University of Southern Australia Employment and Career Expo - Case Study Example

University of Southern Australia Employment and Career Expo Student Name Course Assignment Tutor’s Name Date of Submission Table of Contents Table of Contents ii 1.1 Report Outline 1 1.2 Description about the meeting 1 2.0 Major stakeholders and their role 2 2.1 The University of Southern Australia 2 2.2 Suppliers 2 2.3 The venue 2 2.4 Exhibitors 3 2.5 Transport services 3 2.6 Event organizers 3 3.0 Attendance Marketing 3 3.1 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) 3 3.2 Social media and Information Technology 4 3.3 Competing with other expos 4 4.0 Sustainability and impacts of the event 4 4.1 Environmental impact 4 4.2 Economic impact 5 4.3 Social impact 5 4.4 Impact of the event to students and employers 5 4.4 Green meetings 5 4.5 Sustainability metrics 5 5.0 Evaluation 6 5.1 Return on investment 6 5.2 Service quality 7 5.3 The future of the Expo and other recruitment Expos 7 6.0 Contingency plan 8 Recommendations 9 References 10 1.0 Introduction The career expo provides a platform for sharing information where learners looking for information and career opportunities get in touch with information providers who assist in career guidance, help learners make the right choices, and provide financial help to learners. Through the expo events, learners are able to make clear and informed career decisions after completion of their studies (Employment and Careers Expo, 2012). This report provides an analysis of the UniSA Employment and Careers Expo and how the event was successfully conducted. The report could therefore be used by event organizers in organizing future expos within the country and also help learners realize the need to attend Employment and Career Expo. 1.1 Report Outline The report is divided into five main sections: Introduction, sustainability and impacts, evaluation, contingency plans and recommendations. The report also comprises of sub-sections, and before the report analyses the sustainability and impact of the event, it provides a description of the business meeting, the various stakeholders involved and literature on marketing. The sustainability section covers the economic, social, financial, technological and environmental impacts to the event and how it affects the students study and career. This is followed by the evaluation of the meeting to ascertain whether or not it achieved the set objectives and then it highlights the contingency plans to be undertaken in case of an eventuality. The report ends with recommendation on what should be done in future to ensure such meetings achieve great success. 1.2 Description about the meeting UniSA Employment and Careers Expo is an annual business meeting that attracts over 3,000 learners and graduates. It provides the participants an ideal avenue for getting to talk to various employers to facilitate their intake and vacation internship since it brings together different potential employers from all disciplines (Employment and Careers Expo, 2012). The meeting was organized by the Exhibition and Event –Association of Australia and was held off campus so as to attract both the rural and the metropolitan students. The Employment and Career Expo was held at the Adelaide Convention Centre on 19th March 2013 and it commenced at 11.00am and ended at 3.00pm. Participants were requested to register in order to attend the meeting. 2.0 Major stakeholders and their role The UniSA Employment and Career Expo event was supported by different stakeholders and they include the University of Southern Australia, suppliers, venue, exhibitors, transport services, and event organizers. 2.1 The University of Southern Australia This is one of the biggest and modern Universities in Australia that has been in existence for over 150 years. The University offers different undergraduate and postgraduate programs which include education, business, social sciences, arts, health sciences, engineering, information technology and environment. The meeting was attended by the students from the University and they were given the opportunity to ask questions, and thus their presence and participation definitely led to the success of the meeting (International student guide, 2013). 2.2 Suppliers The UniSA Employment and Career Expo received support from Australian property Institute and Deloitte. Australian property Institute donated pencil cases and other career expo materials which learners used write notes while the Deloitte was appreciated for donating career expo material to learners. 2.3 The venue The meeting was held at Adelaide Convention Centre which is located in North Terrace, Adelaide South Australia and this provided the right avenue which contributed to the success of the UniSA Employment and Career Expo. The avenue was well organized and all the facilities used in the meeting like the audio-visual were all availed (Exhibition and Event –Association of Australia, 2012). 2.4 Exhibitors Exhibitions were part of the greatest contributors to the success of the UniSA Employment and Career Expo. Various employers displayed their capabilities and this attracted the attention of learners and other attendants. Some of the employers who conducted exhibitions include ACCENTURE, AECOM, ASC Pty Ltd, Auditor-General’s Department (SA), Aurecon (SA), Australian Internships, and Australian National University – ANU Legal Workshop among others (Employment and Careers Expo, 2012). 