To ensure every student completed a work placement, we realised we needed more placement opportunities. To secure these, we increased our collaboration with businesses in the community and arranged for additional investment in our central team to support industry engagement. Dealing with employability challenges Before we could embark on our mission to improve employability, we needed to thoroughly understand the challenges faced by our students. Sheffield Business School at Sheffield Hallam University is located in South Yorkshire with an economy largely made up of the public sector and SMEs. We wanted to offer students the opportunity to gain experience within the types of organisations where they might like to work after graduation. To make this a reality, the business school – and the wider university – has worked extensively with community groups, third sector, social enterprises and businesses of all sizes to secure real-life projects for students to work on. Sheffield’s businesses present interesting opportunities and projects that can cut across marketing, HR and sales, so the students get a real variety of experience on their work placements. Such industry links are embedded throughout every aspect of the business school curriculum. The school strengthens its connections with the local business community through advisory boards, which are made up of knowledgeable and experienced individuals from across the private and public sectors. There is one for management, another that is more related to the service sector and a third linked to finance, accounting and banking. The boards have multiple purposes, but one of their key tasks is to develop the links between Sheffield Business School and the wider business, academic and policy communities. The employee advisory boards support us in a number of ways, including by connecting us with other businesses; helping us when we go through portfolio and curriculum changes; bringing opportunities around projects and consultancy for students, as well as long and short-term placements and graduate jobs. As an example, we have worked closely with a family business called Pricecheck, an award‑winning international wholesaler and FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) distributor based in Sheffield. Every year, we have a large number of students working on projects and placements and a number of alumni joining their
graduate scheme. Pricecheck trusts us to provide them with highly skilled and engaged students and graduates; they particularly recruit from our international business (which includes foreign language tuition) and marketing courses. Making applied learning a reality Throughout each degree at Sheffield Business School, students gradually build on the type of work experience opportunities offered. Starting small, we expand on their previous knowledge during each year of the degree programme and offer students bigger opportunities. There is a core element of professional development and reflection to help students boost their broader employability skills. They gain practical, hands-on knowledge, as well as exposure to problem-solving, networking and data analytics. For example, in the first year of a degree programme, students gain exposure to industry through guest speakers, events and integration
40 | Ambition | JULY/AUGUST 2024
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