Issue 117 - 29th June - 27th July
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Small can be beautiful when it comes to work experience17/03/2008 09:47:00This year’s award-winning organisations come from a diverse background and a range of sizes and industry sectors from all over the UK. Finalists include some of the UK’s biggest household names such as Virgin Atlantic Airways and Johnson & Johnson but smaller and less familiar employers are also well represented, including the overall award winner, Shetland Seafood Auctions Ltd. Shetland Seafood Auctions is a small company based in Lerwick and employs just seven members of staff. The business operates a flexible electronic auction which allows buyers to purchase fish directly or online. Heather Collier, Manager of the NCWE, commented: “We are delighted to have presented Shetland Seafood Auctions with the overall Award for Best Work Experience provider. We chose Shetland Seafood Auctions because it provided an outstanding scheme for students that allowed the placement student to develop a varied and impressive skill-set through the one- to-one mentoring provided by the company. Taking place in a comparatively remote geographical location where recruitment and retention of talent is often an extra challenge for employers, the excellent quality of Shetland Seafood Auctions work-experience scheme really stood out.” The NCWE Awards, established in 2003, highlight the growing importance of work experience in allowing students to develop transferable skills whilst also providing companies with an accessible talent pool for recruitment. The Awards recognise, encourage and reward employers who take the lead in the provision of valuable work placement opportunities for students; setting high standards for others to follow by offering fulfilling work placements that help students to bridge the gap between education and the world of work. Presenting the Awards, David Frost, Director General of the British Chamber of Commerce, commented: "The value of work experience cannot be understated. It provides people with something they can’t get from a school classroom or a university lecture hall. Real learning, especially knowledge of the world of business, comes from spending time in a business, watching the hustle and bustle but more importantly getting actively involved. When I visit companies across the UK, I encourage more businesses to get actively involved and to support initiatives such as the NCWE’s work experience quality mark." Sponsored by Centrica, PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR), the 2007/08 NCWE Awards span nine categories and this year over 200 entries were received. The winner and highly commended award in each category were chosen following a visit to all the short-listed organisations by NCWE personnel to review and assess the work-experience programmes. The full list of Award winners is as follows: Overall Winner - NCWE Awards 2007/08 Shetland Seafood Auctions Over 250 Employees – long term placements (4-12 months) Winner: Virgin Atlantic Airways Highly Commended: Microsoft; HJ Heinz Company Ltd Over 250 Employees – short term placements (0-3 months) Winner: IBM Extreme Blue Highly Commended: Procter & Gamble 10 - 250 Employees (sponsored by Centrica) Winner: Controlled Therapeutics (Scotland) Ltd Highly Commended: Paradise Park, Cornwall Under 10 Employees (sponsored by PWC) Winner: Shetland Seafood Auctions Ltd Highly Commended: AppSwing Limited Public Sector Winner: Yorkshire Forward Highly Commended: Lancashire County Developments Limited/Lancashire and Blackpool Tourist Board Charitable Sector Winner: Lancaster University Volunteering Unit Highly Commended: Barnardo’s; Portal Technology Systems Limited Best Work Experience Provider as Nominated by a Student Winner: Johnson & Johnson Wound Management Highly Commended: BBC (Radio Newsroom) Best Work Experience Provider as Nominated by a Careers Adviser or Placement Tutor Winner: Xtrac Ltd Highly Commended: Steve Hughes Car Sales For more information on the NCWE awards and work experience placements - www.work-experience.org, 0845 6015510 onrec.com news can only be reproduced with the permission of onrec.com or if onrec.com is attributed as the source.
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