2.5 Transport services In order to ensure maximum attendance by learners and graduates from different institutions, the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure provided transport. This actually helped many students especially from the rural learning institutions who also attended the function. 2.6 Event organizers The Exhibition and Event –Association of Australia was the main organizer of the UniSA Employment and Career Expo both financially and logistically. 3.0 Attendance Marketing The way event organizers market expos have really changed over years. Most of them have adopted the use of social media to reach their target market. Initially, attendance marketing was basically done through print advertising and direct mail which limited the number of people who attended conventions. There is need to use the appropriate messages and themes to market the events to the target niche market. The messages and themes have to be reinforced by an outstanding educational content and a chance of networking. Currently, most event producers use email to market their events, although this is sometimes combined with direct mail (Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority 2011). 3.1 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) According to Baran et al, (2008) CRM is a process aimed at utilizing customer value by carrying out marketing initiatives which are built on customer knowledge about an event. It involves informing the target customers about the organization’s offer to the market. The UniSA Employment and Career Expo was able to carry out its CRM program by informing learners in advance about the important even which was to be held on 19th March 2013. Based on the past relationships, many learners and graduates managed to attend the meeting. 3.2 Social media and Information Technology There is an increase in the use of social media in marketing business meetings. Research indicates that currently, almost 90% of event organizers use at least one type of social media, which has increased by 40% for the past years (Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority 2011). The UniSA Employment and Career Expo used Facebook, Twitter and You Tube to market the event. Social media was used in order to attract more learners and graduates most of who are attached to such media platforms. 3.3 Competing with other expos In order to compete with the other expos, UniSA Employment and Career Expo experienced a remarkable attendance. Many students and graduates from different Universities were present and were also very excited about the meeting. The event organizers utilized the social media to reach its target audience, something other competing expos did not consider. 4.0 Sustainability and impacts of the event Sustainability is the process by which an organization performs its operations in that way promotes social, economic, financial and environmental prosperity within its surroundings. A company is deemed to perform well if a part from making profits to its shareholders protects the environment from destruction and improves the lives of its stakeholders and the entire society in which if conducts business (Elkington, 2002). The UniSA Employment and Career Expo was conducted in a manner that is economical viable, socially desirable and environmentally suitable. 4.1 Environmental impact One of the major sustainability efforts is environmental preservation which the event organizers emphasized. They discouraged the use of polythene bags or packages to carry food staff to avoid littering the environment. Students and other attendants were encouraged to use materials that could be recycled for use. 4.2 Economic impact Economically, the business meeting contributed to its growth to some degree. The business operations in Adelaide were at its peak and many vendors encountered increased sales of their products. The exhibitors also experienced increase in client attractions towards their services and thus the entire event contributed a lot to economic success. 4.3 Social impact The event provided an appropriate avenue for learners and graduates from different parts of the country to socialize with each other and encounter new life experiences. Also, the social impact can be explained in terms of how the event contributed to the success of the entire society in Adelaide. The UniSA Employment and Career Expo ended well and many people wished it continued for several days. 4.4 Impact of the event to students and employers This was the most successful UniSA Employment and Career Expo ever held and both students and employers gained a lot at the end of the day. Students who attended understood their career paths and got in touch with the various employers some of who assured them of places as soon as they came from school. They were motivated to work hard in their studies in order to achieve high marks. Most of the graduates secured jobs with good employers. For the employers, they were able to get the best graduates from outstanding Universities in the country who they accommodated in their employment programs. 4.4 Green meetings These are meeting that are organized in a way that preserve and enhance the environmental well being minimizing the environmental burden imposed by such meetings. As discussed earlier, the organizers emphasized on the need to use environment friendly materials that are decomposable or recyclable in an effort to preserve the environment. 