17 July 2009
	TOP COMPANIES Finding the cream of the crop By Reneé Olivier

FM Campus finds out how SA's Top five companies to work for attract, and keep, the best talent When considering a career path it is obvious to focus on what the market needs, but in a twist of roles, more and more companies are realising that to be the best they must attract top talent, and retain it. These progressive companies have acknowledged that even when the economy is tight, critical talent always has options. To track their progress as sought-after employers, more than a hundred corporations annually opt to participate in Deloitte's "The Best Companies to Work for" Survey. The big hitter From this war for talent, a group of companies has emerged that is now recognised and sought after as preferred employers. WesBank, the "Large Company" category winner for two consecutive years, reported a definite link between market performance and its success in the survey. "Without a doubt, employee perceptions about their work environment colour their motivation, attitude and overall contribution - all of which has a considerable impact on company performance," said WesbBank CEO Brian Riley. Though the company is currently not hiring, their Employer Employee Value Proposition programme caters for graduates. Scarce skill search Santam, the runner-up in the "Large Company" category, has a number of departments that offer opportunities to graduates. These range from general fields such as HR, marketing, finance and internal auditing, to more specialised fields such as underwriting, claims and product development. "One of our main focus areas of late is recruiting to fill scarce skills within the company. Graduates are invited to visit our website where they will find more information about our Graduate Development Programme. They must send us a 100-word cover letter together with a CV and their latest transcript of results," said Santam communication specialist Ella Janson. TOP FIVE TALENT ATTRACTORS Deloitte's have singled out, in order of importance, five vital factors employers must ensure to retain talent. Quality of relationship with supervisor or manager Ability to balance work and home life Amount of meaningful work - feeling of making a difference Level of co-operation with co-workers Level of trust in the workplace Janson added that the Graduate Development Programme, which takes about 10 graduates a year, runs for two years. Graduates are then placed in various departments and assigned a mentor who will support them. Once they have completed the programme these graduates can quickly move "up the ladder" if they have the right attitude and drive, she added. Janson said aspects taken into consideration when selecting graduates were field of study and scarcity of skill, academic results, motivation in the cover letter, and employment equity. Once candidates were shortlisted, important performance indicators included attitude, alignment with company values and results in internal assessments. She said that rather than being completely negative, the recession had assisted Santam in attracting the right people for the jobs available. Emphasis on education Listed fourth in the "Large Company" category, Engen Petroleum recruits online. Positions available within the company range from those in engineering, architecture, marketing and finance, to health and safety, and human resources. Group communications manager Tania Landsberg said in order to grow the pool of these critical skills, not only for Engen but for the industry as a whole, the company has for many years focused on education, particularly maths and science. Engen also runs a Graduate Development Programme, which identifies prospective talent as early as high school level through a feeder bursary programme. It also offers a career path for new graduates through the talent development programme. "We look for students with high performance, positive attitudes, high energy levels and who are self-starters. Also important is the ability to use initiative, have good communication skills and the desire to succeed." Landsberg said the most important personality traits looked for during the interviewing process were honesty and the ability to be realistic. The leadership pool While many large corporations have in-house graduate programmes, Deloitte's Graduate Academy caters for graduates who have not received bursaries and scholarships, but who have nevertheless proved to be good performers at tertiary level. "Despite the downturn in the economy, there are still corporations investing in graduate programmes such as ours," said director of human capital David Conradie. With up to three intakes a year, the programme is similar to a finishing school for graduates, ensuring that they are business-ready and orientated to the world of work. Conradie said Deloitte's made a special effort to match its interns to the correct company, as they were paid a salary for the duration of the programme. He added that course work not only brought graduates up to speed on work skills, but also included new content such as managing through a downturn. Though acceptance into the graduate programme was guided by each individual company's recruitment requirements; typically characteristics such as leadership capabilities, steady academic scores and emotional maturity were essential for candidates' acceptance. Tips for job-hunting graduates According to Conradie, graduates should be careful not to sell themselves short in a recession. It is important for those entering the work force for the first time to take a medium to long-term view and to not concentrate entirely on remuneration. There is a risk to believing that the best paying job is the best job or that any job is better than no job at all. "Especially in this economic climate, it is possible to become trapped in an unsuitable job, which does not benefit the employer or the employee. So before accepting an offer of employment it is vital to look at the whole employment package, at the value proposition," Conradie explained. "Graduates entering the workplace must inquire about the reputation a company has as an employer, whether it is an organisation into which they will fit and if there is opportunity to grow and develop. A lot sits in the hands of management and leaders, whose importance should not be underestimated. Prospective employees must do due diligence on these factors," he warned. To see the full list of category and industry winners go to www.bestcompany.co.za