Some examples of what Step students and graduates achieved in 2019

Its nearly a year since I published my last round up of what Step students and graduates have been up to, and a lot has happened since. We relaunched our undergraduate summer internship programme, and a number of businesses benefited from the contribution of undergraduates who completed projects over the summer. In addition, we arranged many sandwich placements, graduate internships, and placed graduates in permanent positions.

Often when we speak with smaller, growing businesses they are not sure where students or graduates may fit in; often it can be when a piece of work comes up that permanent staff don’t have the time, or sometimes skills, to complete. Or perhaps experienced candidates are not available for certain roles, and a graduate could provide the solution.

Here are examples of what some of our students and graduates have been up to over the last year…

  • A Midlands based manufacturer of health and well-being products launched a new product range and took on a Marketing graduate as a Product Manager; the role involved lots of liaison with and presentation to key channel accounts; social media work; and preparation of marketing materials.
  • A Nottinghamshire engineering business that specialises in the design, manufacture and installation of bespoke Automation solutions, took on three Engineering graduates over the year. Two were programming an industrial digital computer; and one was solving mechanical engineering issues. The business had been looking for experienced engineers for over a year, without success, so the graduates were able to provide a valuable solution, hitting the ground running and enabling the business to expand further.
  • A Marine engineering consultancy that operates in several industry sectors including Military, was looking for an undergraduate to complete a valuable project that was focused on the review and standardisation of internal procedures, and developing a standard operating procedure that could be used internally for consistency. We found an ex-Royal Navy, mature student who completed the project ahead of schedule.
  • A London based business that provides services to the Oil and Gas industry took on two Geoscience undergraduates to help with a range of projects. The internships went very well, and the business decided to take on a graduate afterwards. This is an example of a niche area, with specialist degree types– we were able to quickly get an understanding of the requirements, and deliver a quality shortlist of candidates.
  • A manufacturing business that supplies a range of specialist products to the automotive industry took on a graduate to lead on the implementation of a new computer system to ensure machinery was maintained at regular intervals. The project involved working with various internal teams in their Lancashire head office.
  • A Yorkshire based electrical engineering business with strong links with their local university, had an opportunity for a graduate, but the University had not been able to forward anyone suitable. We completed a pro-active search and found an ideal candidate who was based locally, and had the skills the business needed. He studied at the university where the employer had links, but had not been aware of the vacancy.
  • A rural Essex based manufacturing business had been looking for a CAD Designer without success. The business was upgrading their product range to fit in with a new market, and were looking to improve the look, feel and user experience of the products. We found them a locally based Product Design graduate who had finished his studies a year before, and had been commuting 20 miles to his first graduate role.
  • A Pension Fund took on 4 undergraduates through sandwich placements and summer internships for projects including: modernisation of communication processes; property investment portfolio management; and alternative investment strategies. By working with Step they were able to attract a more diverse applicant pool than normally, which helped to address an existing gender imbalance.
  • A Yorkshire based chemical business was looking for help with a range of activities including bid writing, pricing, tenders and marketing. A year-long sandwich placement for a commercially minded undergraduate was an ideal solution.
  • A Cheshire based medical plan provider took on a Graphic Design graduate who had full responsibility for a large in-house design project working with 250 clients across the UK; this was a key project that the marketing manager did not have time to complete himself.

If you would like to find out more about the services we offer to businesses please give us a call on 0115 8718740 or email nottingham@step.org.uk and one of our Account Managers will get back to you to discuss further.

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