Graduate Solutions, providers of bespoke graduate recruitment outsourcing solutions for financial markets / services firms, were sponsors of the inaugural Here Is The City 'Best Firms For Graduate Recruitment & Development' Awards.

Founder Viv Dykstra says 'there are lots of awards for graduate recruitment, but most seemed to be confined to either student perception or the success (and therefore in reality the spend) of the campus marketing department and the materials / websites they produce. We wanted to sponsor an award that really looked deep into the processes and programmes of firms. We wanted to look beyond brochures and websites and the external messaging, to see how deep a firm's commitment was to recruiting, training and more importantly - retaining graduate talent!'

The Judges

The judges included the Managing Director of a financial services training company, the Dean of a business school, the head of graduate recruitment of a large consulting firm, plus former heads of graduate recruitment and development from a number of City banks. The shortlisted firms were subdivided into those that recruit Under and Over 50 recruits to ensure a more level playing field, and the judges were asked to assess submissions on the following criteria:

Is recruitment and development part of the firmwide strategy ?

Is training and development part of the core values of the firm ?

Is training and development part of ongoing individual objectives ?

Are managers at all levels routinely involved in identifying core competencies, participating in campus events, screening, interviewing, training, mentoring ?

Honest, realistic and credible presentation of recruitment and development process in marketing materials

Do the marketing material claims reflect the reality of the programme ?

Has marketing spend been well used to create an interesting and compelling graduate campaign

Under 50 Category

The winning firm was Barclays Wealth, where recruitment and development is headed by Sarah Hart. The judges felt that Barclays had made an industry-leading step in its recruitment and development programmes for the wealth industry. It was clear that Barclays Wealth had worked hard to establish a standalone brand - distinct from that of the Barclays Group - and that the training provided for incoming graduates was exemplary - well thought out, systematic and rigorous.

Close runner up was Nomura International, whose recruitment process in particular was commended - a unique and appealing brand and messaging on campus, a clearly defined culture and 'differentiated' offering to graduates versus the bigger banks. Judges commented that Nomura had made a paradigm shift in the last 3 years and now runs a recruitment programme that is as strong as any of the larger players.

Over 50 Category

The overall winner was UBS.

UBS was felt to have a very strong campus brand with a portfolio of consistent materials and a detailed and informative web offering. Not only this, but UBS was able to demonstrate validation of its entire recruitment process, from screening through to final selection, and to demonstrate that its recruitment process is slick and fully supported by the business. Beyond this, the firm's EXPLORE programme was similarly branded and packaged - with clear goals for graduates that extended beyond initial training and in to mentoring, ongoing development and retention initiatives.

The close runner up in the Over 50 category was JP Morgan, which was commended on their firmwide staff retention policies, and the very clearly evidenced commitment of the business to the recruitment process and campus initiatives.

www.graduate-solutions.com

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