4.5 Sustainability metrics According to Martins et al (2007), sustainability results from the need to take into account the three main aspects of sustainable development which are economic, societal and environmental aspects. This means that for Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo to cement its future, it has to institute deliberate measures to ensure it sustains itself financially, it meets the needs of the people within it and around at a the same time engaging in activities that conserves and preserves the environment. 5.0 Evaluation The best way to measure the success of any undertaken is by how well the set objectives have been met in an efficient and effective manner. According to National primary and care trust development programme (2004), the set objective must be SMART meaning they must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. Among the objectives set by Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo are to provide the graduates with employment opportunities as well as provide a meeting platform for the graduates and potential employers where the employers can have access to a pool of talents hence giving them the chance to select the best. To assess whether this objectives were met, it is paramount that the views of these pertinent groups be heard so as to take into account their views about the Employment and Careers Expo. A sample of the students’ feedback revealed that they were satisfied with the Expo with a number of them revealing that they got employment through their participation in the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo. Employers as well expressed their satisfaction with the Expo with specific highlight on exhibitor support, superb layout and very helpful team of staff (SA University 2013). 5.1 Return on investment Though at times it is difficult to measure the actual financial gain that a venture brings, it is always important to aggregate all the financial, social, political and other benefits brought about by the undertaking to arrive at the conclusion whether it was worth while engaging in the venture. According to Kaplan (2010) an organization should be viewed in four perspectives and data on each perspectives collected and analyzed so as to arrive at the best conclusion of whether the organization is meeting its objectives or not. These perspectives are the financial, business process, learning and growth and the customer perspective. Taking into account the analysis above on the social, financial and political impact of the SA Employment and Careers Expo, the venture is worthwhile to undertake. 5.2 Service quality In addition to the price and other qualities of a product, people measure the value of a product or service they are buying by the quality of service they receive when the product or service is being delivered to them. A quality product may be devalued by poor quality of service whereas an inferior product in comparison with others may be gain value due to quality of service in its delivery. According to the employers who participated in the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo, they were impressed by the work of the organizers citing the team of staff that was helpful as well as excellent layout of the exhibition stands. 5.3 The future of the Expo and other recruitment Expos Recruitment Expos offers a good platform to students to interact with potential employers and gain a good insight into what is expected of them in order to be ready for the job market. Additionally, recruitment Expos provide a good forum where learner’s career choices are shaped through interaction with potential employers or through discussion with people who are already in employment. In some cases, the career expos act as avenues where needy but talented students meet with potential financiers in the form of companies who offer to provide bursaries to such students (Amsced 2011). Recruitment expos are as well an avenue where the employees get to access a pool of talented students and graduates who are either ready for employment or internships. In fact, it can be a very convenient way of accessing such talents for the participating companies as opposed to placing advertisement on the print or electronic media. The importance of this Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo and other career expos means that their future is guaranteed. The increasing need for institutions of higher learning to produce graduates who are all round means that these institutions lay emphasis on the need for students to attend internships before they graduate as well as attend to career expos to shape they career choices. This means that these institutions remains committed to either organizing career expos or partnering with other organizations in their endeavor to ensure that their graduates are competitive in the job market. Employers are also bound to continue in their participation and support of the recruitment expos owing to the benefits they derive as highlighted above 6.0 Contingency plan According to Margiottiello & Chao (2003), contingency planning entails the elaborate process of developing alternative causes of action to deal with events that are likely to occur due to unforeseen circumstances. It entails the ability of the management of any organization to understand that the planned objectives are subject to many factors which are beyond them and therefore plan before hand on the next cause of action in case of any eventualities. It is all about thinking of the unthinkable and putting alternative measures in place (Deloitte 2011). In the event that an earthquake occurred and destroyed Convention center, the venue of the expo, this should never be a reason for not holding the event. The organizers of the event should have foreseen the possibility of such occurrences and looked for alternative venues beforehand. In these changing times of increased global insecurity, the organizers must have also brainstormed on possibilities of issues like terror attacks on the venue of the event and therefore identified alternative venues to avoid cancellation of such important event. 