1. New Recruits: 1.1 Image

Image

Research by MORI for e-skills NTO this year identified a number of issues that were affecting the image of IT careers and therefore the ability of employers to attract, recruit and retain the people they need. People from a young age see careers in IT as boring and requiring no interpersonal skills. They believe that careers in IT involve doing nothing but sitting in front of a computer and do not make the connection to the excitement they feel for aspects of technology such as the Internet and mobile phones. Copies of the report will shortly be available for members at a small charge to cover postage and packaging.

A number of employers responded to the research by agreeing to commit to action defined in the " e-skills Employers Charter ".

Action on Image has now been developed into a number of project areas. Action on inspiring school girls in IT has already begun with the Schools Workshops project .

In addition proposals have been submitted to:-

• Develop a co-ordinated PR campaign to address the poor image. It will use the huge interest of the media generated by the Charter (more than 30 journalists have a continuing interest in the story) and use the links and routes to all the target audiences identified in the Research stage of the project. As so much of the image children have of careers in IT is gained from television dramas produced in the UK, USA and Australia we will be seeking to address the image that producers and writers of drama have and portray. We have approached, and got commitment from, representative organisations in USA and Australia to work in partnership with us on this issue.
  
  
• Help IT employers to attract, recruit and retain people. The project will look at how the most successful IT employers do it, in this country and abroad, and disseminate this to the rest. The Research told us that young people are deterred from IT careers by the long hours culture and the lack of flexibility. Similar companies in the US are, by contrast, leading edge on employment practices. A number of UK employers have also found that, as they can no longer compete by offering higher salaries, they can be much more successful at recruiting and retaining staff by offering work/life balance.
  
  

Both of these projects would welcome the involvement of employers. Experience so far, has shown that the media are very interested in these subjects and we are particularly looking for employers who can be held up as exemplars of good practice and who are willing to devote time to assisting in the PR efforts of these projects.

Contact : Anne Cantelo on or

Identifying the need
Our recent survey of nearly 2500 students and Careers Advisers identified the gaps in understanding of graduate IT careers. The biggest challenges for students and their advisers are:

• Understanding the opportunities for graduates from non-IT disciplines and under-represented groups such as women and mature students
  
• Grasping the reality behind the job titles. Students want to know – What would I actually do in the job? Would I enjoy doing it? Should I apply – do I have what employers are looking for?
  
• Identifying organisations to whose business culture and ethos an individual is suited
  
• Gaining an overview of opportunities in SMEs
  
• Keeping up to date with industry developments and their impact on job roles and skill requirements
  

Please click on Research Report to download a full copy of the document (in PDF format). It contains some fascinating information about the careers publications that students actually use.

Project outcomes

• Labour market research to determine the opportunities for non-IT graduates and what employers require from them.
  
• A new website on IT careers for non-IT disciplines including links to recruiting organisations, answers to FAQs, recruiter tips and a jargon buster
  
• IT project case studies for the website showing business and technical processes
  
• A comprehensive and searchable case study database of IT professionals up to 5/10 years into their graduate careers
  
• A careers stand touring university careers fairs on the ‘IT for non-IT graduates’ theme. This will enable students to meet young IT professionals from varied backgrounds
  
• Multi-employer interactive events to increase Careers Adviser understanding of the industry
  
• An online forum enabling Careers Advisers to get up to date industry information from recruiters
  
  

Can you help?
Our partners include IBM, Accenture, PWC and Goldman Sachs but we want to reach any company that recruits graduates from non-IT degrees. Contributing to this project will cost you nothing and will help raise your own recruitment profile.

Contact : Jane Standley on or

The Project Gemini workshops have gone from strength to strength. From the initial pilots at Reading University and Surrey Institute of Art & Design, we expanded to top 12 UK universities including Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick, Bristol, Nottingham & Manchester. Originally DfEE funded, the participating employers Accenture, IBM, Logica and Siemens IT Services now wholly sponsor the workshops. Rebranded ‘IT is where it’s @’, they continue to attract and impact on students who would not otherwise have considered an IT career. 85% students rated the workshops as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good.’ New developments planned for 2001-2 include provision of women only events to address the gender imbalance, extension to a wider range of universities and inclusion of additional IT recruiters.

Contact : Jane Standley on or

A first for IT
In partnership with leading employers (including Accenture, IBM, ICL, J P Morgan, Morgan Stanley, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Unilever and Visa) and with the highly regarded Careers Research Advisory Centre (CRAC), e-skills NTO delivered the first ever IT Insight course in February 2001.

Students from all over the county came to work with young IT professionals and more senior industry representatives on a wide variety of industry case studies, skill exercises and presentations.

Feedback was phenomenal. Every single student said that the course helped them make more informed career decisions and that they would advise others to attend in future. This student's comments are typical:

"Fantastic weekend. Stimulating, challenging, exciting and fun. A great mix of intelligent and interesting people along with novel simulations and tasks helped to tell me about the industry, business in general and about me!"

Company benefits
The great thing about the course format is that it offers an invaluable learning experience for industry representatives as well as students. The IT professionals act as 'Young Managers'; and lead small student groups through the exercises. Their own learning objectives are constantly supported and reviewed. It's also a great networking opportunity for all concerned and a powerful recruitment incentive:

"It's important for the Company to be associated with such a successful event. The organisation gains information about undergraduates, and their expectations, and is able to promote itself to a group of highly motivated potential employees. We have received many applications, as a result of our involvement in the event, from applicants of a high calibre. Colleagues I've talked to about this event have been very pleased that ICL continues to be involved in such activities; it reinforces their view of the Company."

Diana Potter ICL

Participating in future events
Two courses are planned for the next calendar year and we are currently inviting additional employers to join the programme.

Contact : Jane Standley on or

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