Transcript Employer Engagement

EMPLOYER ENGAGEMENT
Breaking down the barriers to
collaboration with industry
Project Aims
 To formalise the channels and processes used to communicate and interact
with industry by the university.
 To use these channels and processes to develop more effective and efficient
relationships between the two.
 To share our findings with other HEIs and the STEM community in an
accessible way.
FINDINGS SO FAR
Review
 Meetings and interviews were conducted with a
wide range of individuals, including:
 Academic staff,
 Students,
 Professional services staff,
within the College of Engineering, Maths and
Physical Sciences and elsewhere within the
university.
 The responses were analysed and some
recurring themes for problems with engagement
were revealed:
FINDINGS SO FAR
Barriers
 Difficulties in communication between HEIs and industry.
 Lack of knowledge of industry/HEI needs.
 Establishing and maintaining relationships over time to
maximise benefit is a challenge.
 Lack of awareness regarding the communication channels
that already exist between businesses and institutions.
 It can be difficult to know where to find the most relevant
literature and in some places the abundance can be
overwhelming.
CONNECTING PEOPLE
CRM system
 A customer relationship management system has
been suggested as an effective way to keep track
of ongoing relationships with industry.
 It was cited as a useful tool to quickly research
interactions with a particular company in order to
present a professional image to industry.
 Concerns have been raised over privacy and
personal contacts – suggestions have been made
about how to overcome these issues.
 Implementation – College-wide or institution-wide?
Discussions are ongoing with staff at all levels to
decide how best to move forward with this.
CONNECTING PEOPLE
Brochure
 A brochure has been suggested as a way to outline to employers
the procedures involved to engage with the College.
 It could also be used within the University as a way to ensure
that employers always get directed to the relevant person, no
matter who they contact.
 Engagement for a project is often seen as difficult to achieve.
 A brochure should clarify what the different types of engagement
entail, what would be required and what the benefits are.
 However, it is noted that for employers, an innovative design
(e.g. not a traditional paper booklet) would be necessary to
capture their interest.
 One idea that was suggested by an employer would be to store
all relevant information on a credit card-shaped memory stick to
distribute to employers at networking events.
SUMMARY
 Improve communication between the university
and industry.
 Contribute towards the implementation of a
CRM system.
 Develop a employer-facing college brochure.
 Ensure the materials are accessible.
PROJECTS WITHOUT BORDERS:
UNDERSTANDING HOW
UNDERGRADUATE PROJECTS
DIFFER ACROSS STEM DISCIPLINES
Project Aims
 To improve the quantity and quality of industrial involvement in student projects in the
College of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Sciences.
 Discover the specific barriers to engagement for different types of project.
 Research best practice to overcome these barriers, both within the university and in the
available literature.
 Build a guide to enable different types of projects to be compared with these best practice
examples, and to draw on relevant recommendations.
 Ensure that this information is easily accessible
STUDENT PROJECTS
Findings so far
 The majority of students who have had involvement with industry are
positive about their experience. Some reasons include:
Improved employability
Good experience
Enjoyable/something different
Learnt new skills
 Established links with industry – through research etc. – sometimes
lead to further collaboration through student projects.
 Maximising engagement with existing industrial partners is seen to be
very important.
 A good relationship with an industrial partner can help motivate the
student.
STUDENT PROJECTS
Barriers
 Discrepancies between project timings and
industry timings can lead to problems.
 Employers are sometimes unsure which year group
would be most appropriate for their needs.
 Communication between the student, academic
supervisor and industrial partner needs to be sustained
for the project to be successful.
 If employers have a bad experience with a student
project, they will be more reluctant to engage in future.
 Intellectual property rights and nondisclosure
agreements (or lack of) have caused problems for
many student projects.
 Not all employers see the value in a student project
COMMUNICATION
Communicating with Industry
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As a result of our investigations, we aim to produce
guidance to help universities ensure that engagement
with industry for student projects is effective, no matter
which stage they are at, or the type of project.
We particularly want to present this information in an
accessible way.
Much engagement relies on “repeat business” after a
good experience – we hope that our guidance will
minimise the chances of a negative experience.
Our work will emphasise the importance of clarity and
outlining expectations at every stage of a student
project.
In short – communication is key!