FEATURE29 June 2017

Casting the net wide

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Features Impact Opinion

In a bid to ditch accusations of elitism in market research, Kantar Worldpanel has adopted a less restrictive approach to graduate selection, as Abigail Macdonald explains

Job interview cup of tea_crop

Ours is a great industry in which to build a career. We work with data, yes, but our jobs are far from dry or purely mathematical. We encounter endless opportunities to investigate what makes people tick, and turn our understanding of purchase behaviour into competitive advantage for our clients. But – despite all that – there remains a serious disconnect between the reality of a career in market research and the fact that very few graduates leave university with a burning desire to enter the industry. Bridging this gap is essential in securing the best graduate talent from day one, and requires a more flexible approach.

Graduates are a huge part of our business – at our past two intakes in September 2016 we welcomed 29, with another 15 expected to join us in March. So how do we attract – and retain – the right people?

First of all, we create a level playing field. We intentionally cast ...