Case studies: European talent acquisition manager: Ashley Hever

After finishing his degree in social policy and criminology at the University of Hull, Ashley joined Enterprise Rent-A-Car through a graduate training programme...

When I joined Enterprise Rent-A-Car, no two days were the same and this is still the case in my current role. I can be meeting with universities, visiting our regional recruiting teams or marketing on campus.

We have just launched our new recruitment campaign, which meant working on the content for our website and materials. I am also on various committees with the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS) and the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR), and I attend seminars so I can share best practice with our teams.

One day I might meet with our directors to update them on our recruiting strategy or I could be jumping on a plane to Germany or Ireland. I have such a varied job. I am a diversity trainer, which takes up some of my time as well.

I joined Enterprise on the graduate management training programme after seeing their advertisement. At Enterprise, we don’t look for a degree subject or grade but I have made use of the skills I developed on my course, such as team working, persuasive skills and leadership, which I used in my tutorials and group work.

I have to do research in my current job and analyse data, which I did on my course. I also have to lead and work in a team and my degree at university has helped me in these areas. I need to constantly keep up to date on current trends in recruitment. I also do a fair amount of presenting, which was something that also came up on my degree course.

I love the variety in my current role and trying to help students secure a graduate job at the end of their degree. I like using the experience I have had in business and passing this knowledge onto new employees joining the company. I work with a variety of people, both internal and external, from suppliers to universities, which is great.

I thrive on challenges and see them as opportunities. I want to ensure that when I am presenting to students, or other recruiters, that the information I am using is relevant, which means keeping up to date with new legislation.

My advice to other students and graduates would be to research the opportunities available; most companies have an HR function that can include recruiting so don't rule anything out. If, like myself, you join a company in an entry-level position, there is nothing to stop you applying and eventually getting a job you really enjoy.

AGCAS

Written by AGCAS editors

Date: 

November 2010

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