Wendy the Recruiter

So it was @thesourceress who first introduced me to Bright Futures some 6+ months ago. I have to say, I fell in love with the idea straight away. It’s a simple but clever concept which is totally symbiotic. Graduate recruiters get to meet, eye up and potentially headhunt the up-and-coming talent, while keeping their finger on the pulse of generation Y. At the same time, students get to network with corporates, get noticed, build their employability skills, gain experience and have fun. CLEVER!

Basically throughout the year the Bright Futures committee for each university organises a range of activities and workshops which are attended and sponsored by the Bright Futures corporate partners. And there are some big names involved, including all of the Big Four, BT, Tui, Nestle, and so on. Bright Futures themselves also have regional events where committee members can learn valuable skills (it was networking at the one I went to the other week, and very good it was too!) from corporates and external trainers to really help build confidence and make their society a success. They also run competitions throughout the year for all society members to take part in, with some excellent, employability-focussed prizes. From my side of the fence if nothing else, it is a very professionally run set-up which really achieves what it sets out to do.

Anyway. I umm-ed and ahhh-ed for ages about setting up a society. It’s a student-led thing (which technically I am) but my issue is that, as a non-full timer (and some *cough* 10+ years older than the majority of students) I don’t really have many student friends, as such. What I do have, however, is a core of bright, proactive final years who I advise on employability two days a week, so it was to them I turned.

I ought to have known better really. I invited all those proactive enough to have taken up my invite of coaching/support/whatever-you-want-to-call-it over the summer holidays to meet with me and discuss the society and how they might like to get involved. I knew they wouldn’t all turn up (it was technically still holiday time, after all) but, as it was, eight did. I thought that I was going to have to harangue them all in to joining or at least playing a part, and that I would end up doing the lions share of the work. As it was, every last one of them wanted to join the committee and roles were actively (though thankfully not physically…) fought over. I even bowed out as President so that one of them could take the helm!

I have been humbled by all eight of my fellow committee members over the last couple of months. They are resourceful, commercial young men and women, full of ideas and all working their butts off to get good degrees, apply for graduate schemes, work part-time jobs (in some instances), be good parents (in other instances) AND run our busy little society. They have helped one another out with all sorts of things and worked so well as a team, focussing on strengths and positives rather than weaknesses and negatives. We have nearly 100 fully paid up members so far and nearly 300 further students have registered their interest with us. Our first event will run before Christmas and I’m really looking forward to it!

Some of my blog posts are a bit hard on the students. Some of them are ranty, I know. This one is not.

The following Middlesex University Business School students are on our Bright Futures committee. If you are looking to recruit a graduate next year, I strongly recommend you start here…

President – Kenneth Izevbigie (also on Twitter as @Kenny_I)
Vice President – Julius Kessy
Treasurer - Kevin Izevbigie (also on Twitter as @KevinIze)
Secretary – Mansah Gbesemete
Events Co-ordinator – Martina Stromkova (though you’ll have to wait an extra year for her as she’s only a second year)
Public Relations - Dominika Bzdyra
Corporate Liaison Officer – Jaspal Jassal (also on Twitter as @JaspalJassal)
Corporate Liaison Officer – Natasha Tsoka