students really think about employers being on Facebook and other social networking sites? Sign up for one of our exclusive webinars below and be one of the first companies to get a SNEAK PEAK of this year’s results and findings

To register for the webinar click on the link below:

https://universumusa.ilinc.com/register/tffkkcc

Do you have employer branding questions you want answered? Would you like the opportunity to pose them to employer branding specialists?

New for 2009, Universum Quarterly will showcase our new series – EB Surgery. In every issue, one of our experienced employer branding consultants will answer your questions, sharing with you their extensive experience in employer branding. Send your questions to: UQtip@universum.se

We are proud to announce the largest data collection results in Universum US History! We have collected over 66,000 total responses at over 330 top Undergraduate and 60 MBA programs. Capturing such a large population will provide high level insight to the career expectations of the top students in the US. We look forward to sharing these results with you!