1 / ‘More than just a degree: Improving employability and commercial awareness’ Gemma Minish

2 / Company overview A global engineering and technology company working with clients in: Defence Aerospace Transportation Security

3 / About me

4 / Graduate Development and Placement Programmes  130 UK Graduate roles  90 Engineering  35 Business and 5 Finance  35 internships and Industrial placements Engineering Stream  Various vacancies in Software, Systems, Cyber Security, Hardware, Electrical and Electronic, Test and Integration, Microwave, Antenna, Electro- Optics, R&D. Business and Finance Stream  Three 9 Month Placements in different areas of the business Interns and Placement Programme  Various Engineering placements across our UK sites  Available to all years.  Penultimate years are eligible for a graduate role automatically

5 / Aims and objectives  Share best practice & ideas  How can students improve their employability?  Insight into applications and commercial awareness

6 / Employability How can students improve their employability?

7 / Employability  Part time work experience  Charity work  Societies  Internships  Sports clubs  Attending skills sessions  Careers fairs  Careers service  Employer talks/site visits  Research & Google alerts  Learning and understanding

8 / Commercial awareness Insight into applications and commercial awareness

9 / Corporate Communications December 2010 Why do employers use applications?  First stage sort & ‘killer questions’  Demonstrate skills or ‘competencies’  Compare candidate to the competencies required  Ensure consistency in the process e.g. all candidates are asked the same question. Myth! Most employers do not use a computer to screen applications.

10 / Corporate Communications December 2010 Example: What has attracted you to this opportunity? What has attracted you to this opportunity at Thales? ‘Thales is a huge international company which has lots of different project using different technologies. I would love to work for such an innovative and forward thinking company that touches people’s lives everyday. I have researched the company and there are lots of interesting projects that I would like to be involved in. I am very keen to develop my skills and I believe that Thales would support me in doing this. I have been interested in Engineering since a very young age and so I was instantly attracted to this role. I have been studying computer science and I would like the opportunity to put my coding skills into practice. I believe that their would be plenty of opportunities for growth for graduates in such a customer focussed company.’ What rating would you give the example??

11 / Corporate Communications December 2010 Application questions- rating scale used at Thales 1= Fails to meet the requirements 2= Fails to meet the requirements, needs some improvement 3= meets the requirement, some areas for improvement 4= meets the requirements 5= Exceeds the requirements

12 / Corporate Communications December 2010 Practical Exercise  Think about what is good about the example  Think about what is bad about the example  E.g. anything missing? Spelling & Grammar.  Is there anything that could be improved?

13 / Corporate Communications December 2010 Practical Exercise How would we rate this example? 2 This example would not pass!

14 / Corporate Communications December 2010 Example: Positives/Negatives and Improvements Negatives/Improvements  The answer is generic and doesn’t mention anything that is specific to Thales. The example could have been written about any large engineering firm  If the candidate has researched the company then they should be able to name and specify the projects of interest.  What has led the candidate to believe that Thales is interested in developing them? They could mention our GDP or our values.  Spelling and grammatical mistakes Positives/Improvements  The candidate has mentioned their interests and refers to the role they are applying to, however this could be elaborated on.

15 / Corporate Communications December 2010 What should students include?  Ensure the answer is specific to the company they are applying to. Give specific examples  What interests you about the company in particular?  What interests you about the role you are applying to?  If applying to a Graduate Development Programme then mention this.  If you are applying for an internship talk about the benefits of doing this.  Mention how skills/experience relate to the role.  Check spelling and grammar.

16 / Commercial awareness Can mean many things….  Companies products, customers, competitors  How the company is performing in the current economic climate  Understanding industry trends and how this may affect the company  Ability to use information when making decisions  See the bigger picture of the organisation, understand how departments work together and how you as an individual impact on the company’s growth. Personal Brand and behaviours

17 / Commercial awareness- personal brand & behaviours Personal Brand and behaviours  Showing respect to your colleagues  Putting yourself out there- do more than just your job description!  Finding information for yourself  Professional behaviour at all times  See everything as an opportunity to develop

18 / Commercial awareness How can employers and universities help students to improve their commercial awareness?

19 / Questions Thank you & Questions…