Who is the right graduate employer for you?

As a recently appointed Emerging Talents Manager, I have spent the last 5 months connecting with students around different campuses. My conclusion after 5 months? I really feel for students looking for a job in this day and age. They get cluttered with information from different organisations almost on a daily basis and experience employers competing for their skills promising them the world. When they then join organisations, reality often looks very different to the shiny dream that was sold on campus.

Let’s be honest – every organisation has its dark sides and the reality is, you probably can’t avoid it. Every careers fair I have been to, I listen in particularly for this particular matter – keen to understand how much students can actually digest of what they hear. However, I felt so strongly about my own experience of spending time with students and graduates that I felt compelled to write this. The most important question to ask:

How do you cut through the clutter and find the organisation that is right for you?

I strongly encourage everyone to do their homework well when it comes to picking their first employer. These are formative years; make sure they are good years! My recommendation? Values first, experience second, leadership third.

Questions to reflect on for VALUES:

1. Do the values of an organisation speak to you? When we operate in an area where we can use our strengths, we perform better. An environment where what we say and what we believe in matches what the organisation believes in makes work a lot more fun and a lot easier. Imagine having to work in a butcher shop, when you are a vegetarian – find a place where your own personal values match what the place around you believes in and how powerful that can be.
2. Does the reality match these values? This is a tricky one, but probably one of the most important. Look for proof that an organisation is truly living up to their promise. Places like Glassdoor can help you to get an insight into what is truly going on and how current and past employees feel about the organisation you are thinking of applying to.

Questions to reflect on for EXPERIENCE:

1. Which size of organisation do you want to work for? With the size of an organisation comes its level of familiarity, its levels of intimacy and how visible you feel. Working for a small organisation often gives you a sense of "being more than a number". Have a think about what is truly important to you and take this into account when you are choosing your employer.
2. What type of experience are you looking for? The size of an organisation can play a huge role in the type of experience you get. Having worked in consulting, a small-medium organisation and in large blue-chips, I have taken something away from each. Working for a consultancy gave me a broad overview of industries and the different organisations that played a role in them - along with long hours. My experience in a SME gave me advanced problem-solving skills, experience of punching above my weight and resourcefulness - along with less access to supporting structures. And the blue-chip experience gave me breadth, resilience and political understand - along with sometimes restricting structures. Understanding the size of your ambition can help you to pick the type of organisation that can help you to identify which size of organisation you would like to work for.

Once you have applied, you will at some point come across leaders of the organisation you would like to work for. Continue to ask questions.

Questions to reflect on for LEADERSHIP:

1. Do you think the people you have met are credible and integer? Make sure you feel like you can trust the person you are interviewing with. If you feel like something is off - it probably is. Also think back to the experience you had on campus and how you felt when you met them there.

2. Are the people you meet roles models to aspire to? As human beings, we react to people we meet. We get a general sense of - are they people we would like to learn from. Do we feel like we want to be like them? To this day, it is one of my most important considerations. You want to be inspired by the people you work for, not question them.

In summary, make sure you test employers as much as you are being tested by them. Make sure your first employer is the right employer for you.