Strong points, weak points, expert knowledge and professional goals in ten years' time: these issues used to be regarded as the fixed components of the classic job interview until recently. A cultivated conversation with the personnel manager and the future boss. Dress code: strictly business − suits for women, suit and tie for men. In her approx. 20 years of professional experience as an event and conference manager, the Vorarlberg graduate in business management Nadja Fleisch experienced several interviews of this type herself. As conference project manager, she is now committed to injecting more colour into everyday recruitment.
She has organised the University of St.Gallen's recruitment event, the HSG Talents Conference, with a student team for four years. The centrepiece of the conference is the job fair with more than 90 companies and organisations from a wide variety of industries and regions.
"Today, more than a conventional
recruitment procedure is required"
Nadja Fleisch observes the changes in the industry: "Some years ago, personnel selection was a formal affair. Today, companies are trying to attract young talent in many different ways." Both qualified career starters and recruiting companies require more than a conventional recruitment procedure today: "Personnel managers want to know what conviction of the heart resides behind the formal clothes. And our graduates want to know precisely what kind of corporate culture they are letting themselves in for, how teams are organised and what development options they have."
Students appreciate the opportunity to speak directly with corporate representatives in order to learn more about their preferred company. The Company Dinner or the Confect and Connect praline workshop, for instance, are popular formats allowing people to establish contact in a casual atmosphere. "This helps students to get a feel for the company and the job above and beyond the run-of-the-mill online application."
Nadja Fleisch has already supported four teams of six students in the preparation of the recruiting event. "It's fun to observe these young people's personal development during the intensive working stage and to see how invigorated and self-confident they emerge from this preparation time. I like to supervise them as their coach, but I'm very strict," says Nadja Fleisch with a laugh. She likes to pass on to her students what she has learnt in her professional life: "According to Wladimir Klitschko's coaching motto, I teach my team that their personal incentive is the sole driving force behind their performance." The meaning of their activities must be clear to them, otherwise their motivation would not be sufficient for them to organise a mammoth event like the HSG Talents Conference with success − a good lesson for professional life.