Employer Relations Team - Employer Forum 2020

The Employer Forum 2020 takes on a new look!  

Every year the Employer Relations team hosts the Employer Forum as an opportunity for recruiters to connect with Imperial College Business School, hear about new initiatives, share best practice and present questions to student panels – We weren’t going to cancel this important event due to the global pandemic!

The forum has historically been very well received and useful for setting the tone of employer engagement throughout the year.  Hosting large events virtually is nothing new to us, so it was relatively simple for the Careers Employer Relations team to host this event virtually.  The key was to ensure the Employer Forum was equally relevant and valuable to the employers that we work with as if it was on campus.

Although planning for the event was already well underway before the switch to virtual, as a team we identified the new questions and challenges that were emerging for recruiters and students alike and adjusted the event accordingly. Subsequently, the agenda that was delivered on the day was customised and sparked some very topical conversation that will inevitably have a positive influence on student interactions with employers.  

The forum included a presentation from the Head of International Student Support, Lizzie Huckle, who shared information around the post-study work visa scheme and the impact this will have for employers and students.  Secondly there was a presentation on Best Practice in Virtual Delivery presented by Sarah Grant the Associate Director of our award winning EdTech Lab, to support employers as they consider how to deliver engaging online recruitment events for you!

Lastly and arguably most anticipated by employers, attendees had the choice of attending two panel sessions - one which presented a panel of MSc students across various programs and the other a Panel of MBAs. These sessions received fantastic feedback and allowed employers to gain valuable insight into student experiences of the recruitment journey. Notably, recruiters are constantly trying to improve their processes and the Employer Forum provided a platform for Imperial students to feed into this process. 

Moreover, we had great attendance and engagement throughout the event with 60+ Employers attending from across the world. One of the benefits realised through online delivery of the event was the uncapped number of employers that we were able to host. Similarly, recruiters who are not normally physically able to attend were able to see what all the fuss was about!

All in all, in just a few short weeks this event went from virtually impossible to virtually thriving!

Catherine Crowe - Employer Relations Manager (Consulting Sector)