Natural selection Once a vital way of recruiting graduates, milk rounds are facing competition from alternatives such as internet campaigns and student placements. Helen Osborne reports
It used to be that milk rounds were all important. But with so many firms now taking on non-cognate graduates, it is unclear exactly how useful they remain.
With the internet bringing together prospective employees and employers at the touch of a key, you would be forgiven for thinking that the old-fashioned setting up of stalls at universities across the country is ready for redundancy.
Not so. For most major property employers, milk rounds still offer an effective and economic way to engage with potential graduate recruits.
Lambert Smith Hampton was involved with more than 20 visits last year and Keith Jones, human resources director, believes that they deliver results. He says: “During our graduate programme interviews, a high number of good applicants told us that they applied to LSH as a result of meeting us at milk rounds where they were attracted to the culture and feel of the business.”
The competition for winning over the best graduates is tough. Jones insists: “Investment in milk rounds makes a difference. It helps us to identify who we want and it gives graduates the opportunity to make a better-informed career choice.”
Alastair Hughes, chief executive officer of Jones Lang LaSalle, sees the milk rounds as a way to change any negative perceptions of large firms. “It is a good chance for us to describe the diverse career opportunities we have available,” he says.
At Knight Frank, the annual university visits are still an integral part of the recruitment process. Robert Hannington, who oversees this side of the business, says they remain the best way to reach a lot of people in one place. “We do our best to stand out and this year we will be informing students about our six-month European placements,” he says.
And Rowan Harwood, graduate recruitment manager at DTZ, is also a fan of the process. He says: “Milk rounds may be regarded as a bit old school, but for us they are a key tool. Nothing beats being able to talk to students one to one so that they can get a feel for the company’s culture.”
DTZ staff, ranging from graduate to director level, attend the milk round and – according to Harwood, a mixture of graduates visit their stall – including those who would not have otherwise considered surveying.
For some smaller employers, milk rounds are also a relevant way to reach the masses. Urmi Sharma, who heads Donaldson’s graduate recruitment and training programme, says: “Milk rounds are crucial, given our size in comparison to larger firms. It’s our chance to do the hard sell and meet people on courses, so they can get a feel of what we are all about.”
Around 90% of applications for Donaldson jobs come from graduates who visit its stall.
But for smaller firms that find the milk rounds unfeasible there are more effective methods of recruiting graduates, such as placements and the internet. Licensed leisure specialist AG&G approached Nottingham Trent University several years ago, offering to take on students during their sandwich years, and this led to a permanent role for graduate David Whittaker.
AG&G director James Grimes says: “This is an invaluable way for a small firm like us to recruit. We can train them over a year and it is a good way for us to see if someone is suitable.
“Milk rounds are not cost effective and we are not necessarily looking for academic brilliance. Our work is very hands on and sociable. So, this way, we can get to see if a student has the necessary aptitudes.”
Mutually beneficial
The arrangement has been mutually beneficial, as Whittaker points out: “I learned a lot from the sandwich year and then I was offered a job. It took a lot of the pressure away from having to find work.”
GVA Grimley is a larger employer that is no longer going down the milk round route. Hannah Tripp, who heads the human resources department, says that the milk rounds simply were not getting the message across. He adds: “There was a lack of attendance and students were getting bored of the presentations.”
The firm’s human resources team decided to change tack and last year launched a web-based campaign to attract graduates to VIP forums. They took place at properties with a relevance to GVA Grimley, such as Brindleyplace in Birmingham, which it was involved with.
It is too early to measure the success of the campaign, but Tripp says: “The number of applications was steady in 2006 and the quality of applications was higher than ever.”
Industry uses blogs to recruit
For many property employers, the internet is becoming a useful tool with which to recruit graduates. DTZ was the first company in the industry to use blogs. These are written by graduate recruits, with the aim of giving an honest representation for those considering a similar career. Here is an extract from a blog by “Matthew”, based in DTZ’s Leeds office:
“A game of two halves… it has been a hectic few weeks in the offices team. I really feel like I am getting stuck into the role now and am thoroughly enjoying my time here. The experience I am getting can be broadly spilt into two types of projects.
“Firstly, we have a number of smaller properties on our books at DTZ in Leeds, so these provide the opportunity for me to take responsibility for the instruction in terms of communicating with the client, developing an appropriate marketing strategy and entering into negotiations with prospective tenants.
“Secondly, I assist the senior members of the team on large-scale landmark projects such as Bridgewater Place and Wellington Street. These are two of the largest and most exciting schemes in the north at the moment so it is a great opportunity to get to experience on these at such an early stage of my career.
By working on these two very different types of jobs I obtain a great overview of the property market right from the foundations of the smaller occupiers and accommodation right up to the heights of the prestige developments and international clients.”
Recruiting in the regions and beyond
Most of the major property companies have the pick of the crop when it comes to applications for their places at London offices. But attracting high level graduates to the regions is not always easy.
DTZ’s recruitment process is standard throughout the UK, although some regional offices will target particular universities.
For example, its Manchester office targeted Salford University, as many of its students want to remain in the region. Rowan Harwood, graduate recruitment manager, says: “London is more competitive than other areas, while offices outside the capital have more difficulty recruiting. For those that receive fewer applications, we put out additional advertising.”
Steven James, head of human resources at King Sturge, agrees that it is hard to recruit in the regions in comparison with London. He says: “Using sandwich years in the regions is a good recruitment tool. Graduates often want to go back to regional offices once they have experienced working there during a year out.”
Milk rounds for the the rural division of Strutt & Parker are particularly useful for universities offering cognate degrees such as at Reading and Cirencester. It is the best way to get directly in front of a target audience that is looking for jobs specifically within the industry and to get a good hit rate.
Applications for work at Donaldson’s London offices come from sources other than the milk round process. In contrast, applications for its regional branches tend to be purely from those graduates from universities which Donaldson’s visited.
Therefore, those responsible for recruitment are aware how crucial it is to have a presence outside of the capital.
Last year, for the first time, King Sturge took its milk round to universities across Europe. Having recruited 25 European graduates from this process, there are plans to repeat the process in 2007.
James hopes that King Sturge will attract up to 40 students from Europe this year and the industrial specialist is working with the RICS to build a profile in Europe.
There are various aspects to the European visit, including a presentation on King Sturge, a focus on the particular country and a talk by a graduate on their experience of working in that country.
