Over 47,000 booth visits, 3,700 applications, and 3,000 webinar participants. The 2021 spring edition of EFMD Global Virtual Fairs came to a close and what a week it was! Here’s a recap of the job fair we held this past April.
Opportunities for students and graduates
The career fairs powered by Highered are full of unique opportunities for talent, schools, and employers to connect virtually. Through our platform, participating talent could talk with recruiters in real time through chat and video calls, and apply to almost 1,500 positions posted directly on the platform. They also had the opportunity to attend webinars, live conferences, and learn about the current trends in recruitment. Daily CV Clinics with Dr. Amber Wigmore Alvarez were joined live by co-hosts: Julien Bavencoffe and Anne-Sophie Berthelot from Audencia, Maria Moragianis from Alba Graduate Business School, Carol Baddoura from American University of Beirut, Rima Gilbert from Neoma Business School, Helen Dalling from Cranfield University, and Tuna Dağlı from Koç University. The CV review and advising sessions attracted over 1,000 talent to join live and engage with advisors.
Perks for recruiters at the fair
These opportunities are not only beneficial to talent. For employers, these career fairs are a powerful tool for improving brand awareness among young professionals and extending their reach.
What were the real perks for companies? We provided recruiters (as well as schools’ career services) with access to extensive analytics which allowed them to monitor their performance in real time. On top of submitting job postings, a chance to customize their virtual booth and hold webinars allowed to attract a larger number of potential candidates right there and then. This showed that paying attention to detail with employer branding during job fairs really pays off – we’ve observed a 9x increased engagement rate with these company profiles! We also offered participating companies a chance to prolong visibility of their job postings on our website after the fair and extending their reach to 600+ schools.
We were joined by 7,423 students and alumni from 157 top schools and universities worldwide.
A total of 113 employers attended the career fair.
Inspirational discussions for students and professionals
The culmination of each day at the EFMD Global Virtual Fair was the Digital Conference. The daily presentations held live attracted participants eager to learn more about our speakers, their topics and ask questions in Q&A sessions. We were joined by: Simon Bucknall (The Public Speaking Expert For More Inspiring Leaders and Finalist of the 2017 World Championship of Public Speaking), Erik Novaes (VP Procurement & Sustainability, Europe at AB InBev), Laurent Choain (Chief Partnership, Education & Culture at Mazars), Sophie Le Ray (Eve’s List), Vladimir Vulić (Digital Transformation Strategist), and Anke Strauss (Head of Talent Management at International Organization for Migration). Conferences were hosted by Dr. Amber Wigmore Alvarez, Chief Innovation Officer at Highered, and Jean-Alexis Spitz, the EFMD representative for the fairs.
We will follow up on these discussions in our blog. Talent may also rewatch these inspirational presentations in the GetHighered Talent Panel – practice public speaking, learn about the future of recruitment and remote work sparked by Covid or finding an inclusive and diverse workplace, and more!
Networking with employers and career services
Although we couldn’t provide snacks and beverages, daily Meet&Greets with participating recruiters and school representatives from all over the world served as our much anticipated networking events. These allowed us to provide support, answer questions but more importantly, to meet everyone involved and get to know the needs and expectations of our guests. We keep holding these events after the fair so if you are interested in finding out more, make sure to stay updated through our LinkedIn profile.
Kick starting a career journey with Pitch Perfect Challenge
Having had almost 100 students and graduates entering the competition for the best elevator pitch, we had a difficult time making the final decision. With the help of representatives from AB InBev, our main sponsor, who jumped to the rescue, the three finalists were announced live during our last Digital Conference – Zandile Mthembu from Cranfield University, Youngsu Jung from Grenoble Ecole de Management, and Abhishek Mangla from Nyenrode Business University. All finalists received a surprise gift from AB InBev and a personal career advising session with Dr. Amber Wigmore Alvarez, including a full CV, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile review.
What’s next?
Registration is now open for the autumn edition of the EFMD Global Virtual Fair, 11-15 October 2021. We continue to find further solutions to make this event the one you can’t miss, whether you are a student or graduate, university career advisor, or a recruiter.
Join us in October – register here.
