MORE than 250 graduate jobs were announced at this week’s Northern Ireland Graduate Recruitment Fair.
The annual fair, organised by the University of Ulster and Queen’s University in partnership with NIJobfinder, gave over 1,000 recent graduates the opportunity to meet recruiters from over 80 key local and international companies including Citi, Kainos, Jaguar Land Rover, PwC, Herbert Smith Freehills, Randox Laboratories and Dunbia.
Speaking at the fair, held in the University of Ulster, Minister for Employment and Learning, Stephen Farry, said: “The calibre and number of jobs on offer here today is an extremely positive sign and a resounding endorsement of how talented and sought after local graduates really are. Sectors actively recruiting here today cover a range of sectors from financial services and IT, to law, construction and food production — key sectors which need new talent to support future growth.
“Today we see both local universities working in partnership to give local graduates all the support they need to showcase their talents to globally focused firms and position themselves strongly for a vibrant future career. Higher education is a key driver for the Northern Ireland economy.”
In addition to meeting with the companies, graduates and students gained valuable interview tips from past graduates, accessed advice from a CV clinic and heard from local entrepreneur, Niall Harbison, on how to manage the transition from study to the workplace.
Meanwhile, a new sales leadership programme has just been launched by the William J Clinton Leadership Institute at Queen’s University Belfast.
The programme, designed specifically for sales leaders, is targeted at those wishing to bring a more strategic approach to their sales effort. The Sales Leadership programme, which begins in October 2014, is delivered over three, two-day modules, with action learning groups combined with a strategic project. It also has the added options of one-to-one coaching and Institute of Leadership Management (ILM) accreditation.
At the programme launch, director of the William J Clinton Leadership Institute, Anne Clydesdale, said: “Sales and marketing leadership is a distinctive characteristic in the boardrooms of successful companies. We have designed this programme with input from some of Northern Ireland’s top performing companies and we are focused on working with sales leaders from all sectors to bring sales into a strategically focused position within businesses and organisations.”
The programme is fully supported by the Sales Institute of Ireland. BT, a company at the forefront of strategic sales leadership, is one of the organisations supporting the new programme. Peter Russell, general manager, BT Business NI, said: “This is a great new sales leadership programme and is one that I would definitely recommend for aspiring and experienced sales professionals.”
For further details on the programme and how to enroll visit www.leadershipinstitute.co.uk.