NBS Graduate Trainee Management Scheme

Graduate Trainee Management Scheme better graduates, bigger impact .do better business

Dean Skutela, Graduate Business Officer, NNUH NHS

What is the Graduate Trainee Management Scheme?

An innovative recruitment service offered by the University of East Anglia’s business school.

Matching talented and enthusiastic graduates to your business needs.

Nine month contracts where high quality business graduates will impact your business through specified projects or defined positions.

Graduates can bring enthusiasm, drive and fresh ideas to a business. They can tackle specific projects such as market reviews, cost audits or brand evaluations or provide necessary support to the continued operation and growth of the business. However, to benefit from the talent and attitude of new graduates, organisations need to identify and recruit the right applicants.

This can be a time consuming and costly exercise, sometimes involving intense competition for the best graduates. Norwich Business School’s Graduate Trainee Management Scheme (GTMS) is a straightforward, low-cost way for employers to overcome these difficulties and attract and hire high quality graduates that will help your business thrive.

We will work with you on an individual basis to promote your post, filter applications and prepare possible candidates for interview.

The only expectation on the employer is that the position is for a minimum of nine months at a salary of at least ÂŁ18,000 pa, pro-rata.

Target - we actively promote and explain the capabilities you require for the post/project

Filter - we select applicants of the highest possible calibre

Prepare - by training the applicants how to demonstrate their skills and knowledge, you can be confident in your selection choice.

Support - to help maximise the impact of the graduate we can provide pre-contract support to prepare them for the post/project

How does it work?

1. F inal year students interested in the scheme are selected and put through a comprehensive series of recruitment training and job readiness workshops

2. NBS staff meet with you to discuss your organisation’s requirements to help ensure you recruit the right candidate for the post/project

6. Successful applicant offered the post

5. W e help schedule the interviews and can provide a location

7. Flexible contract to start from July onwards

3. We then publicise the post and draw up a short-list of applicants

4. You select those students you would like to interview

8. Three months after the start of the contract NBS visit to collect feedback

If you would like to take part in this scheme please call 01603 592263 or email GTMS@uea.ac.uk

Frequently asked questions

Why employ graduates from Norwich Business School?

Our graduates are enthusiastic and ambitious - qualified in management functions and processes; including marketing, accounting, finance, supply chain management and HR. Our graduates are rated within the top one per cent of university graduates worldwide and our students voted us the top business school in the UK in teaching and assessment and feedback for Business Studies, the best in course organisation and management for Finance, and the best for learning resources for Accounting. Our overall student satisfaction is 94 per cent (NSS 2013) and UEA ranked second overall in the National Student Survey (NSS 2013). UEA is ranked as the top university in the UK for student experience (THE 2013) and is consistently rated among the very best UK universities for student satisfaction (NSS).

Is it necessary that the graduate is from the Business school?

Yes, this scheme is exclusive to business school graduates. They are in demand; the latest figures on the destinations of our UK and EU students show that over 90 per cent are in employment or are undertaking further study.

What kind of degrees will the graduates have completed?

In addition to our main business degree (BSc Management) candidates may have read for professionally accredited degrees in accountancy (BSc Accounting and Finance/BSc Accounting and Management), finance (BSc Finance and Management) or marketing (BSc Marketing and Management).

Why do employers recruit business graduates?

We think this is because Business degrees develop well rounded graduates with an ability to combine hard and soft skills; conceptual reflection with practical application, numerical as well as qualitative communication skills, analytical as well as creative thinking. Matching the working practices of business, our graduates are tested and assessed as both independent self-starters and team members.

Which employers have participated in the GTMS? Last year, in our first year of operation, we placed graduates with the National Health Service and Enterprise Rent-a-car.

Why a nine month contract?

Nine months are necessary to establish themselves within the organisation and make a significant impact on the business.

This length of time is also sufficient for the

graduate and the business to get a true impression of one another and decide how or if to progress at the end of the nine months. For projects that examine current performance and future possibilities for the business nine months is the right amount of time for a detailed and actionable analysis.

What kind of training do you provide?

We deliver a range of recruitment training such as advice on interviews, assessment centre experience and practice at presentation and demonstration of capabilities. For projects established before the contract starts we can provide initial guidance on how to tackle the work and approach the task.

Do you interview the candidates?

Yes, but only as part of the short-listing process. You conduct the interviews for the post and make the decision.

Why do you prepare the candidates?

Why not just let us see who is the most suitable during the interview?

The best at interview isn’t always the right appointment. By giving all students training it may help reveal the talent of a candidate that otherwise can be hidden by poor interview technique.

Does all this happen at a certain time?

Yes, we contact and discuss with interested employers from November to February. We then aim to schedule interviews from February with a start date for contract from July onwards.

What if the post will not be available until later in the year?

No problem. A flexible start time can be arranged with the candidates.

What if we need a very specific set of skills and attitude?

This is the advantage of the scheme. We can work with you to compose the advert and target the post to candidates that match your requirements.

What happens after we make an offer?

Once the graduate has been in post for three months we would like to collect feedback on the scheme and the person. If requested we can provide additional training or mentoring to ensure both you and the graduate gain the maximum from the contract.

What happens after the nine months?

This is up to you and the graduate. One of the benefits of the scheme is that it can act as a way of continually bringing in fresh ideas and perspectives as you can return to the scheme and recruit graduates annually.

What do the employers say about the GTMS?

“We are always looking for future leaders of the business. This scheme helps us do this.”

“They are valued for the knowledge they bring.”

Enterprise Rent-A-Car

NNUH NHS

“It was impressive how quickly they have been able to take on their roles.”

“I would employ every one of them in my business.”

NNUH NHS

External Consultant NNUH NHS

“Fantastic work ethic. For two months now Katie has been in the top five per cent of employees in the East of England.”

Enterprise Rent-A-Car

What skills do the Graduates have?

Our graduates have a range of skills and knowledge useful to your business. As business school graduates they have had training in the important soft skills of communication, time management and team working. They also possess a combination of quantitative and qualitative research skills necessary to perform market research studies into, for example, the purchasing behaviour of your customers or market attitudes towards your brand or company’s reputation. Their analytical skills enable them to carry out reviews of the competition, possible new markets and audits of internal processes and service delivery patterns. Our accounting graduates are particularly well equipped to conduct financial assessments and analyses of financial processes and performance.

What projects have the GTMS graduates completed?

The Graduate Trainee Management Scheme has been used to produce projects in areas such as operational processes, research into customer behaviour, activity cost analyses, redesign of performance management software, process mapping and redesign, internal communication studies and account auditing.

“I have engaged in numerous exciting projects since joining in July 2013, one such project included providing support for our Human Resources function during another department’s transition in to a new organisational structure.

I have also been involved in trying to improve one of our operating processes, utilising management tools to identify areas which could be made more efficient; ultimately improving patient care. My most recent research project was important for understanding what reminder services are preferred for patient appointments, to help us make more informed decisions for such appointments.”

Isobel Tubman, Assistant Human Resource Officer, NNUH NHS

Further Information Graduate Trainee Management Scheme Norwich Business School Faculty of Social Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich Research Park Norwich NR4 7TJ T +44 (0) 1603 592263 E GTMS@uea.ac.uk W www.business.uea.ac.uk/GTMS facebook.com/NorwichBSchool twitter.com/NorwichBSchool