Workshop round-up: turning the 10 per cent on

This workshop, presented by Chris Phillips of GTI, looked at how to hook top graduates in an innovative way. Its key feature was the participation of students who have been involved in recruitment issues. The objectives were to identify:

• Five factors in an organisation’s image and profile that attract the high-flying undergraduate,

• Five factors in an organisation’s recruitment campaign that excite the same audience,

• Ten mistakes organisations make which have the opposite effect.

This gave tips to enable graduate recruiters to influence others – including their bosses. Amanda Vickers and Maureen Hughes of Learning Matters designed it to be interactive and gave tips on the interpersonal skills and techniques crucial to success in graduate recruitment. The objectives are to

• Increase self-awareness and the ability to achieve a rapport with those you want to influence,

• Create inner confidence and learn how to create a “win-win” result,

• Explore new ways to view situations from another perspective.

Norman Rae from the University of Manchester and Umist Careers Service and Jane Rowley from CSU demonstrated the value for students and employers in the growth of regional workbanks, which provide work experience across the UK, in response to the Dearing report.