Dr Jonathan Levie and Dominic Chalmers from the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship are celebrating the completion of the latest Talent Scotland Graduate Placement Programme, held recently at the Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow.
The £1.5 million programme, delivered in conjunction with colleagues from Robert Gordon University, is an innovative scheme that allows high calibre graduates to contribute to the development of high-growth Scottish SME firms through a full time work placement. So far, graduates have been involved in developing marketing strategies, creating new business models and even launching a new high fashion clothing line.
Dominic Chalmers of the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship said, "I think the course is having a fantastic impact on the graduates who take part. The participants come from backgrounds as diverse as mechanical engineering and textile design, and for many, it is their first introduction to balance sheets, selling and business planning. The response so far has been very encouraging."
The scheme, managed by both Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise, will run until 2014. Ros Claase, who is responsible for recruiting graduates onto the programme, encourages academics from across the University to make students aware of the Talent Scotland programme:
'It provides a fantastic opportunity for graduates to take on early responsibility and make a tangible contribution to a business, with a range of opportunities and companies across Scotland. The learning curve is steep, but the benefits to the graduate numerous."
Dr Jonathan Levie, of the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship, said, “This scheme underlines Strathclyde Business School's ethos of being a place of useful learning. It demonstrates our commitment to the kind of knowledge exchange activity that will help develop Scotland’s economy by boosting the high growth firms that will create the jobs of the future."
If you would like to find out more about the latest placement opportunities, please contact Ros Claase (rosalyn.claase@strath.ac.uk) or check for updates at www.talentscotland.com/gppgraduates.