What if you could do a test run for candidates, get some new creative ideas, and increase your employer branding all at once?
What if you could pit top graduates against each other with a winner-takes-all prize? A sort of “Intern Survivor” so to speak. That’s the idea behind graduate recruitment organization TalentEgg’s new initiative, TalentEgg Challenges.
Don’t worry, there’s something in it for the students and graduates as well.
When an organization sets a challenge, participants have a month to put together a solution. If they produce something acceptable they get a certificate of skills, as well as something they can add to a portfolio.
“It’s an accessible way for students to get that experience,” TalentEgg founder Lauren Friese said. “It levels the playing field and it’s a way for an organization to see potential recruits and build employer branding.”
Internships have often been accessible only to people with the monetary support to take three months unpaid or under-paid work. The Challenges are a way for those who can’t afford to take part in an internship to prove their abilities, even outside their field of study.
“It can be hard for an employer to understand how someone with a background in sociology can do their marketing job,” Friese said. “This helps employers make better hiring decisions by looking beyond people with degrees in marketing.”
Purolator saw the opportunity when they partnered with Talent Egg to launch the new program.
“It’s a chance to engage young minds early and become an employer of choice, and also get great innovative ideas,” Purolator corporate strategy and innovation manager Erik Ragotte, said.
Purolator’s challenge was for participants to suggest strategies and tactics to improve their social media use – taking into consideration the fact that the bulk of their business was corporate, not consumer.
“We have the Purolator Innovation Program, which includes employee idea generation to encourage innovation and learning,” Ragotte said. This way we get innovation from outside our organization as well. There are things students can provide that are potentially out of the box compared to what someone inside the organization would consider.”
With 200 participants signed up within the first couple of days, TalentEgg and Purolator expected a good outcome for the first challenge.
Don’t worry, there’s something in it for the students and graduates as well.
When an organization sets a challenge, participants have a month to put together a solution. If they produce something acceptable they get a certificate of skills, as well as something they can add to a portfolio.
“It’s an accessible way for students to get that experience,” TalentEgg founder Lauren Friese said. “It levels the playing field and it’s a way for an organization to see potential recruits and build employer branding.”
Internships have often been accessible only to people with the monetary support to take three months unpaid or under-paid work. The Challenges are a way for those who can’t afford to take part in an internship to prove their abilities, even outside their field of study.
“It can be hard for an employer to understand how someone with a background in sociology can do their marketing job,” Friese said. “This helps employers make better hiring decisions by looking beyond people with degrees in marketing.”
Purolator saw the opportunity when they partnered with Talent Egg to launch the new program.
“It’s a chance to engage young minds early and become an employer of choice, and also get great innovative ideas,” Purolator corporate strategy and innovation manager Erik Ragotte, said.
Purolator’s challenge was for participants to suggest strategies and tactics to improve their social media use – taking into consideration the fact that the bulk of their business was corporate, not consumer.
“We have the Purolator Innovation Program, which includes employee idea generation to encourage innovation and learning,” Ragotte said. This way we get innovation from outside our organization as well. There are things students can provide that are potentially out of the box compared to what someone inside the organization would consider.”
With 200 participants signed up within the first couple of days, TalentEgg and Purolator expected a good outcome for the first challenge.