7.0 Critical thinking I my own personal reasoning, both the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo and other educational based expos should be encouraged not only in Australia but across the world due to their immense contributions to the prosperity of students during and after their studies. In Particular, the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo is highly recommendable for strengthening the student-employer relationship and relationships between different stakeholders. Any business dealings should uphold the principle of sustainability, and this was observed by the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo, which helped improve its relationship with various stakeholders and more so the society. This however, does not mean that the meeting was conducted to full perfection, thus there is need for improvement in areas that had weaknesses in future as highlighted in the recommendations. Nevertheless, from the experience I got from the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo, I realized that for any event to be successful, different stakeholders’ resources are inevitable. The Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo helped me as a student to appreciate the need for scoring good grades in the University. Most potential employers were interested in the best students from various Universities across Australia and this motivated me to work hard in my studies. In fact those students who perform well in Universities have higher chances of being employed by the best employers in the country. Recommendations Since the targeted participants are mainly from young and educated class of people, the use of social media should be intensified to reach and appeal to as many people as possible. Social media as a cost effective way of marketing will help the organizers to advertise the expo months away from the event and place unlimited advertisements. Top enhance sustainability of the expo, the organizers should increase the number of sponsors of the event to ensure that there is adequate funding. Use of environmental friendly materials that are decomposable or recyclable should be encourage among the attendants, exhibitors and employers to ensure minimum environmental burden is imposed on the environment. On the issue of evaluation, it is recommended that the time that the Uni SA Employment and Careers Expo takes place be increased to one week which will allow students more time to interact with the employers in an effort to influence career paths and also gain mentorship from the people already in employment. To mitigate against unforeseen occurrences like earthquakes, terror attacks among others, the organizers of the event must always put in contingency measures among them looking for alternative venues in advance in case something happened that would prevent the use of the anticipated venue as well as increasing security personnel and medical staff in case the unforeseen incidences took place on course of the expo taking place. References Amsced 2011, 3rd annual Sekhukhune career expo report, Baran, R. J., Galka, R. J., & Strunk, D. P 2008 “Principles of customer relationship management”. South-Western Pub. Deloitte, (2011), Euro contingency planning, retrieved on 6, June 2013 from http://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-Sweden/Local%20Assets/Documents/Euro-contingency-Deloitte-ACT.pdf. Elkington, John 2002 “The Sustainability Advantage: Seven Business Case Benefits of a Triple Bottom Line”. Exhibition and Event –Association of Australia (2012): Retrieved from http://www.eeaa.com.au/venue_enhanced_details.php?venue_id=56 Kaplan, R 2010, Conceptual foundations of the balanced scorecard, working paper, 10-074, Harvard business school, Harvard University. Margiottiello, M & Chao, H 2003, Contingency planning: addressing critical business process that support implementation of HIPAA transactions. Martins, A, Mata, T, Costa, C & Sikdar, S 2007, Framework for sustainability metrics, Industrial & engineering chemistry research, Vol.46, Is.10, Pp.2962-2973. National primary and care trust development programme 2004, Ten steps to SMART objectives, retrieve from http://www.natpact.info/uploads/Ten%20Steps%20to%20SMART%20objectives.pdf on 6th June, 2013 Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority 2011 “Convention and Exhibition Attendance Marketing Best Practices Study”, Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau. Employment and Careers Expo 2012 “Your Career starts here; Expo guide book”, The University of Southern Australia International student guide 2013 “The University of Southern Australia”. Read More