In a society that is so focused on education, it’s vital that companies do all they can to effectively recruit graduates. The best graduate recruiters will take the needs of fresh graduates in order to entice them towards employment opportunities. Employment priorities have shifted in recent years, meaning that it’s unequivocally vital for employers to meet the needs of their candidate pool.
Listed below are some of the graduate recruitment best practices that all graduate recruitment companies in the UK must meet for a successful hiring process.
Opportunities to progress
First thing’s first, the best graduate recruitment agencies understand how important progression is to fresh graduates. It’s likely that you’ll be bringing them onto their first job out of education, meaning that it’s your role to assist them in their employment journey. No one expects to start at the top of their career; however, there needs to be a clear indication that there is room to progress and grow in a professional capacity.
Variety in the role
All the best recruitment agencies for graduates know how important it is that their recruits are given the opportunity to put their knowledge and degree to good use. Since graduates are fresh out of education, they’re keen to get going and apply the skills that they’ve acquired over the last three years. After the everchanging university years, a graduate will surely tire of a role that lacks variety, resulting in little incentive to stay put, which leads to job-hopping.
Flexible working
As previously mentioned, university life is exciting and freeing, meaning that graduates may not be enthusiastic about jumping straight into a restrictive 9-5 job. Similarly, the completion of university signals a new chapter in life, meaning that individuals may want to explore the world and start a family in the future. As a result, a graduate job recruitment agency should seriously consider flexitime or hybrid setups.
Rewarding work
Graduating is an extremely rewarding experience, and graduates aren’t going to want to let go of this feeling any time soon. Here at BMS graduate recruitment, we believe that a paycheque each month isn’t enough when it comes to displaying appreciation for employees. Nobody wants to be stuck in an unrewarding or pointless job, and feeling undervalued or trapped in a role can be soul-destroying. Fresh graduate recruitment firms can avoid this by praising and rewarding employees for good work.
Responsibilities
It’s a common misconception that graduates live with their parents and have fewer financial responsibilities than everyone else. Instead, many graduates have their own homes to run and even dependents to care for. Most graduates will understand that they won’t start a job at the top, and pay progression is something that comes with time and experience; however, you shouldn’t offer too low of a wage. After all, everyone deserves to feel comfortable and afford a good quality of life.
Good work/life balance
Over time, we’ve developed a working culture that requires long hours and a constant connection to the office. As a result, we’ve reached a “live to work”, as opposed to a “work to live” motto. Recently, graduates have recognised this imbalance between their professional and personal lives, which has raised valid concerns in the new candidate pool. Graduates are concerned about not striking the healthy work/life balance and the struggles that they may face in fitting a family around their career. Therefore, it’s important to make fresh graduates aware that they don’t owe all their waking hours to the company whilst considering their personal commitments.
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